During the second period, game footage hit Twitter— specifically, a video clip of Morgan Rielly, skating back to the Leafs’ zone after a blue line turnover at the Lightning’s end. That play ended in a shorthanded Tampa goal, with Rielly as the only Leafs player active while the rest were switching shifts.
The broadcast footage shows Rielly glance towards NHL linesman Brad Meier in the corner end of the Leafs’ defensive zone. It was then that mics on the ice picked up muffled audio of what sounded like a homophobic slur coming from Rielly.
With many believing Rielly called Meier a “f***ing f****t”, the clip rocked #HockeyTwitter.