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San Jose Sharks' Joe Thornton loses patch of beard in hockey fight vs. Toronto Maple Leafs

By Alex Butler

Jan. 5 (UPI) -- A patch of Joe Thornton's beard rolled on the frozen floor like it was tumbleweed after the San Jose Sharks veteran got into a fight against the Toronto Maple Leafs' Nazem Kadri.

The scrum took place Thursday during the Maple Leafs' 3-2 win against the Sharks at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto.

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Thornton and Kadri dropped gloves before the opening puck drop. They slapped sticks and exchange pleasantries before tossing some punches. The players eventually dropped the fight to the ice. Kadri was grabbing at Thornton's jersey, but also had a portion of his beard before they fell.

The brown facial hair ripped out, before Kadri placed it on the ice. Kadri and Thornton were both sent to the penalty box.

"I have no idea how that happened," Kadri told reporters after the game. "I thought I was a hockey player, not a barber, so I didn't really know what to expect, but I didn't mean to grab him there.

"I mean, he's a big boy. I couldn't reach all the way across his shoulder and felt like I just grabbed him in the middle of his jersey and just came down with a handful of hair."

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San Jose eventually collected the hair and had it sitting on the bench for a while, before sealing it in a plastic bag.

"For the boys," the Sharks' training staff wrote on the bag.

This isn't even the first time this season the Sharks have been on the receiving end of some bearded brilliance. In December, Edmonton Oilers forward Patrick Maroon was seen petting the beard of Sharks defender Brent Burns.

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"I've been coaching 25 years, and I haven't seen a clump of beard on the ice before," Sharks coach Pete DeBoer told NBC Sports after the game.

Kadri scored on a power play at 12:40 in the second period. The Maple Leafs won in a shootout.

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