Kyle Clifford hits Corey Perry over the head with his stick during a scrum
In what can only be described as a complete gongshow, the Leafs dropped their final meeting with the Tampa Bay Lightning 8-1. Over the course of the game tempers flared as the referees allowed the game to descend into complete chaos. If there is a positive to losing 8-1 to your likely playoff matchup, its that the Leafs didn't take the loss lying down. There were well over 100 minutes worth of penalties handed out, 69 of them to Leafs players. By far the funniest though, was Kyle Clifford's match penalty for hitting Corey Perry over the head with his stick.
A scrum had broken out after the whistle when Perry skated too close to the net for Morgan Rielly's liking, Rielly grabbed him and the festivities kicked off from there. From across the scrum, Kyle Clifford, now holding his stick upside down, reached over and, for lack of a better term, bonked a helmetless Corey Perry over the head with it.
The referees decided to actually do their job and reviewed the play before deciding that the bonk was worthy of a match penalty. Clifford was ejected from the game and will likely face supplemental discipline. I have to say, given the chance, I'd take a $5,000 fine to whack Corey Perry over the head too. Perry was not injured on the play. If a suspension is the result, it still might be worth it.
POLL |
AVRIL 22 | 186 ANSWERS Kyle Clifford hits Corey Perry over the head with his stick during a scrum What was more important? The score, or the amount of pushback from the Leafs |
The score, duh | 34 | 18.3 % |
The Leafs fighting back | 117 | 62.9 % |
How many games until the playoffs? | 35 | 18.8 % |
List of polls |
|
10 hours ago | By Nick Matthews Maple Leafs Prospect May Leave the Organization Due to a Lack of Opportunity Amid Hot Streak |
|
12 hours ago | By Mike Armenti The NHL's Dirtiest Player Takes a Run at Leafs Rookie Jacob Quillan and Suffers Horrible Injury |
|
13 hours ago | By Nick Matthews Ex-NHLer Ray Ferraro Believes Leafs Fans Have Unrealistic Expectations of Morgan Rielly |
|
17 hours ago | By Mike Armenti Saturday's Goaltending Announcement for the Leafs Spells Trouble for Matt Murray |
|
19 hours ago | By Dean Chaudhry Craig Berube Admits to Taking Cautious Approach With Anthony Stolarz |
|
20 hours ago | By Ryan Smitheram Maple Leafs Place Forward on IR, Recall Popular Young Rookie From Marlies |
|
21 hours ago | By Mike Armenti Leafs Enforcer Ryan Reaves Shares Unexpected Reaction to Quiet Crowd at Scotiabank Arena |
|
22 hours ago | By Ryan Smitheram Insider Reporting a Blockbuster Larger Than the Mikko Rantanen Trade in the Works |
Previously on MapleLeafsDaily