The bad blood between the Toronto Maple Leafs and New York Islanders didn't begin with Darcy Tucker's hit on Michael Peca in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference quarterfinals that knocked the Isles' captain out of the playoffs and on to the operating table.

It started with Game 1.

Here's a look at the war of words between the teams, from their first playoff game in April to their first regular-season meeting Friday at Nassau Coliseum:

Sunday, April 21

Toronto Maple Leafs left wing Shayne Corson has been fined $1,000, the maximum allowed under the Collective Bargaining Agreement, for a high sticking incident against New York Islanders forward Dave Scatchard during Game 1 of their Eastern Conference Quarterfinal series at Toronto, April 18.

-- National Hockey League

Thursday, April 25

"Some of those guys think they're bullies. But it's rare in this league that you're going to bully anyone. They try and threaten you, but it becomes ridiculous, almost...

"They say things like, 'I'll kill you,' or 'Maybe next year,' but it becomes comical...

"It's not a good trade-off for our team, I don't think, myself for him ... This is hard, playoff hockey. If they think the only way to counteract it is to fight, maybe they're not cut out for playoff hockey."

-- Peca on scrums with the Maple Leafs and Tucker, who had been trying to bait him into fighting

	Isles defensman Kenny Jonsson missed the rest of the playoffs after being hit by Gary Roberts in Game 5.

Friday, April 26

"The hit on Kenny Jonsson should be looked on the same way as the Kyle McLaren hit last night ... To watch those referees bounce around out there and not make a call was an embarrassment.

"Kenny Jonsson is lost for the year and those referees said it wasn't a head injury ... He didn't see a head injury? Kenny laid on the ice for how long? And that's not a head injury? If you see the tape it was a forearm shiver to the back of the head."

-- Islanders coach Peter Laviolette referring to Gary Roberts' check from behind on Isles defenseman Kenny Jonsson

Saturday, April 27

"Is it common to ram a guy's head, face-first, into the glass from a running start from the blue line? ... Is it common to duck down on a late hit after a simple clearing play to aim at a guy's knees after you've talked about it? That's not playoff hockey ... That's not hockey at all. That's thuggery."

-- Islanders GM Mike Milbury

"I was just finishing my check .. I don't know what the big hoopla is about. If he hadn't been hurt, there wouldn't be anything said about it."

-- Tucker

"I feel bad for the kid but it was just a finished check that turned a little ugly. I just hope everything is all right and I'm playing hockey (Sunday night)."

-- Roberts

Sunday, April 28

	Cairns

"As long as you win the game, it doesn't matter who wins the fight."

-- Islanders forward Eric Cairns after he and teammate Shawn Bates were ejected for fighting Corson and Tucker

Monday, April 29

"After a thorough review of the game circumstances and the videotape, it is clear that Mr. Corson's kicking action was deliberate and dangerous. In reaching this decision, I also took into consideration that there is nothing in playing the game that would justify kicking your opponent, and that Mr. Corson had been fined earlier in the series as a result of a match penalty for a slashing incident in Game 1."

-- Colin Campbell, NHL vice president of hockey operations, suspending Corson for Game 7 for kicking Cairns

"I was just trying to survive, trying to get out of there."

-- Corson

"It sure doesn't seem like they like us much as a team, and we don't like them...

"Hockey players, more than in other sports, are able to sit down and talk about things afterward ... I've sat down with guys I've gotten into it with (in games) and talked about it later with them, and it's fine ... after this series, I don't know."

-- Isles goaltender Chris Osgood

"Four of our (soldiers) over in Afghanistan died over there helping the cause for the Americans ... (Fans) should show respect for the anthems -- both anthems."

-- Corson in response to Islanders fans booing the Canadian national anthem prior to Game 6

Tuesday, April 30

	Scatchard

"Intensity brings that out, I guess. It's unfortunate, but it was pretty intense hockey, that's for sure."

-- Scatchard

"Both teams were trying to be smart. It was a tough game for the enforcers to play."

-- Roberts

Saturday, May 11

"I'm called a dirty player ... I should have the same rights as guys like Steve Yzerman and (Washington's) Jaromir Jagr. What happens if I break my neck on that play?

"I get abuse for it. I'm called a dirty player, but (Yzerman) does the exact same thing and he's just trying to protect himself.

-- Tucker after suffering a separated shoulder from a hit by Senators forward Daniel Alfresson in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference semifinals

Wednesday, May 29

Michael Peca of the New York Islanders had surgery on Wednesday to repair a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee that is expected to keep him sidelined through the beginning of next season.

-- Associated Press

Friday, July 26

"All I keep telling myself is if I can have him experience the first three weeks after ACL surgery that I felt -- not that it has to be ACL surgery, but just the misery and the discomfort and everything -- I'm certainly going to repay that...

I read the article today and what Mike had to say. It was a tough hit and it took our captain out of the game. If you don't think the games against Toronto will be exciting, you are wrong. -- Isles coach Peter Laviolette, ESPN.com chat on July 26

"When something does happen and then you take into consideration the character of that person ... you can't help but think it was premeditated."

"I'm just glad to see somebody not back down from this guy ... He's got a big bark and that's about it. But I give him credit, though. He's a guy that plays the game physical and plays tough. He does a lot of things well that helps make that team successful. At the same time, you're not on his team, so you really hate him. I think even if you were on his team, you really wouldn't like him anyway."

"Whatever I do, if anything, is going to be within the rules of the game," he said. "I don't feel I'm stepping over any boundaries or anything."

-- Peca to Newsday

Saturday, July 27

"I don't care to hear (Peca's comments) ... Is it a slow news day?"

"Oh well, we'll see."

-- Tucker to the Toronto Sun in response to Peca's comments in Newsday

Thursday, August 15

"When you go through a lot of tough spots that's when you're really miserable, wishing that a lot of this didn't have to happen ... But then when you start feeling well and you've gotten past all the tough stages, now you're just looking forward to coming back playing and not as much worried about all the other crap.''

"That was one of those tough days."

-- Peca in reference to his statements in Newsday

Friday, September 20

	Tucker

"I don't think mine was even that low to tell you the truth ... (Peca) jumped. If he hadn't jumped, he would have gotten hit in the mid-section. Why is the onus on me and not on him? He's really distraught about it and he has made his feelings known to a lot of people. I'm sure he has made his thoughts known to the league and if they do that, then it's something that everybody has to adjust to.

"It would have been a blip on the screen if he hadn't gotten hurt, but he did get hurt and they made a big stink about it.

"I think it's going to be a tough game ... They didn't go out and get (tough guys Aaron Asham and Jason Wiemer) over the summer for nothing. We'll see how the first shift goes."

-- Tucker to the Toronto Star

Wednesday, October 23

"Trust me, when you've missed almost the whole season, the last thing you want to do is come back in a game like that ... Hopefully, I'm back sooner than that.

"All in all, I really don't care about the game itself. I'm sure something may happen, something may not happen. But I'm going to be more concerned with getting back in the flow."

-- Peca to Newsday in reference to his targeted return date of Dec. 6, the Islanders' first meeting with the Maple Leafs since the playoffs

"We've got enough guys now that every time Darcy Tucker steps out on the ice, he'll be accountable for his actions."

-- Isles forward Steve Webb to Newsday

Saturday, November 9

"With my hit, it was kind of a borderline thing ... You have just as many people arguing one way as you do the other way.

"You have to learn to deal with it. Obviously, I felt one way about it and he felt another. That's fine. He plays a real tough game, not much different than I do and sometimes there are things that are borderline."

-- Peca to the Edmonton Sun

Tuesday, November 26

"I think some of the blame lies on the league, not just in regard to this having been a low hit, but in general with them not being as hard on the discipline side in the playoffs as they are in the regular season ... Guys get away with so much, they feel like they can do anything, and we've created a precedent that's hard to go back on."

-- Peca to the Washington Post

"I don't think it's going to be a normal game, but we'll just have to see when we get there."

-- Tucker to the Washington Post

Thursday, November 28

	Peca

"What does it say about me if I condemn (Tucker) for making a dirty hit, and then I go out and do the same thing? That's not the right way to act."

"(Tucker) goes out and he plays the game hard just the way I do when I play. When you're out there, you do what is best for the team. And you do whatever it takes to help the team be successful. That's more important than going out there trying to settle a score with somebody."

"I feel so good that what happened to me is just a distant memory. When I made those comments (about getting Tucker back), I was going through a tough rehabilitation, and some of those things I said were mainly out of frustration.

"You have to look forward. The only thing I can do now is go out there and play hard. You have to focus on helping the team win. You can't go out there and be looking for people. You have to make sure that you go out there and get the job done for your team."

-- Peca after being ejected for clipping Senators defenseman Zdeno Chara

Tuesday, December 3

"I'll talk about the game (Tuesday against Tampa Bay) but I'm not talking about that other thing ... I'm not going to talk about it, please pass it on."

-- Tucker

"He's in a better mood than ever. He'll be fine. I'm not worried about that.''

-- Leafs captain Mats Sundin on Tucker's mindset entering Friday's game against the Islanders

Thursday, December 5

"It comes to a point where you've just got to let it go. You can't go on day after day with contempt. I can't carry this baggage I don't care to carry. I'd rather focus on the more positive things in life and the game.

"I'm not going to carry around anything that's going to use up energy where I don't want it to.''

-- Peca

"The Toronto game isn't about taking personal matters. We have to move forward.''

-- Jonsson

Material from the Associated Press was used in compiling this report.