John Tavares Finally Opens Up About Dangerous Hit in Game 4 Overtime

Taking a cheap shot at John Tavares during Game 4 of the Battle of Ontario, Artem Zub got away with a nasty elbow to the face of the veteran forward, and not only did he get away with it in the game, but afterwards, the league ignored it as well.

While the playoffs certainly do get a bit more heated than usual, there's no excuse for such dangerous events to occur, and it infuriated everyone from the head coach, to pundits, to a whole whack of Maple Leafs fans.

But how does Tavares himself feel about things? He was the one knocked down after all, and speaking to media ahead of Game 5, the former captain too umbrage to Zub's actions and stated what we all knew already, it was a pretty blatant cheap shot:

I think it's safe to say that John Tavares has every right to be upset with Zub, as it was a clear shot to the head, feet away from any type of in-game action, and sets a dangerous precedent that the Senators can run roughshod over the Maple Leafs with zero consequences.

But the team can't have revenge on their minds, at least in the traditional sense. While it would be easy and quite satisfying for Zub to find himself on his rear end at some point in Game 5, but the Leafs can't let emotions run high. Toronto needs to stay disciplined and make sure they don't get caught up in any mind games.

The best course of action to silence Zub and the Senators is to come out firing on all cylinders. Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner need to score more, Bobby McMann has to find his regular season form, and the goaltending needs to stand on its head just one more game.

It's a good thing the Maple Leafs are headed back home to a more comfortable atmosphere, and it would be poetic to shut out the Sens hopes of a Cinderella playoff push and shut up Zub and his antics for good.

Well, at least until October.