Lightning's Boyle taunts Red Wings' Abdelkader with chicken dance (VIDEO)

Things once again got a little chippy at the end of the third game of the first round Eastern Conference playoff series between the Detroit Red Wings and Tampa Bay Lighting. And after Tampa Bay's Game 2 win on Friday and Detroit's Game 3 win on Sunday night both ended in fisticuffs, the third game didn't disappoint either.

Well ...  sort of.

Game 2 ended with Red Wings forward Justin Abdelkader leaving Mike Blunden a bloody mess after a flurry of punches while the two were at the bottom of a brawl. But when Abdelkader wouldn't straight up duke it out with the Lightning's Brian Boyle at the end of Game 3, Boyle skated off the ice doing a little chicken dance.

Brian Boyle wasn’t thrilled Justin Abdelkader wouldn’t fight him pic.twitter.com/Xh3VejWXL3

— Pete Blackburn (@PeteBlackburn) April 18, 2016

Here's what instigated Sunday night's clucking after the buzzer sounded:

J.T. Miller ejected for ‘putting on the tape’ and cutting opponent in fight (VIDEO)

New York Rangers forward J.T. Miller isn't known as a player to tussle, but when things get heated playing your cross-river rivals, you know every once in a while it's important to throw down the gloves.

J.T. just has to remember to have nothing under them.

During the second period against the New Jersey Devils on Tuesday, Miller found that out when he faced off against Devils forward Sergei Kalinin — and it ended up getting him thrown out of the game.

As you can clearly see in the video, Miller's right hand is taped, and during the fight Kalinin ended up suffering a cut on his face.

That combination turned out to be a violation of NHL rule 45.16, which states the following:

Any player wearing tape or any other material on his hands (below the wrist) who cuts or injures an opponent during an altercation will receive a match penalty in addition to any other penalties imposed including for fighting under this rule. A match penalty shall be assessed to a player who punches an unsuspecting opponent and causes an injury.

It's not quite "putting on the foil," but the rule is pretty clear.

Flyers' Ryan White rearranges Islanders' Matt Martin's nose (VIDEO)

Islanders tough guy Matt Martin found out the hard way that sometimes being bigger isn't always better after the Flyers' new guy, Ryan White,  turned Martin's nose into a twisted, bloody mess Thursday night.

White, a veteran forward who recently was recalled from the AHL's Lehigh Valley Phantoms, made quite an impression during his fourth appearance with the Flyers — especially on Martin's schnoz.

The two players tussled for 35 seconds 2:22 into the first period of the Islanders' 3-2 shootout win at Wells Fargo Center before both headed to the locker room for medical attention.

Wearing a clear face shield, Martin returned for the start of the second period with his nose back in place.

Sabres' Patrick Kaleta punches own face during fight (VIDEO)

Buffalo Sabres right winger Patrick Kaleta got into a punching match with Ottawa Senators defenseman Jared Cowen. In the heat of the Monday night tussle, it looks like Kaleta gave himself a left cross to his own face before landing one on Cowen.

Sometimes you just gotta hit something.

 [CBSSports.com]

Zack Stortini fights Tanner Glass in epic preseason brawl (VIDEO)

The regular season doesn't begin for a couple of weeks but it looks like two rival NHL teams are already putting on the foil.

The first-period fight between Flyers tough guy Zack Stortini and new Rangers enforcer Tanner Glass Monday night at Madison Square Garden was 55-seconds of classic hockey brawling.

“It was a good fight,” Stortini told NJ.com. “I got him a few times. He’s a tough competitor as well.”

The fight took place at 11:04 of the first period shortly after the Rangers took a 3-0 lead.

“It’s my job to stand up to teammates and create energy out there,” said Stortini.

The fight was pretty even despite Stortini being the bigger guy at 6-4, 220 pounds. Glass, who played for Pittsburgh the last two seasons, is 6-1, 210.

“It’s something I enjoy doing and something I’m good at,” Stortini said afterwards.

Stortini-Glass. Sounds like it should be shaken and stirred.

Rangers' Carcillo faces lengthy suspension after contact with linesman (VIDEO)

Down 2-0 in the Eastern Conference Finals to Rangers, the Canadiens decided to physically take it to their New York counterparts in Game 3 at Madison Square Garden and came out on top after a thrilling 3-2 overtime victory.

Adding insult to injury from Thursday night's Rangers home loss could be a potential lengthy suspension for forward Daniel Carcillo — after he made contact with linesman Scott Driscoll.

The incident took place while Rangers winger Derek Dorsett was fighting with Montreal’s Brandon Prust at 5:51 of the first period — moments after Carcillo had been called for a charging penalty. Dorsett went after Prust for a making questionable hit to the head that left Rangers center Derek Stepan hurt on the ice minutes earlier.

As Dorsett and Prust fought, instead of skating to the penalty box, Carcillo stood a few yards away watching the fight, showing no intent on joining the melee.

Driscoll skated over and put his hands on Carcillo’s midsection to move him away from the fight. That’s when Carcillo inexplicably lost his composure, angrily trying to push and even elbow Driscoll. With that, Driscoll tossed him from the game — and now possibly longer.

Aside from the game-winning goal by Montreal’s Alex Galchenyuk 1:12 into overtime, the Carcillo incident was the ugliest moment of the night for the Blueshirts.

Carcillo, who was unavailable for comment after the game, faces possible suspension depending on how the NHL interprets his offense.

And here's Rule 40:

"40.1 Game Misconduct - Any player who deliberately applies physical force in any manner against an official, in any manner attempts to injure an official, physically demeans, or deliberately applies physical force to an official solely for the purpose of getting free of such an official during or immediately following an altercation shall receive a game misconduct penalty. In addition, the following (40.2, 40.3, 40.4) disciplinary penalties shall apply."

No matter how you look at it, things don't look good for Carcillo, who can probably expect the hammer to fall on Friday.

Canucks’ John Tortorella challenges Flames after line brawl two seconds into game (VIDEOS)

The tension swirled even before the first puck was dropped and, as expected, it took only two seconds into Saturday's Flames-Canucks game for total chaos to break out. After the puck fell, every player on the ice—but the goalies—paired up and threw punches.

This wasn't totally unpredictable, though, if you looked at the lineups. The Flames, being the visiting team, released their starting lineup first, which was actually their fourth line. Once the Canucks coach John Tortorella saw that Bob Hartley was putting enforcers on the ice,  Torts then put his own expendables at the line.

Then the fun began.

Ten players were given majors for fighting and game misconducts. Adding in a two-minute penalty on Calgary's Kevin Westgarth for roughing, a total of 152 penalty minutes were recorded in those first two seconds. There was also one steaming Tortorella, who was leaning over the bench and yelling at Calgary's side as things got crazy.

Here's Torts below going berserk outside the Flames locker room in between periods. He jostled with Flames coaches and players until cooler heads prevailed.



Tortorella later apologized via Twitter.

"I can't put our players at risk that way. I'm not proud of it. I've apologized to all of the players involved." - Torts
— Vancouver Canucks (@VanCanucks) January 19, 2014

'Wheel of Fortune' host doesn't approve of Caps-Flyers brawl (VIDEO)

It was already one-sided on the scoreboard, so one goalie found a way to even it up when the Philadelphia Flyers and Washington Capitals engaged in a full line brawl that included both goaltenders dropping the gloves.

The whole thing started when Wayne Simmonds turned into a human wrecking ball the next shift after Washington scored to make it 7-0. He and Tom Wilson dropped the gloves. Then a few other players squared off, then Flyers goaltender Ray Emery made a beeline for Capitals goalie Braden Holtby, who appeared to have no interest in dropping the gloves.

It didn't matter. Emery wouldn't take no for an answer. The two goalies squared off and it turned in to a down-and-dirty street brawl. If you didn't know, Emery's not new to this. He had been in two previous fights and is known as an exceptional scrapper among goalies.

Even if Flyers fans ended up getting something for their money, "Wheel of Fortune" host Pat Sajak sounded disturbed by the melee and tweeted: "Love hockey, but Flyers are part of reason it remains a niche sport. Shameful tonight (including Philly radio team.)"

Love hockey, but Flyers are part of reason it remains a niche sport. Shameful tonight (including Philly radio team.)
— Pat Sajak (@patsajak) November 2, 2013

I'd like to buy a central incisor, Pat.

George Parros injured after falling face-first onto ice during fight (VIDEO)

Montreal Canadiens enforcer George Parros was taken off of the ice on a stretcher after falling on his face while fighting Colton Orr of the Toronto Maple Leafs. While falling, Orr held onto Parros, who had his arms wrapped up and had no way to protect himself as his face collided with the ice.

The Canadiens announced after the game that Parros suffered a concussion and that he is undergoing further tests.

The NHL added a new rule for the 2013-14 season that prohibits players from removing their own helmets during a fight in an effort to protect them from hitting their heads during a fight. Doing a face-plant onto the ice during a tussle is another thing.

The Maple Leafs and Canadiens are no strangers to fisticuffs in their games, as the Parros-Orr fight was the fourth one of the game.

Both Parros and Orr received 10-minute game misconducts as well as five-minute majors for fighting.

Kyle Okposo squares off with Matt Niskanen and sparks Islanders' win

The New York Islanders fought back from a 3-1 deficit to defeat the favored Pittsburgh Penguins in Game 2 of their first-round playoff series, but it might have been one punch that set the comeback in motion.
With one overwhelming overhand right from Kyle Okposo to Matt Niskanen, the Islanders took matter into their own hands and forced the top-seeded Penguins to take them seriously.

The end result was a 4-3 triumph over a more talented Penguins team at Consol Energy Center, tying the teams’ first-round playoff series 1-1 with Game 3 tomorrow at the Nassau Coliseum.

“We wanted to let them know it was going to be a battle,” Okposo said, “and we’re not going to roll over.”

With 4:58 gone by in the second period, the Islanders were outplaying the Penguins, but were down 2-1. Okposo saw Pittsburgh defenseman Matt Niskanen level his teammate Matt Moulson, and the winger did not let him get away scott-free.

He instead grabbed Niskanen and tossed aside his helmet, swung a right hook and bloodied Niskanen’s face. The gash on his left cheek was deep, and the brawl seemed to ignite a fire and a new  attitude showing that this Islanders team — in the playoffs for the first time in six years and with the vast majority of its players skating in the playoffs for the first time — was not going to just lay down.

“It shows a lot of character and [guts],” said defenseman Travis Hamonic, on the ice when Evgeni Malkin gave the Penguins a 1-0 lead just 43 seconds into the game. “What Kyle did is a huge game-changer.”

Maybe a team changer too?

McGrattan and Bordeleau go at it in 'full-time, stand-up' NHL brawl

The Calgary Flames brought Brian McGrattan over as an enforcer "type" and Patrick Bordeleau found out why. The Colorado Avalanche skater and Flames defenseman went at it in what one of the startled announcers called a "full-time, stand-up hockey brawl."

You don't see many hockey fights with the intensity of this one and, after the two went shot for shot for about thirty seconds, they were escorted to their respective boxes as spent as dollar bills in a Toronto strip joint.

The best part may be the announcers' spirited call of the bout.

Most of these shots by each skater connected, so let's call this a draw.

Dan Boyle goes berserk on Corey Perry after 'sucker-punch'

The gloves literally flew off both Dan Boyle and Corey Perry's hands after the San Jose Shark's defenseman took offense at his one-time Team Canada teammate Perry's stick to the ribs late in the third period of the Sharks' 4-0 victory over the Anaheim Ducks.

Boyle flipped out after they batted all game but it seemed like known agitator Perry's contact on a shorthanded odd-man rush was the real turning point.

"On the short-handed goal, [Perry] sucker-punched me in the face," he said. "It just kind of carried on from there."

See if you can spot the punch to the face that Boyle retaliated for in the video below.

Carter and Bortuzzo drop the gloves four seconds into Devils-Penguins matchup

What do you usually get when NHL division rivals battling for first place meet on back-to-back days? Usually a lot of aching players with even sorer dispositions.

On Sunday night, New Jersey Devils' Ryan Carter and Pittsburgh Penguins Robert Bortuzzo didn't waste any time getting that fact across by dropping the gloves and tossing their helmets just four seconds after the opening puck was dropped.

Both players landed some powerful punches, but it was the bigger Bortuzzo who ended up on top of the Devils winger.



The Devils had the last laugh and went on to complete the home-and-home sweep over the weekend — both by 3-1 scores. It was the fifth straight win for the Devils.

These two teams do not like each other right now.