Tensions Rise as Matthew Knies Slams Ridley Greig's Agitating Tactics

While the Maple Leafs ended up coming away with a dominant 6-2 victory over Ottawa in Game One of their first round matchup, there was a lot of tension and intensity when it came to the evening's events and that was all before the puck even dropped.

The Maple Leafs were lucky they avoided any serious injuries or issues with how aggressive and reckless the Senators played, especially Ridly Greig trying to single-handedly hurt every player he could see.

First, he threw a malicious crosscheck to the face of John Tavares which sent him sprawling but only came with a two-minute inconvenience and no further discipline, then decided to try and take out Anthony Stolarz's legs later on.

It was not a good show of character and shows how much animosity there is between the two teams; especially Greig.

So Matthew Knies wasn't going to take things lightly going forward, and had a strong message to Grieg and the rest of the Senators for Game Two and beyond:

Taking that at face value, Knies and the rest of the team is just going to dig a little deeper and make sure the Senators get a lack of chances. However, reading between the lines a bit more, you can see Knies and the boys won't back down from fighting back.

We saw that at the end of Game One and if Greig tries any of his potential tactics on Tuesday night, he may find himself flat on the ice either by a vicious body check or a potential fist.

Toronto has never been as dangerous as they are, not because they have some brutes skating, but their stars are willing to inflict damage too.

When everyone is fighting for each other, that type of camaraderie and closeness means that the slightest attempt on any player will lead to a target being painted and an angry and vengeful Leafs team ready to strike.

They have to be careful though, as their discipline and penalty-drawing ability was a huge reason why they came out with the win, and can't get carried away with getting revenge at every little turn.

So we'll have to see how Game Two plays out, and it'll be a good indicator of where things will head once Greig is on the ice. If he smartens himself up and plays a bit tighter then Toronto has no reason to go after him.

But if he keeps it up? Expect Knies and company to send a very clear message.