However you weigh in on some of the violence from the Tampa Bay Lightning’s 4-2 win against the Buffalo Sabres, it sure seems like the two teams have a healthy distaste for each other.
Two moments stand out, in particular, from Thursday’s game.
For one thing, Evander Kane received a two-minute penalty for high-sticking, an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty and a 10-minute misconduct for taking this jab at Ben Bishop:
For what it’s worth, the Sabres have a different side of that story:
Kane/Bylsma hated last call on followthrough. Kane: "Your stick comes up, gets lifted by their defenseman. I guess I was a little confused."
— Mike Harrington (@ByMHarrington) January 13, 2017
Circling back to that earlier point, either way, we know these teams don’t seem to like each other.
Watch as Victor Hedman gets in a rare fight with Marcus Foligno in the video above this post’s headline. Judging by this post’s main image (featuring Hedman in a scuffle with then-Sabres pest Steve Ott), the Sabres have a knack for making the big Bolts blueliner angry.
The two teams meet again, but not until a March 4 game in Buffalo, so some of those hard feelings are likely to settle down. Then again, hockey players tend to have long memories ...