Leafs forward Pontus Holmberg facing suspension for disgusting retaliation on Senators' Ridly Greig

In the second preseason game between the Ottawa Senators and Toronto, forward Ridly Greig was attempting to get out of his own zone when Maple Leafs' Pontus Holmberg tripped him up rather badly. Greig took a while to stand up.

The Senators forward appeared to take a hard hit to the head on the ice, and the team quickly declared that the play had caused an upper-body injury, meaning he would not be able to return to the game.

The hit received a very mixed response from fans, with many Leafs supporters referring to Greig as a diver among other things, while others have condemned Holmberg's actions as reckless. Amidst the uproar, some fans reminisced about Tom Wilson's history with preseason suspensions, confirming that disciplinary actions are indeed possible before the regular season commences.

Fans made the observation that Holmberg most likely did this to catch the attention of the Leafs coaching staff. He did play in 54 games with the team the previous season, so he will be fighting for a spot on the roster this time around. His position on the roster is definitely not guaranteed, particularly with a new coaching staff.

However, the clash wasn't without a backstory. Holmberg's target was likely not chosen at random. Greig's provocative slapshot into an empty net during a previous season game against the Leafs-which sparked a suspension for Morgan Rielly after his retaliatory actions-might have been the catalyst for this preseason retaliation.

Given that the Leafs and Sens have yet to play a single regular-season game, this will undoubtedly not be the last chapter in this tale. When the teams play this season, expect to see more of this.