Ryan Reaves makes his feelings known on Auston Matthews' call out of Maple Leafs fans over 'lack of energy'

After having to wait much longer than anticipated, Ryan Reaves finally got into his first fight of the 2024-25 season on Wednesday night against the Columbus Blue Jackets. Just 1:32 into the game Reaves dropped the gloves with forward Mathieu Olivier in a spirited bout.

The Maple Leafs went on to lose the game 5-1, and captain Auston Matthews shared his displeasure postgame with the lack of crowd reaction following the fight.

Matthews said he would've liked to see more energy from the fans after such a great tilt between two heavyweights. He wasn't too impressed, saying the Maple Leafs home crowd was a little quiet for his liking on Wednesday night.

Reaves spoke to the media on Saturday for the first time following his captain's comments. Leafslatest on X shared what the 38-year-old has to say.

"This crowd can be great. Sometimes they don't bring it, just like sometimes we don't bring it... I'm expecting a big game from them next time," Reaves said.

The Scotiabank Arena home crowd has been called out before for its corporate feel and lack of energy. Though it's much different to hear a player calling out the fans, especially Auston Matthews.

Ryan Reaves could look to mix it up in the Battle of Ontario on Saturday night

Ryan Reaves will remain in Toronto's lineup for tonight's battle of Ontario against the Ottawa Senators. Now that his first fight of the season is out of the way, you have to wonder if that opens the floodgates.

The Leafs and Sens are bitter rivals and it's gotten chippy in recent meetings. It's been almost a year since Ridly Greig took a controversial slapshot into the empty net against Toronto. Morgan Rielly took exception and cross-checked him in the head, leading to a five-game suspension.

You never know what could happen when Ottawa and Toronto meet up.

With just two points (zero goals, two assists) in 30 games this season, we know Ryan Reaves isn't in the lineup to produce offense. He'll look to be a physical and intimidating presence tonight where tensions could rise at any moment.

Reaves and the Leafs will look to get back in the win column against the Senators tonight at the Canadian Tire Centre. The puck drops at 7 p.m. EST.