An ex-Blackhawks player 'got scared' when Jonathan Toews accepted his fight invitation

Brandon Bollig and Jonathan Toews played on the Chicago Blackhawks together for years. They won a Stanley Cup together. They're probably on good terms, even though Bollig plays for the Calgary Flames now.

That didn't stop the hard-nosed Bollig from trying to goad the Blackhawks captain into a fight when the Flames and Blackhawks played on Sunday. You'd think Toews would be at a severe disadvantage there. But he accepted!

Only, it didn't happen. Bollig explained:

Bollig on potential bout w/ Toews: "I asked him last game, he said yes and I kind of backed down. I got scared." #Blackhawks

— Tracey Myers (@TramyersCSN) November 20, 2015

Bollig (continued on Toews): "I didn’t want to get beat up by one of the best players in the league." #Blackhawks

— Tracey Myers (@TramyersCSN) November 20, 2015

Bollig has a point there. According to HockeyFights.com, Toews has only won two of the five fights he's gotten into during his career, but both of those wins have come this season. If a prize fighter like Bollig got beat by Toews it would ruin his reputation forever.

And yet, there's something amusing about imagining Bollig offering Toews a confident challenge and then frightfully backing down once it's accepted. The two face off again on Friday night, so perhaps Bollig will change his mind.