Beaulieu and Haley throwdown in front of the Jets bench.

I don't know what it was about Saturday night but it seems to me like the National Hockey League officials that were on the ice were letting the boys go a little bit more than usual, at least when it came to the scraps on the ice.

The late night matchup between the Ottawa Senators and the Winnipeg Jets was no exception and in fact it may have featured the best scrap of the night during the game's first period. The combatants in this one were Winnipeg Jets defenseman Nathan Beaulieu and Ottawa Senators forward  Micheal Haley, both tough customers who were not gonna back down at all.

This was a great exchange in front of the Jets bench with both men landing several jabs as they harassed one another, although both men did a good job of avoiding the biggest shots. Perhaps it was due to their experience, but each time either man was threatened by a big shot they tucked their head in time to see it ring off their respective helmets. That was true at least for most of the exchange, things degenerate a little towards the end as both men got more wild and it seemed to me that Haley got the better of Beaulieu during those final moments. 

Either way this was a very close battle and a great back and forth affair between two players who deserve our respect.