The NHL suspended Ottawa Senators forward Ridly Greig for two regular-season games on Monday for roughing during a recent playoff contest [1].
The disciplinary action highlights the league's stance on non-combative violence, as the penalty carries over into the next calendar year. Because the incident occurred after the Senators were eliminated from the postseason, Greig will miss the start of the 2026-27 regular season [5, 6].
The suspension stems from a game on April 25, 2026, where the Senators faced the Carolina Hurricanes [2]. During the contest, Greig delivered two sucker punches to Hurricanes defenseman Sean Walker [3, 4]. One of these strikes was an upper-cut delivered while Walker was held in a headlock [3, 4].
The incident occurred during the final game of a series that ended in a four-game sweep by the Carolina Hurricanes [6]. Ottawa lost that specific game 4-2 [3].
Greig will now serve the two-game penalty [1] when the next season begins. This period of inactivity begins in approximately five and a half months [6]. The league's decision to apply the suspension to the regular season ensures that the player serves the full penalty despite the conclusion of the current playoff bracket [5].
“Ridly Greig was suspended for two regular-season games for roughing.”
By applying a regular-season suspension to a playoff incident, the NHL is utilizing a mechanism to ensure disciplinary accountability when a team is eliminated from postseason play. This prevents players from avoiding penalties by exiting the playoffs before a ruling is finalized, effectively bridging the gap between the 2025-26 and 2026-27 seasons.
