The Maple Leafs held a media availability at Ford Performance Centre before travelling to Ottawa on Wednesday.

Before the series started, Anthony Stolarz made a prediction about the first playoff Battle of Ontario since 2004.

"It is going to be a bloodbath," the Leafs goalie declared after his team locked up first place in the Atlantic Division and assured a showdown with the wildcard Ottawa Senators.

So, maybe we shouldn't be surprised that, after getting run into by Senators forward Ridly Greig in Game 1, Stolarz exacted his pound of flesh in Game 2.

"I was just caught up in the heat of the battle," Stolarz said. "You’re in the heat of the moment."

With the Leafs killing a penalty in the second period, Stolarz delivered a push, a forearm shiver and then a slash to Greig before knocking the 22-year-old to the ice when he tried to skate through his crease to get back to the bench.

"I was just trying to battle in front of the net," Greig told reporters in Ottawa. "He wasn’t having it. I love the compete. It was good."

"I wouldn’t go after Stollie if I was him," Leafs defenceman Oliver Ekman-Larsson warned with a grin. "He’s a big guy."

Stolarz, who insisted he had no idea which Senator he was battling with on the play, was penalized for interference. Greig got two minutes for roughing.

"He's just protecting his crease," Leafs coach Craig Berube said, "which I don't have a problem with."

"I didn’t see the roughing by Ridly," Senators coach Travis Green said. "I think Stolarz is a fiery guy."

Not every goalie is like this.

"When push comes to shove, you know, I try to step away from anything like that," Senators netminder Linus Ullmark told reporters. "It’s not a part of me. It’s not a part of my game."

Trying to make the opposing goalie uncomfortable is a big part of playoff hockey and Stolarz expected the Senators to look to get in his kitchen.

"It’s no secret that I’m a big guy," the 6-foot-6, 243-pound New Jersey native said. "I can see over people. They’re going to throw their bodies around at me and it’s just up to me to just fight through the screens and just see the puck."

Stolarz is seeing the puck just fine right now. He's turned aside 57 of 61 shots to win his first two Stanley Cup playoff starts. The 31-year-old has waited........

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