Morgan Rielly cross-checked Ridly Greig in the head after an empty-netter slap shot. On Tuesday, Rielly received a five-game suspension, but now, a detail in the verdict has left the Toronto Maple Leafs absolutely fuming.
The incident occurred on Saturday night, at the end of the game. Ridly Greig found himself with just an empty net in front of him, but instead of just tapping the puck in the net, he took a slap shot.
Many thought that Greig broke an unwritten NHL rule not to rub salt into an opponent’s wound, and so did Morgan Rielly. The Leafs’ defenseman responded by cross-checking the 21-year-old Greig in the head.
He was assessed a match penalty and headed straight to the dressing room with five seconds of the game, which the Leafs lost 5-3.
On Tuesday, Rielly was given a five-game ban for the cross-check, and on Wednesday, everyone expected the Leafs’ GM Brad Treliving to address the press.
But he didn’t, and there might be a reason behind it, and that being that they’re absolutely furious with the Department of Player Safety.
Rielly had appealed the suspension, filed directly to NHL commissioner Gary Bettman.
But insider Darren Dreger shared a detail that had the Leafs fuming, and it’s not about how many games the suspension landed on. Instead, it’s about how they found out about it.
According to Dreger, Rielly, and the Leafs learned about the suspension through a leak and not from the NHL’s DoPS.
“That’s what has them as wrangled as I’ve heard from my Leafs sources in a long long time,” Dreger said on TSN. “I’ll use the word disappointed, that’s not the word that was thrown at me in describing the events of the day.”
Even ESPN insider Kevin Weeks tweeted about the suspension before the NHL’s official channels had made the announcement. It’s rare to see a reporter break a suspension of this length, and it’s understandable that the Maple Leafs are reacting to it.
It seems like Toronto has had enough of the Department of Player Safety, and who can blame them?
