Being a fan and being a responsible adult do not need to be mutually exclusive - had the roles been reversed I would absolutely want the league to throw the book at Grieg with a suspension to dissuade him from making that kind of play a habit. It's just gross and dangerous, it doesn't matter what colour of jersey you're wearing.
- Bartacus

An interesting thing is that this situation has really brought out some of the "old guard' mentality that we hadn't been hearing from very much.

Thanks for the blog. Much appreciated and also well written.

I thought the slapshot into the empty net was the perfect F U to the Leafs fans in the building who can be quite obnoxious. I loved it.

While a Maple Leafs response was to be expected, you can't go cross checking players in the head. I'm expecting a 3 game suspension.

I think Alfie's expression during the situation is perfect.
https://twitter.com/SensM...tatus/1756516201986154526

See, if it was a playoff game (and not a deciding game), I'd be pissed at Grieg because it would start a fire under their team and probably give them more motivation to win.

When Alfy did the slapshot at the Ducks captain (Neidermeier I think?), I hated that. Duck's completed shutdown everything Ottawa tried to do. (I still say the Refs screwed over the Sens... I may be biased, lol)

Being a fan and being a responsible adult do not need to be mutually exclusive - had the roles been reversed I would absolutely want the league to throw the book at Grieg with a suspension to dissuade him from making that kind of play a habit. It's just gross and dangerous, it doesn't matter what colour of jersey you're wearing.
- Bartacus

The NFL deals with excessive disrespect by allowing for a 10 yard taunting penalty. Would you flag Greig for taunting the Leafs? Maybe. If the NHL had something along the lines of a taunting call it would only further illustrate how incredibly inappropriate Reilly was in his choice to attack Greig.

The issue here is very simple. The league and officials are responsible for discipline. There is no room for frontier justice. Does anybody other than the Leafs carry a designated fighter on their roster?

If the Leafs really wanted to show they mean business, Reeves should have mugged someone (i.e. Carkner mugging Boyle), but there was just pushing and shoving. It made me laugh.

The NFL deals with excessive disrespect by allowing for a 10 yard taunting penalty. Would you flag Greig for taunting the Leafs? Maybe. If the NHL had something along the lines of a taunting call it would only further illustrate how incredibly inappropriate Reilly was in his choice to attack Greig.

The issue here is very simple. The league and officials are responsible for discipline. There is no room for frontier justice. Does anybody other than the Leafs carry a designated fighter on their roster?
- spatso

Sure, I'd be game for a taunting penalty. Shooting the puck after the whistle, hot dog plays like Greig's - it's certainly unsportsmanlike. I mean, we call dives for the same reason, right? But would a penalty on the play have stopped Rielly's reaction? I believe the suspension should be harsh, just like Perron's, because the reality is, people will showboat and showoff until the end of days - but I'd like to think we can get to a place in society where we don't endorse maliciously hitting people in the head for *anything, ever*. There is zero place in the game, or this world, for this kind of action.

I kind of get tired of hearing about "the NHL Code" by players .... you don't do this, blah blah. Really? It is bullpoop and does not exist. It is a way for players to justify the crap they pull on the ice.

I have no issues with what Greig did. It is no different then showboating after a goal by most players in the NHL .... Matthews doing his little bend over fist clenched eeeeeeee. Why is Greig's slap shot any different? As for instituting a showboating penalty ..... how do you even institute that? What would constitute a showboating penalty ... make a list and define every celebration? Is scoring an OT goal and everyone piling over the boards to celebrate , is this excessive?

Greig did not taunt anyone. He did not physically hurt anyone. He did not check anyone. He just scored a goal and hot dogged a bit. He simply did a slap shot, put his arms up for a goal and skated away. How fragile are player egos ? Was Reilly's manhood threatened? The response was totally ridiculous. If the roles had been reversed, and Toronto did it .... ya, I'd be pissed. But c'est la vie. Big deal. Its a game and celebration.

As are the fights that occur every time a hard hit ... legal or clean .... occurs. This over-testosteroned male response is ludicrous. It is precisely this kind of thinking that leads to the hockey cromagnon knuckle dragging mentality we see that leads to other events, like the 2018 Team Canada jerk fest we see going on now.

Just stop the crap and play hockey. Skate, hit, fight as needed .... but just stop the "you have offended my manhood BS".

I'm similarly getting frustrated hearing about what a fine gentleman Morgan Rielly is, and all about his potential Lady Byng season. I can't even count the number of times I've read or heard Leaf-centric nonsense about how he's not "that kind of player", as if that made everything fine. What kind of player would that be, exactly? The kind of player that cross-checks someone in the head because of an empty net goal they took offense to? Because it would seem that's exactly the kind of player he is when actually put in that circumstance, which is why he's going to be suspended.

It would be interesting to see how this caveman element of Leafs nation would feel about "the code" if Greig drops the gloves and feeds Rielly a few teeth the first time they meet up next season. Apparently he's their tough guy now.

The worst thing has been the Toronto-centric media whinging about DOPS favouritism, and defending Rielly's action through lauding his character. Jennifer Botterill being celebrated for coming out against hockey's 'archaic revenge culture' less than a month ago, only to call Greig's shot classless and endorse Reilly going over and getting his pound of flesh is textbook hypocrisy. Clearly she prefers a 'new age revenge culture' where you can't exact vengeance unless you have a maple leaf on your chest.

When your personal fandom allegiance leads you to hypocrisy, you lose integrity as a broadcaster. Rielly might be a gentleman to date, but clearly, like Kadri before him, he lets his rage build up until it boils over and he does something extremely stupid. If I was closely related to him, I'd be very concerned about that reaction.

Yup.

Like many in the media these days they'd rather be relevant for saying the popular thing than be dismissed for saying the right thing. Credibility out the window. Even Methot had to make sure he is someone who can be put on TV for a hit about gambling or whatever it is he does on Sens broadcasts now.

I love Meth. But come on dude.

Reilley deserves a game or 3. And, as I mentioned on the EK's main forum. This is a copy cat league. If something so egregious as an FU empty net slapper is going to get the leafs riled up.....I can see a bunch of way worse villains in this league smirking inwardly about their next meeting with Toronto.

I've sent a lot of talk about the "code". Is what Greig did as bad as some other instances?

I thought when Gudas screamed in Wolls face after the elimination was way worse.

Ovie and his "hot stick".

Or going back further, Tucker (I think it was hom), taunting the sens bench with golf movements with his stick.

Some of these got push back by fans and pundits, but didn't get the Reilly treatment.

There are a couple other considerations that I don't see coming up as much that may very well impact the length of Rielly's suspension...

1) Existing rules vs. violence/revenge acts near the end of games
The NHL already has rules about automatic suspensions for instigating fights in the last few minutes of the game. The reason is because the league has been explicitly trying to remove this kind of needless violent sulking from the game, and what Rielly did fits right into that category. For all of the comparisons people want to make about the severity of the stick infraction itself, the context/timeframe in which it occurred is at least equally relevant. And in this case, it not only occurred completely outside of the course of play, but is precisely the kind of late-game incident the league has explicitly wanted out of the sport for years. So if all you can cite in your defence is your hurt pride for losing the game and some unwritten knuckle-dragger code of conduct, then you should be prepared for the consequences.

2) The complete and utter lack of remorse
If you're hoping for leniency in a court case, you would typically plead guilty, explain how you understand it was wrong, and make the case that you wouldn't do it again. For example, when Perron realized that Zub had nothing to do with Larkin being on the ice and was actually trying to call for medical help, I'm sure he expressed some degree of remorse. Unfortunately, between Keefe/Reeves (and others) it would seem that there is absolutely no remorse whatsoever involved with this act vs. claims of it being appropriate, or perhaps even not violent enough of a reaction. Keefe even went out of his way to suggest it was effectively a conspiracy by the NHL against the Leafs. As such, there is no shortage of documented evidence that the Maple Leafs players/coaches emphatically do not understand why this act is being punished, and have absolutely no intention of preventing it in the future. They're free to say these things, but if you walked into a court room and said I did it, I'd do it again, and by the way I think this is a kangaroo court regardless, you might not like the outcome.

If nothing else, it will be very interesting to see what the NHL's verdict will be, and their stated rationale.

There are a couple other considerations that I don't see coming up as much that may very well impact the length of Rielly's suspension...

1) Existing rules vs. violence/revenge acts near the end of games
The NHL already has rules about automatic suspensions for instigating fights in the last few minutes of the game. The reason is because the league has been explicitly trying to remove this kind of needless violent sulking from the game, and what Rielly did fits right into that category. For all of the comparisons people want to make about the severity of the stick infraction itself, the context/timeframe in which it occurred is at least equally relevant. And in this case, it not only occurred completely outside of the course of play, but is precisely the kind of late-game incident the league has explicitly wanted out of the sport for years. So if all you can cite in your defence is your hurt pride for losing the game and some unwritten knuckle-dragger code of conduct, then you should be prepared for the consequences.

2) The complete and utter lack of remorse
If you're hoping for leniency in a court case, you would typically plead guilty, explain how you understand it was wrong, and make the case that you wouldn't do it again. For example, when Perron realized that Zub had nothing to do with Larkin being on the ice and was actually trying to call for medical help, I'm sure he expressed some degree of remorse. Unfortunately, between Keefe/Reeves (and others) it would seem that there is absolutely no remorse whatsoever involved with this act vs. claims of it being appropriate, or perhaps even not violent enough of a reaction. Keefe even went out of his way to suggest it was effectively a conspiracy by the NHL against the Leafs. As such, there is no shortage of documented evidence that the Maple Leafs players/coaches emphatically do not understand why this act is being punished, and have absolutely no intention of preventing it in the future. They're free to say these things, but if you walked into a court room and said I did it, I'd do it again, and by the way I think this is a kangaroo court regardless, you might not like the outcome.

If nothing else, it will be very interesting to see what the NHL's verdict will be, and their stated rationale.
- khawk

Very interesting thoughts!

A 5+ game suspension would help Maple Leaf fans experience the same Morgan Reilly level of rage. It would be great fun to watch.

Rielly gets a 5-game suspension...
https://www.nhl.com/news/...le-leafs-by-player-safety

Given that it's under 6GP, there's no ability to appeal the decision. Seems about right, all things considered... but I'm sure that won't be the universal opinion.

If the Leafs really wanted to show they mean business, Reeves should have mugged someone (i.e. Carkner mugging Boyle), but there was just pushing and shoving. It made me laugh.
- PogBoi

Keefe is lucky nothing happened. If Reaves had fought it would have been a fine for the coach i do believe.

Rielly gets a 5-game suspension...
https://www.nhl.com/news/...le-leafs-by-player-safety

Given that it's under 6GP, there's no ability to appeal the decision. Seems about right, all things considered... but I'm sure that won't be the universal opinion.
- khawk

https://www.nhl.com/video...ended-games-6346828310112
With explanation.

https://www.nhl.com/video/topic/player-safety/rielly-suspended-games-6346828310112
With explanation.
- SensFan25

Interesting... they do acknowledge his lack of prior suspension history, but identify the following as key factors:

- no mutual engagement/not a hockey play
- not an inadvertent/accidental play
- late in the game, well after the goal is scored
- pursued with distance with the sole purpose of retribution

Seems pretty consistent with what the majority of people outside of Toronto see when they watch the footage. If you listen closely, you'll notice how they didn't once note that Greig broke the code with his empty-net goal, and therefore deserved to be punished with a stick.

Sens beat the worst team in the east! WOO!!

Sens beat the worst team in the east! WOO!!
- PogBoi

Outshot by a fairly significant margin as well - good to see Forsberg put on a good show.

Sens beat the worst team in the east! WOO!!
- PogBoi

It was a good result. We have seen too many games over the past few years where the Sens played strong against a top team only to fall asleep against a weak team in their next game. Sens are playing .750 hockey over last 10 games.

Not likely they can sustain the winning pace through to end of season. But, if they could, they would finish season with 95 points. Likely, still a few points short of a playoff position.

I don't think Jacques Martin will get another year behind the bench?

I don't understand the Dumba talk.

I think Chychrun is a keeper and they will have the cap space to put him at par with Chabot and Sanderson.

I really like Tarasenko but the return might be too good to resist.

Some observers of the LA Kings seem to be more charitable in their comments on the play of PLD. He is once again being talked about as the Kings future #1 centre. I would still do a deal for PLD if a fair offer was on the table. I would do a deal for PLD if LA was taking back a package that included one of Norris, Chabot or Chychrun.

Don't like all the talk about Ridley Greig being such a great "pest." I think he has too much hockey skill and awareness to be slotted into that kind of thinking. Jacques Martin must think so too when putting him out for the last minute in a one goal game against the Leafs.

Instead of trying to score, some players will focus on screwing with Greig. That's why he's a pest and out late in games. He's a distraction to the other team. It also helps he's good defensively which is rare in a young guy.

Enh. 59 games played is not enough to make a 'pest' IMO. The wrath of Leafs nation and the Toronto-centric media can apply all the labels they want, I see a young player, new to the league, who plays hard... not necessarily a pest just yet. But he's headed that way.

Tell me you haven’t played hockey before without actually uttering the words. If the roles were reversed, Sens fans would be defending the act.
- BernardShakey

Play lotsa "hockey". And I wouldn't be defending the act. Deliberate head shots with the stick, after the whistle and not part of a hockey play, is a suspendable action. Regardless of player or team.

Grieg shouldn't have done what he did, and the retaliation isn't surprising nor unwarranted (Grieg admitted this last night), but the suspension is warranted (you can debate the length).

Now, can we move on from this to something a little less divisive....like the American political landscape/process or the debate between vinyl vs digital as an audio source?

In the case of the Rielly suspension, Dreger was very strong in making it known that the NHL released the suspension information to Kevin Weeks (ESPN) even before the Leafs were advised of the decision.

For a long time, when the NHL has had a significant news story it usually broke (leaked) out of Toronto and is most likely sourced by Friedman or Dreger from the Leaf media relations group. This is important because whoever breaks the story is able to put the first spin on how the story is going to be read. This is the way that for so many years the Leafs have been able to dominate the hockey news cycles in Canada.

As we saw yesterday, the Leafs were gearing up for a major blitz on the "unfair" suspension to Reilly.

But, the NHL aced them by leaking the story to ESPN. They disrespected the Leafs even more than a Ridley Greig slapshot.