Montreal Canadiens forward Max Domi spoke for the first time since being suspended for the remainder of the preseason for punching Florida Panthers blue-liner Aaron Ekblad.
As transcribed by Stu Cowan of The Montreal Gazette, Domi said:
"It's a real tough situation, obviously, for everyone involved. I feel bad about it. It's not the way I wanted to handle that. It's an emotional game. Obviously, I'm an emotional player. I've known Aaron for a long time. Grew up playing against each other. We always play hard, always battle, whether it was in minor hockey, junior, the national level, and now the NHL, too. By no means did I want to hurt him. I feel bad about it and I hope he's OK. But, you know what, I got to suffer the consequences of it. It's unfortunate, but it is what it is and I definitely respect the league's decision."
The incident occurred Wednesday, Domi's first game in a Canadiens sweater since being acquired from the Arizona Coyotes over the offseason.
Ekblad avoided serious injury but called Domi's actions "stupid" and believes scores will be settled when the two clubs meet in the regular season.
Domi is eligible to suit up for the Habs' regular-season opener Oct. 3 in Toronto.
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