NHLPA appeals five-game suspension handed to Maple Leafs defenceman Morgan Rielly

TORONTO – The NHL Players’ Association says it has filed an appeal of Morgan Rielly’s five-game suspension for cross-checking.

The league’s department of player safety banned the Toronto Maple Leafs defenceman on Tuesday for his cross-check to the head of Senators forward Ridly Greig in the dying moments of Ottawa’s 5-3 victory over the weekend.

Rielly, who was assessed a major penalty and a game misconduct, lunged at Greig up high after the centre fired a slapshot into an empty net from close range with 5.1 seconds left in regulation.

Greig wasn’t injured on the play.

Toronto picked up a 4-1 victory over the St. Louis Blues without Rielly on Tuesday. The 29-year-old will be eligible to return to the lineup when the Leafs visit the Vegas Golden Knights on Feb. 22.

A suspension appeal of five games or fewer is heard by NHL commissioner Gary Bettman, whose ultimate ruling is final.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 14, 2024.