3 fights headline 1st period as United States tops Canada - ESPN

Emotions boiled over in Team USA's 3-1 win over Canada with three fights in the first nine seconds of their 4 Nations Face-Off showdown on Saturday night in Montreal.

As the rivalry renewed, Team USA's Matthew Tkachuk dropped the gloves against Canada's Brandon Hagel off the opening faceoff, as an already amped-up crowd roared. Tkachuk and Hagel are rivals in the NHL as well, playing for the Florida Panthers and Tampa Bay Lightning, respectively.

This was the fastest fight to start an NHL international game, topping the previous record of 20 seconds in 1996 when Canada's Keith Primeau and Claude Lemieux fought Team USA's Keith Tkachuk and Bill Guerin in the World Cup of Hockey. Tkachuk is the father of Team USA players Matthew and Brady Tkachuk. Guerin is the U.S. general manager in the 4 Nations Face-Off.

One second later, Brady Tkachuk (Ottawa) fought his older brother's Florida teammate Sam Bennett off the faceoff, with Matthew Tkachuk slamming his arms against the glass of the penalty box in support.

Six seconds later, Team USA's J.T. Miller (New York Rangers) fought Colton Parayko (St. Louis Blues) after the two jostled in front of the Canadian net. Miller also received a cross-checking penalty on the play.

«In my wildest dreams, I couldn't have imagined, but it happened,» Canada coach Jon Cooper told ESPN's Emily Kaplan in his first-period interview behind the bench. «It's two passionate teams. It's been a long time waiting, 10 years, these guys have waited for this. And you can tell that this is not an all-star game. This is a battle of the best of the best.»

The NHL hadn't had a fight in an international tournament it had hosted since the 2004 World Cup of Hockey.

During the first-period intermission, Brady