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Bruins’ Nikita Zadorov calls out ‘disrespectful’ Red Wings player: ‘You don’t sell penalties’
"It's a man's league. We all get slashed. We're all in pain."
Nikita Zadorov doesn’t seem to be a fan of Red Wings forward Lucas Raymond.
The Bruins’ 6-foot-6 defenseman was not pleased on Tuesday after getting whistled for a slash against Raymond in the second period.
While any trip to the sin bin would be enough to get a player like Zadorov irked, he immediately followed up that infraction by cross-checking Raymond in the side — causing a scrum to break out on the TD Garden ice.
Zadorov — who was ultimately only called for the initial slash against Raymond — noted postgame that he took umbrage with the forward shaking his glove before the call was made.
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“I don’t like when the guy’s shaking his hand,” Zadorov said of Raymond after Boston’s eventual 3-2 overtime win against Detroit. “I barely touch his hand, so I think that’s got to get out of the league.
“It’s a man’s league. We all get slashed. We’re all in pain. But you don’t go like this and show the referee that you get slashed. So I think it’s just a little bit disrespectful.”
Zadorov stressed that the on-ice officials would share a similar sentiment about the trend of players exaggerating reactions in order to earn a look on the power play.
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“”Well, I mean, the referees — Wes [McCauley] and Jon [McIsaac], they’ve been in the league for a while. They’ve seen hard play,” Zadorov said. “They’ve seen when guys play hard. And I think even they agree it should be out of the league like this. You don’t sell penalties. They see it. That’s why there’s two refs.”
This is far from the first time that Zadorov has found himself in hot water with Raymond.
In February 2024, Zadorov — then with the Canucks — was suspended two games for delivering an illegal check to the head against Raymond.
Zadorov was whistled for three penalties in Tuesday’s game against Detroit, but still helped Boston string together its second win in a row.
He buried his second goal of the season off a booming one-timer at 9:15 in the first period while doling out four hits over his 18:20 of ice time.
The Bruins held a 40-14 edge in hits against the Red Wings.
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