<p>The second-round series between the <a target="_blank" rel="noopener" href="https://www.foxnews.com/category/sports/nhl/colorado-avalanche">Colorado Avalanche</a> and Minnesota Wild was always destined to be a bit of a slugfest, and it's delivering the goods.</p><p>However, after Game 4 — which the Avs won 5-2 to take a 3-1 series lead — the intensity has boiled over off the ice, and it's all thanks to a butt-ending incident that earned Avalanche defenseman Josh Manson a four-minute minor.</p><p>In the first period, <a target="_blank" rel="noopener" href="https://https://www.foxnews.com/category/sports/nhl/minnesota-wild">Wild</a> forward Michael McCarron checked Manson hard and wound up falling on top of him. The two wrestled for a little before Manson could be seen striking McCarron in the side of the head with the butt-end of his stick.</p><p>McCarron went down in pain, and upon review, Manson was dealt a double-minor for butt-ending.</p><p><a target="_blank" rel="noopener" href="https://www.foxnews.com/outkick-sports/ottawas-ridly-greig-delivers-disgusting-cheap-shot-game-4-carolina"><strong>OTTAWA'S RIDLY GREIG DELIVERS DISGUSTING CHEAP SHOT IN GAME 4 AGAINST CAROLINA</strong></a></p><p>The Wild scored on the ensuing power play, and McCarron laid into Manson during an intermission interview with ESPN.</p><p>After the game, McCarron continued to criticize Manson's brand of play.</p><p>"I blew him up, and he grabbed me and pulled me on top of him," he said. "He took his butt end and clearly butt-ended me in the face. I don’t know how it’s not a five-minute. I think the rulebook says it’s a five-minute if you butt-end someone in the face."</p><p>According to <a target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow" href="https://www.sportsnet.ca/nhl/article/wilds-mccarron-calls-avalanches-manson-a-dirty-player-after-butt-end-penalty/">Sportsnet</a>, Manson claimed that he simply lost awareness of where his hand was on his stick when he took a swing at McCarron, whom he said he was angry at for falling on him.</p><p><a target="_blank" rel="noopener" href="https://link.podtrac.com/dmwdd_article"><strong>ZERO BS. JUST DAKICH. TAKE THE DON'T @ ME PODCAST ON THE ROAD. DOWNLOAD NOW!</strong></a></p><p>"My intention wasn't to butt-end him. Did I want to punch him in the head? I did want to punch him in the head," Manson said.</p><p>The series shifts back to Denver for Game 5, and something tells me we probably haven't seen the last of this one.</p><p>However, Minnesota is in quite a hole, so keeping their postseason alive should be at the front of their mind, not getting back at Josh Manson.</p><p>But, no matter how you want to look at it, the heat is certainly getting turned up in this one.</p>
