NHL
Sergei Bobrovsky and Alex Nedeljkovic got into a rare goalie fight in the third period. Bruce Bennett / Getty Images
Florida Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky already has multiple Stanley Cups and Vezina Trophies, but Monday in Sunrise, Fla., he added another accomplishment to his record.
In the 905th NHL game of his career, Bobrovsky dropped the gloves for his first fight.
The 37-year-old skated the length of the ice for a bout with San Jose Sharks goalie Alex Nedeljkovic six minutes into the third period of Monday’s game. The play started when Panthers forward Evan Rodrigues laid a hit on Vincent Desharnais, who was playing his first game back after injury, behind the Sharks’ net. Nedeljkovic immediately skated over and shoved Rodrigues, prompting Bobrovsky to skate 200 feet down the ice, shedding his gloves in the process, for a fight with Nedeljkovic.
🚨 GOALIE FIGHT IN FLORIDA: Alex Nedeljkovic and Sergei Bobrovsky 🥊 #TheFutureIsTeal #TimeToHuntpic.twitter.com/Xc0MLS6XKu
— NHL News (@PuckReportNHL) January 20, 2026
“I tripped the guy and then I got hit from behind,” Desharnais told reporters in the visitors’ dressing room. “I was on the ice trying not to get stepped on. I got up and I just see Ned and Bob going at it, and I was like, ‘Did I miss something here?’ But it was a great fight. I don’t think Reavo (Ryan Reaves) needs to teach him anything. Maybe he can teach a thing or two to Reavo. That was awesome.”
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“Somebody started yelling,” Nedeljkovic said in a postgame interview with NBC Sports California. “I don’t know who it was. I don’t know if it was Wes (McCauley) or — I think one of the guys started yelling. I don’t know why I felt the need to turn around but it was a little bit of an ‘oh, crap’ moment. Just fight or flight kind of kicked in. I tried to watch Reavo as best I could. I hope I made him a little bit proud out there.”
After the game, which the Sharks won 4-1, Bobrovsky told reporters he felt Nedeljkovic’s reaction to the hit was “a little bit too much” and “over the line.”
“I went to make sure to get him and let him know,” he said. “I felt just like I made a decision and went straight into it.”
“I was just doing my best not to get punched,” Nedeljkovic said. “He came out swinging, so I was just trying not to lose any teeth. It might have straightened my nose out a little bit more, but I don’t want it that way.”
As mentioned, it’s the first fight of Bobrovsky’s 16-year NHL career. It’s the first for Nedeljkovic in the NHL, but he fought Orlando Solar Bears goalie Ryan Massa as a member of the Florida Everblades in the ECHL on April 22, 2017, according to HockeyFights.com.
In the NHL, according to Sportsnet, it’s the first goalie fight since the Mike Smith-Cam Talbot bout in the Battle of Alberta in 2020.
“It’s exciting, but it’s obviously not the thing I’m doing for a living,” Bobrovsky said. “Yeah, it is what it is. We had a good fight and unfortunately didn’t (get) the two points. That’s the most important thing.”
Bobrovsky and Nedeljkovic were assessed five-minute penalties for fighting and two-minute penalties for leaving their creases. Both continued playing in the game, although Bobrovsky did make a brief trip down the tunnel for an equipment check, and a hug from backup goalie Daniil Tarasov. He returned to wild applause from the home crowd.
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“That was exciting for sure,” Bobrovsky said of the crowd’s response. “That was emotional. I didn’t know that it was going to be that much. It was a good feeling.”
After the fight — and making 35 saves against the back-to-back Stanley Cup winners — Nedeljkovic stood by his decision to go after Rodrigues.
“We’re all just playing for each other in there,” he said. “All 20 guys are fighting for each other. It didn’t matter who it was that would have got hit. I would have gone in for him.
“I didn’t really expect the consequences of doing it, to be honest with you. I got a little surprised when he came down. But I would do it all over again, too, for Vinny, for whoever. And I think that just speaks to how close we are in that locker room and how far we’ve come as a team, from camp to the first game to whatever game it is now. We just keep fighting, keep bouncing back, and we’re having a lot of fun doing it.”
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