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Hawks' Ladd laughs off post-fight talk by Kesler

BURNABY, British Columbia - Blackhawks winger Andrew Ladd didn't lose any sleep over being called a coward by the Canucks' Ryan Kesler following Saturday's game.

"It's his take, I guess," Ladd said following practice here Monday. "I'm not going to worry about it. I'm a pretty honest player and play the game hard and fair and if he wants to whine about it, go ahead.

"I think we all had a pretty good laugh at it. It's pretty tough to take when we square off, he takes one shot (to the face) and decides he wants to bail in the fight and really pretty much just throws me down. It didn't seem he wanted to fight any more."

Kesler was looking for revenge for a hit from Ladd he claimed was from behind way back in the playoffs last spring.

"He was really holding on to that one," Ladd said. "He seemed to have a lot of stuff bottled up.

"I think anyone who has seen the video (from the playoff incident), we both kind of ran into each other and he took the worst of it."

Kesler challenged Ladd to the fight in the first period Saturday and quickly took a pop to the face from the Hawks' winger, opening a cut under the eye. Kesler than wrestled Ladd to the ice unwilling to throw any more punches.

"He was talking lots before, but didn't say much after the fight," Ladd said. "I'll do the rest of my talking on the ice."

Ladd was defended by his teammates against what Kesler said.

"I don't know what he did to be a coward," Patrick Sharp said. "He squared off and fought. That's pretty honorable, if you ask me. You'll have to ask the person that made those comments what he means by it. I've played with Laddy, he's a good teammate of mine and I definitely don't think he's a coward."

Patrick Kane has to be teammates with Kesler on the U.S. Olympic team in a few weeks and says it's going to be different.

"You play against these guys the last three years with the chirping on the ice and different things and saying stuff, now you're on the same team at the Olympics," Kane said. "I met him this summer in Chicago and he seems like a pretty good guy, but what he said about Ladd was uncalled for.

"It's a two-week tournament, and I guess you can deal with that for two weeks."

The Canucks are turning into the Hawks' most bitter rival because of the nasty stuff that has gone on.

If Kesler remembers the Ladd hit from last May, the Hawks certainly haven't forgotten about Willie Mitchell's hit on Jonathan Toews in October that left the captain with a concussion, or Alex Burrows pulling Duncan Keith's hair in a brawl at the United Center last season.

"It's a good rivalry," Kane said. "Obviously I think it started last year when there was that big brawl."

"It's a pretty big rivalry growing from last year in the playoffs through this year," Ladd said. "They're a good team and are going to be tough to play down the stretch. Hopefully it's going to be something we can get up for and continue the rivalry."

Vancouver defenseman Shane O'Brien said after Saturday's win that the Canucks simply don't like the Hawks.

"We're an easy-going bunch, I don't know why he doesn't like us so much," Sharp said jokingly. "It's two teams that have respect for each other, but there's definitely a dislike there so it's a lot of fun for the future."

The Hawks and Canucks play one more time during the regular season on March 5 at the United Center.

Hawks @ Edmonton OilersTime: 8:30 p.m. TuesdayTV: Comcast SportsNet; Radio: WGN 720-AMWhat to watch: The Oilers have lost 10 games in a row and are 1-15-2 in their last 18. They haven't won since Dec. 30 against Toronto. Mike Comrie (mono) is out while Sam Gagner (knee) is questionable. The Hawks are 3-2 on their eight-game road trip but have lost two of the last three.Season series: Hawks lead 2-0 and have scored 9 goals in the two wins.Next: San Jose Sharks at HP Pavilion, 9:30 p.m. Thursday. <div class="infoBox"><h1>More Coverage</h1><div class="infoBoxContent"><div class="infoArea"><h2>Stories</h2><ul class="links"><li><a href="/story/?id=353818">Hawks won't take Edmonton lightly <span class="date">[01/24/10]</span></a></li><li><a href="/story/?id=353603">Blackhawks-Canucks rivalry getting a little nasty <span class="date">[01/24/10]</span></a></li></ul><h2>Video</h2><ul class="video"><div id="flashcontent">Flash content.</div><script type="text/javascript">var so = new SWFObject("http://www.youtube.com/v/6qBNukFUSPQ&hl=en_US&fs=1&", "Ladd fight", "300", "247", "8", "#ffffff");so.addVariable("wmode", "transparent");so.write("flashcontent");</script></ul></div></div></div>

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