Ryan Reaves drops legendary quote about Ridly Greig incident
While we wait for the final verdict after Morgan Rielly's in-person hearing with the NHL's Department of Player Safety on Tuesday, several of his teammates have come to his defense on what they believed was the appropriate action for breaking one of hockey's unwritten rules.
It can be discussed and debated for years on end but there's always two sides to a story. Should Ridly Greig have taken a slap-shot on a breakaway into an empty-net with time winding down and the game over? No. Should Rielly have targeted Greig's head after the play? No. However, it should come as no surprise that showboating in any sport comes at a cost.
Same measures apply in the NBA when a team scores a layup or a dunk with time winding down in a blowout victory. Nevertheless, it comes down to whether or not you believe Rielly should have taken action - and a large faction within the hockey world agrees that he was justified in doing so.
Ryan Reaves was rather candid in his response when asked about the incident, stating that he doesn't believe it warranted an in-person hearing and that far worse would have awaited Greig if he had attempted that back when Reaves first entered the league with how rough things were back then.
"I was expecting a fine. A one game max. The kid got up after he saw no one was on top of him anymore completely fine & I think that's got to be taken into account too.
If you rewind to when I came into the league [Greig is] probably still laying on the ice. I thought (Morgan Rielly's response) was appropriate. I don't see how a kid that young thinks it's appropriate to do something like that... Make hockey violent again, a tattoo I should get."
The Department of Safety has fallen under a lot of scrutiny over the years with what many claim have been biased rulings. There have been several plays that were far worse than what Rielly did that went unpunished, while on the other side of the spectrum, there have been minimal incidents that have received lengthy suspensions.
Losing Rielly for more than one game is going to be a tough pill to swallow for the Maple Leafs, but for those asking and pleading that their club show emotion and heart, Rielly did just that as his frustrations and emotions boiled over after a disappointing loss to their division rival.
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