NHL fans on social media reacted as Habs defenseman Arber Xhekaj delivered a knockout blow to Buffalo Sabres forward Sam Carrick in the dying seconds of Game 3 on Sunday.
Xhekaj and Carrick grabbed hold of each other in a routine post-play exchange after the Canadiens had already secured a 6-2 victory. Arber Xhekaj then landed a clean, solid hook to Carrick’s chin, sending the Sabres veteran crashing to the ice while both players still had their gloves on.
Officials assessed both players two-minute minor penalties for roughing.
Here’s how fans on X (formerly called Twitter) reacted. One tweeted:
“Easily the most deserved punch, did the kid a favor cause had he of dropped the mitts with Arber, it would have been the same outcome, Carrick got a taste for throwing punches first.”
Another chimed in:
“Carrick throwing punches until he looked up and saw who it was. He was promptly sent to bed early.”
Here are some of the other top reactions on X:
“Yeah it was a dirty punch but Sabres have been so dirty since game #1, always ganging up 2v1 and then running our goalie. Someone had to pay the sheriff’s special end of game tariff,” a third fan wrote.
“Habs fans will be chanting “refs you suck” as the start of game 4 bc they won’t get a power play off of this,” one X user opined.
“Absolute dirtbag move, but at the same time any player on a team that employees Tage Thompson probably deserved it,” another chimed in.
“Not a fan of this from Arber. Not at all. Go after the ashaole who crashed into Dobes with intent to injur,” added another.
Arber Xhekaj and Habs take 2-1 series advantage after 6-2 win in Game 3
On Sunday, the Montreal Canadiens took a 2-1 series lead after a dominating 6-2 win over the Buffalo Sabres in Game 3 at Centre Bell Arena.
Alex Newhook, Cole Caufield, Jake Evans, and Lane Hutson all accumulated two points for the Habs in the matchup. Jakub Dobes continued with his impressive performance in the series, making 26 saves with a .929 save percentage.
Meanwhile, Tage Thompson and Rasmus Dahlin were the two goal scorers for Buffalo in the defeat. Arber Xhekaj and the Habs return to Centre Bell for Game 4 on Tuesday. The puck drops at 6 p.m. ET.
Edited by Abhishek Dilta
