Boston Bruins defenseman Nikita Zadorov is never one to shy away from anything. Trash talk, physical play, fighting, creating offense, bone-crashing hits, you name it, the big bruising blueliner will do it.
Back in March, Zadorov laid a big hit on Buffalo Sabres star Tage Thompson, and it didn't sit well with Buffalo tough guy Jordan Greenway. Zadorov was not penalized on the play, but Greenway took exception to the hit, and Zadorov obliged, dropping the gloves and fighting. Apparently, Greenway isn't as tough as he makes himself out to be when the roles are reversed.
In the second period of Thursday night's Bruins 4-3 overtime win over the Sabres, Greenway laid a heavy hit on Boston first-line center Elias Lindholm at center ice. The second-year Black and Gold forward didn't see the hit coming. Zadorov wanted Greenway, again, who claims to be a tough guy, to drop the gloves and give him a fight, but the Sabres forward declined.
Nikita Zadorov calls out Sabres forward Jordan Greenway
Following the overtime win where the Bruins blew a two-goal third-period lead, head coach Marco Sturm said they didn't know the extent of his injury, hoping to have more answers on Friday. Zadorov wanted Greenway to answer for the hit, but he declined. That didn't stop Zadorov from calling out the former Boston University player after the game.
“If I have to fight after clean hits, when I hit their top player, I gave the guy a fight last year. I think it would be fair to give me a fight back," Zadorov said. “I know it was not intentional, but that’s one of our best players. That’s my brother. I thought that would be a fair trade-off. But he didn’t want it. So yeah”
Apparently, Zadorov wasn't the only player on the Bruins bench who wanted Greenway to answer for the hit, as Sturm said that Zadorov wasn't the only one looking to fight Buffalo's forward, which he was glad to see.
Now we'll wait and see what the word is on Lindholm, and it didn't look good when he was being helped off the ice. The two teams will meet twice more, both in Buffalo, with the next meeting on Dec. 27.