Leafs tough guy Tie Domi believes NHL referee Bill McCreary has it in for him.

Domi will be automatically suspended for two games after he received his third instigator penalty of the season last night in a 5-1 loss to the visiting Buffalo Sabres.

"I think (McCreary) has a personal thing against me," said Domi, who was whistled by McCreary for 19 penalty minutes on the same play at 15:26 of the first period.

"It's the same ref that called my instigator rule when (the Washington Capitals) Jason (Doig) ran (Toronto rookie) Matt Stajan," Domi said.

"I took off my helmet and (Doig) took off his helmet and I got the instigator."

Domi believes McCreary has made their on-ice relationship personal since that Capitals' game on Oct. 25.

Since then, Domi said, McCreary has sent some memorabilia to him to autograph "and I turned him down, so he might have something personal against me."

Domi believes that there is not as much respect between referees and NHL players as there used to be.

"That's the problem nowadays, I think," he said.

"Andy Van Hellemond was probably the friendliest ref. He talked to you, but nowadays guys won't talk to you. It's unfortunate because you've got to give respect to get it, and the players and referees are just too separate. Right now they can't get along too well."

Van Hellemond is now the NHL's director of officiating.

McCreary was not available for an interview after the game.

"I've generally argued against the instigator (rule), especially when people don't know how to call it. I don't like it," Leafs coach Pat Quinn said.

"I've always argued against it."

Last night, Domi said he tangled with Sabres Eric Boulton because the latter took a run at Leafs' defender Tomas Kaberle.

"When you're down 3-0 and a guy runs at your defenceman, I'm on the ice and one of us has got to do something. ... It's frustrating. I have to miss a couple of games, so what are you going to do?"

On the play, Domi was levied five minutes for fighting, a 10-minute misconduct and two minutes each for being the instigator in a fight and unsportsmanlike conduct.

Boulton was given five minutes for fighting.

That meant the Leafs were shorthanded for four minutes, but they managed to kill off the penalties without a goal from the Sabres.

Domi, the Leafs all-time leader in penalty minutes, has five goals, 12 assists and 186 penalty minutes in 69 games so far this season.

Since arriving in the NHL during the 1989-90 season, Domi has racked up 3,384 penalty minutes in 932 games.