According to hockeyfights.com, there have officially only been five fights so far in the first round. At the same time, there have been countless cheap shots, head shots, and post-whistle scrums in a first round where the violence has really being ramping up.
When it comes to unsportsmanlike conduct, Arber Xhekaj has a rap sheet that would make a maximum security prisoner blush.
The Montreal Canadiens defenseman, who racked up a team-high 116 penalty minutes this season, has been fined over the years for such things as picking a fight with an unsuspecting player, elbowing another in the head and trying to engage with the opposition during the pre-game warm-up.
“I’ve done some dirty plays in my career that I’ve probably regretted,” said Xhekaj, who has eight penalty minutes in three playoff games this year. “But I don’t think when a guy has his head down like that you should punch it, especially when it’s two guys against one — I hate that kind of stuff.”
Xhekaj is not alone.
Former NHLer Paul Bissonette blasted Greig's sucker punch as "absolute B.S." during the NHL on TNT broadcast, while Sportsnet's Kelly Hrudey called it "gutless and disgusting." Even Tampa Bay's Scott Sabourin, who was teammates with Greig, had a difficult time justifying the play.
“I think in the spur of the moment, things get heated,” said Sabourin. “You’re coming off maybe a hard hit from the game before and you see an opportunity — he probably saw that the refs weren’t looking in his direction and that he could get away with it. But what he forgot about was that there’s cameras everywhere these days.”
Indeed, there are cameras everywhere. And what they have been displaying so far in these playoffs is that the first-round has been really violent. We tend to say that every year.
But whether it was the 52 penalty minutes and 77 hits that defined Game 2 between Tampa Bay and Montreal or the 22 penalties minutes that occurred in the second period of Game 3 between Philadelphia and Pittsburgh – where players were literally forced to stand in the penalty box — it seems like this year the hatred has gone to another level.
“It always seems like every year they talk about how physical it is. And then it still catches everyone by surprise,” said Xhekaj. “But it feels like this year is ramped up even more.”
According to hockeyfights.com, there have officially only been five fights so far in the first round. At the same time, there have been countless cheap shots, head shots, and post-whistle scrums. At the end of Pittsburgh's win in Game 4 on Saturday night, Sidney Crosby wrestled Philadelphia's Travis Sanheim to the ground, where Rasmus Ristolainen took advantage of the situation then slashed Crosby across the hands.
It was the kind of play that you probably would never see in the regular season. But in these playoffs, it's now becoming the norm.
“I think it’s just two hungry teams that don’t want to go away and want to stand their ground," said Sabourin, who was inserted into the lineup in Game 2 primarily for his physical attributes. "It’s all over the league. The regular season you play a certain way and guys get comfortable making plays and then you get to the playoffs and you never know where the next hit is going to come.
"That’s kind of the point. You want to make the other team uncomfortable.”
Sometimes, as the Ottawa series proved, it can be easy to cross the line. However, as Greig found out in the second period when Walker got his revenge with a hit from behind, when that happens the players are quick to hand out the necessary justice.
“They kind of made him answer there in the second with that hit," said Sabourin. "Walker got him back. So if that’s the end of it, so be it, but maybe there’s still some challenges coming his way.
"But Ridley, as far as I know him, is a good kid and a hell of a competitor. He’ll handle his own. He’ll answer the bell next year if he has to."