The Vancouver Canucks' training camp in Victoria has been high-intensity, with plenty of battle drills and physicality. Saturday's scrimmage featured some big hits and physical work along the boards.
It was after the scrimmage, however, that tempers flared between two teammates when the Canucks worked on special teams.
During one play, Conor Garland caught Dakota Joshua with a hip check and the big winger fell awkwardly to the ice. Upset, Joshua slashed the nearest opponent, Filip Hronek.
Evidently, Joshua got wind that he'd slashed the wrong player and got in a tussle with Garland on a subsequent play. Garland knocked Joshua's helmet off and the two continued to scuffle until teammates separated them.
There's a bit of a size discrepancy between the two but the much smaller Garland evidently gave just as good as he got.
These kinds of scuffles are not unheard of at training camps and even regular season practices. As players up their intensity heading into the season, that naturally leads to more physicality and tempers can flare up.
It's rare that these types of scuffles lead to bad blood in the future. In most cases, any issues are quickly hashed out in the locker room after practice with no further ill will. In fact, it can often lead to more camaraderie between those teammates.
