Montreal's Arber Xhekaj threatens Toronto's Ryan Reaves!

The Toronto Maple Leafs brought in tough customer Ryan Reaves for occasions like this. 

He's already hearing it from Arber Xhekaj, a tough guy in his own right for the Original 6 and division rival Montreal Canadiens ahead of their preseason matchup tonight.

“Obviously he’s a physical player,” Xhekaj said when asked about Reaves. “I’m a physical player. So I don’t know, we might run into each other a few times… we’ll see.”

A towering defenseman at 6'4, Xhekaj is coming off shoulder surgery that he underwent during the summer. And while he may be a bit more careful about picking his battles this year, he won't hesitate to step in and defend a teammate. 

“If the team needs something then I’m there to step up,” he said. “If we’re getting picked on, we’re getting bullied out there — I’m going to step up. It’s all about the team for me.”

For Reaves, who is never one to shy away from dropping the gloves, he absolutely ripped the idea of the NHL banning fighting earlier this summer as the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League did. 

We'll hope to see some fireworks between the two intimidating physical players tonight!

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