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Maple Leafs' Auston Matthews Spotted Destroying Ridly Greig's Stick

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Antonio Losada | Last updated Apr 23, 2025 5:02 AM ET

The latest installment of the Battle of Ontario kicked off on Sunday with the Toronto Maple Leafs making quick work of the Ottawa Senators and beating them 6-2 in Game 1.

There was no shortage of physicality or drama during the first game of the matchup, and Leafs captain Auston Matthews added to both during and after the game.

Following a heated exchange in front of the Toronto bench, first described by The Fourth Period's David Pagnotta, Matthews grabbed Ridly Greig’s stick and broke it in half.

It took two days for footage of the moment to emerge, but Sportsnet released video footage before Game 2 on Tuesday.

"Auston Matthews snapped Ridly Greig's stick after it got pulled into the Leafs' bench during Game 1 " the Sportsnet account posted on X along with the clip.

Auston Matthews snapped Ridly Greig's stick after it got pulled into the Leafs' bench during Game 1 pic.twitter.com/fzmy66aTrc
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) April 22, 2025

The incident happened midway through the game, shortly after Greig crashed into the Leafs' bench. Matthews reacted quickly and took the opportunity to reach over, grabbing Greig's stick before he skated away, only to break it in half.

Greig had already drawn attention earlier in the game and has a heated past against the Maple Leafs.

On Sunday, Greig was penalized in the second period for a high cross-check to the head of John Tavares, initially ruled a five-minute major before being downgraded to a minor.

Maple Leafs head coach Carig Berube was direct when asked after the game about it, saying, “That’s not my call,” before leaving the room shouting, ”Call the league.”

Later in the game, Greig collided with Toronto goalie Anthony Stolarz after a stick check from Mitch Marner, further escalating tensions. Matthews’ retaliation with the broken stick came as a boiling point.

The Leafs stayed focused and scored three times on the power play, going 3-for-6 in the man advantage and cruising to a 6–2 win, capitalizing on Ottawa’s 38 penalty minutes.

Toronto beat the Senators once again on Tuesday, 3-2 in overtime this time, to take a commanding 2-0 lead as the series shifts to Ottawa for Games 3 and 4.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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