“It’s so quick,” he said. “If you go back to that play, I thought Larkin got hit to the head. I didn’t think twice. I just wanted to defend him a little bit. It happens. I’m not going to stop fighting if I need to fight. We’ll see how it goes next time — hopefully I can get out of it without an injury. It sucks being out that long, but it’s part of playing hockey. I think fighting belongs in hockey.
I appreciate Anthony Mantha’s willingness to drop the gloves and defend his teammates. It’s a good quality to have.