Ryan Reaves speaks out after Arber Xhekaj demolishes Cedric Pare

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Axel Williams
October 2, 2024 (8:36)

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Ryan Reaves is the Toronto Maple Leafs' resident tough guy, so it should be no surprise he would have an opinion on Arber Xhekaj and Cedric Pare.

After Pare hit Laine in a knee-on-knee collision, Xhekaj hunted Pare and ended up delivering a beatdown. However, a lot of people were not amused with this. Some felt that Xhekaj should have been suspended. Meanwhile, some theorized what Reaves would do. Well, while speaking to reporters, Reaves actually started by speaking on Laine's injury.

"Obviously an unfortunate play. I know Pare wasn't trying to do anything malicious. Feel for Laine, trying to reboot his career in a new city, just obviously an unfortunate play."

Reaves eventually got into what Xhekaj did. Instead of reacting with anger over what happened to his teammate, Reaves took a very levelheaded approach. Essentially, he believes that these things just happen in the sport. He knows that Xhekaj has a job to do, and it is as simple as that.

"He's (Xhekaj) there to do his job and the league dealt with it the way they dealt with it... I'm sure everybody wished it was handled differently and obviously that the incident didn't happen... Those things happen in hockey, it's fast game."

Do you believe that Reaves is going to fight Xhekaj after all of this? Let us know in the poll down below and stay tuned to Hockey Unplugged for the latest news and updates from around the hockey world. We will continue to keep you informed on all of your favorite players and teams.

Source: Puck Reporter
Ryan Reaves sends a message to the Montreal Canadiens following Arber Xhekaj's violent attack on Cedric Pare