Mike Matheson picked up Arber Xhekaj at training

While all eyes are on Canada and the United States ahead of the ultimate match of the 4 Nations Confrontation, the Canadians have resumed training in preparation for the return of NHL hockey.

Montreal will play its first game since the break on Saturday, against the Senators, in Ottawa.

After a long vacation, we often come back to work a bit rusty and may lack intensity and motivation. The opposite happened on Wednesday morning, during the CH’s training session.

As reported by Anthony Martineau during his appearance on TVA Sports’ show JiC on Wednesday, the Canadiens players played tough in the corners and didn’t hesitate to hit their teammates.

Martineau even noted a sequence in which Mike Matheson checked Arber Xhekaj, who ended up on the ground abruptly.

You can see the sequence in question in this TVA Sports article: https://www.tvasports.ca/2025/02/19/pas-content-du-tout-matheson-envoie-xhekaj-sur-son-derriere.

The CH players don’t seem to be joking around. https://t.co/6DWbcCXzBC

— TVA Sports (@TVASports) February 20, 2025

In the sequence, Matheson was bumped by Xhekaj, who quickly retaliated by sending his teammate to the ground.

In some teams, a sequence like this could have led to a big dispute, but Xhekaj seemed to accept the situation by getting up and returning to his position at center, waiting for the next exercise.

And this is not the only example of robust play during this training session.

During a one-on-one exercise, Jake Evans didn’t hesitate to bodycheck his captain, Nick Suzuki, along the boards.

Montreal has lost eight of its last nine games and would like to reverse the trend as soon as it returns to action.

In rapid fire

– Not the return hoped for for Reinbacher.

His first game of the season was far from glorious. https://t.co/eYaaFZG3bX

— TVA Sports (@TVASports) February 20, 2025

– Marco D’Amico is convinced that Demidov will join the Canadiens as soon as his contract with SKA ends.

– Not the best news for Montreal.

MLS players and coaches in favor of an international calendarhttps://t.co/n1UAx9nvpB

— RDS (@RDSca) February 20, 2025

– It’s hard to convince the Canadiens to call him back with a performance like this.

I just turned on my TV, and I see Joshua Roy softly hitting his opponent, like an overcooked hot dog sausage.

Result: the guy covered by Roy deceived the Rocket’s goaltender.

— Maxime Truman (@MaximeTruman) February 20, 2025