Gustafsson fight was first of season for Blackhawks
Erik Gustafsson's not used to fighting, but the Blackhawks defenseman proved Sunday that if the situation calls for it, he's not afraid to drop the gloves.
Gustafsson went at it with Buffalo forward Jimmy Vesey in the second period of the Hawks' 4-1 victory over Buffalo.
It was the first fight for a Blackhawks player this season and Gustafsson's first in the NHL.
"I felt like he was coming late," Gustafsson said Tuesday. "Got his hands up in my face when he hit me and kind of cross-checked him after and he slashed me.
"I didn't say anything. I was just looking at him, he looked at me and we dropped 'em."
Vesey landed about five right-hand jabs before Gustafsson landed a solid right himself to Vesey's face. A few seconds later, Gustafsson was thrown to the ice and officials rushed in to separate the players.
"Your adrenaline is going up pretty quick," Gustafsson said. "I wanted to keep going there, but he dragged me down hard. But it was good to have the first one."
According to hockeyfights.com, the percentage of games with fights this season is 16.74 percent, which is the same as last season. From 2000-14, the percentages ranged from 29.02 to 42.2 percent.
The Hawks have averaged 12.5 fights per season since 2015-16. They had 11 in 2018-19 with John Hayden and Brandon Manning leading the way with 3 each.
"Obviously it's not as much a part of the game as it was before," said Hawks coach Jeremy Colliton. "I think there's still a place for sticking up for your teammates and responding in certain situations. It's not always a fight, though. It can be just physical play or just getting in there and helping someone.
"But Gus stuck for himself in that situation, which is never a bad thing."
Finnish Hot:
Teuvo Teravainen, who scored 4 playoff goals for the Blackhawks during their run to the 2015 Stanley Cup, is coming off back-to-back 20-goal campaigns for Carolina. Teravainen has gotten off to another strong this season with 5 goals and 14 assists in 20 games.
Terevainen, who signed a five-year, $27 million contract in January, was asked what it meant to be able to grow his game while playing with Patrick Kane from 2014-16.
"That was one of the player I always looked up (to) when I was younger," said the 25-year-old Teravainen. "To be on the some organization you can see what he does every day on the ice, off the ice. It's been big for me of course.
"A lot of other guys too that I looked up (to) when I played in here. It's a lot of experience I've taken from those guys."
Slap shots:
Kirby Dach (5G, 4A), Dominik Kubalik (5G, 4A) and Alex Nylander (4G, 5A) each have 9 points and were tied for seventh in rookie scoring through Monday's games. ... Jeremy Colliton did not have an update on injured forward Drake Caggiula, who is in the concussion protocol. ... The Hawks will honor Brian Campbell with their One More Shift promotion before Thursday's game against Tampa Bay. Campbell was a member of the Hawks' 2010 Stanley Cup team and assisted on Patrick Kane's series-clinching goal in Philadelphia. ...