Ottawa, Ontario — Ridly Greig, speaking for the first time after the Ottawa Senators center was cross-checked in the face by Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Morgan Rielly, summed up the aftermath by stating he “didn’t think it would get this far.”
However, three days later, and fresh off Ottawa’s 6-3 victory against the Columbus Blue Jackets on Tuesday night, Greig held court at his locker stall, answering questions about not only his decision to fire a slap shot into an open net against the Maple Leafs, but also how he felt the NHL responded.
“I’ve tried to stay offline the past couple of days,” he stated. “Everyone will have an opinion about it. They’ll probably either love or despise it. It does not matter to me.”
The league’s Department of Player Safety penalized Rielly for five games earlier that day for the cross-check. The collision came just after Greig’s short-distance goal with 5.1 seconds left in Ottawa’s 5-3 triumph.
“In simply, this isn’t a hockey game. “This is an intentional, forceful strike to an opponent’s head, using a stick as a weapon to exact retribution on an opponent long after a goal has been scored,” NHL Player Safety stated in its finding on Tuesday.
Greig, who deferred the decision to “the league,” agreed with a reporter that Rielly caught him off guard following the goal.
“A little bit,” Greig replied. “I doubt you ever expected a guy to cross-check you in the face. But I am not sure if he intended to do it.”
Typically, with empty-net goals, which indicate that the game has been decided, the scoring team merely pushes the puck into the net or attempts a wrist shot to avoid embarrassing the losing team. Slap shots are extremely unusual, especially thus near to the crease.
“It was a lot of adrenaline,” Greig stated when asked what he was thinking when he decided on the slap shot. “It was the heat of the moment—the intensity of the game. It was an emotional game. I just received a breakaway, and I decided to bury it.
It certainly set off the Maple Leafs, including Rielly.
“We obviously didn’t like the result of the empty-netter,” Toronto captain John Tavares said Saturday. “So, we’re going to stick together and stand our ground when necessary.”
Greig scored his tenth goal of the season in the Senators’ victory over the Blue Jackets, helping to spark an explosive surge.
Brady Tkachuk scored his second career hat trick, and Claude Giroux added a short-handed goal and two assists as Ottawa won its fourth consecutive game.
“We needed everybody to step up, and I just hope we can build off of it,” he said. “In the last few games, we’ve had a lot of looks but haven’t been able to bury it. Tonight was a stepping stone, and we just need to keep going.”
