As if having a miserable season and missing the playoffs for the first time this decade wasn't enough, fans of the Toronto Maple Leafs have to now deal with their best player being targeted and the victim of a vicious and dirty hit, and the penalty potentially being extremely light.
On Thursday night, as the Maple Leafs hosted the Anaheim Ducks, center Auston Matthews was trying to make a play in the slot and had defenseman Radko Gudas storm in and lay him out with a very nasty knee-on-knee collision that left the Leafs captain unable to get up off the ice. Matthews eventually exited the game after the hit and Gudas was ejected, but news came down that made this hit even worse.
NHL DoPS decision on Gudas hit causes firestorm online for Leafs fans
The NHL's Department of Player Safety decided to have a phone hearing for a potential suspension of Gudas. It is expected, especially after watching the collision over and over again, that there will be a suspension but it will certainly not be enough.
Gudas having a phone hearing and not something in-person, limits the suspension to just five or fewer games. Just a handful of games missed after displaying an intense intent to injure.
Of course, this caused hundreds and hundreds of Leafs fans to head to Twitter and yell and scream into the void about how unfair this is -- because it is just another typical display of the Department of Player Safety and its leader, George Parros, not making the right decision.
thinking about jason spezza, first time offender, getting 6 games today.
— s (@leafsicko) March 13, 2026
anyway radko gudas has an entire section of his wiki page regarding his dirty play and suspension history, is that normal?? https://t.co/TUFZ84ZnRI
Can’t wait for the @NHL to preach player safety today. Gudas should be done for the year at the very least. One of the faces of the league just got his leg torn off and they want to have a phone call. Give me a break. https://t.co/pwLoYbebQg
— Brian Schmidt (@Holy_Schm1dt) March 13, 2026
What an absolute joke the @NHLPlayerSafety is! Guy has a record, JUST DID THIS TO CROSBY & Matthews is most likely finished for the season. If this was Domi omg the league would have a shit fit and make an example of Domi.#fireparros https://t.co/GVimRpmoV1
— Muskoka Leafs Fan (@LeafsNationTO) March 13, 2026
Imagine if he'd hit a Florida Panther...@NHLPlayerSafety is a travesty. Parros is a clown. https://t.co/SxMibYJOee
— Bryan Tait (@BryanTait) March 13, 2026
Radko Gudas' history speaks for itself
The main reason why so many Leafs fans are as upset as they are because Gudas is a notoriously dirty player and does something like this on a regular basis. So much so that The Athletic's Chris Johnston had to point it out on a national scale.
Over his career, Gudas has lost 21 total games to suspension. And while his last infraction being all the way back in 2017 -- Gudas got 10 games for hitting a player over the head with his stick -- creates almost an entire clean sheet in the eyes of the Department of Player Safety, and removes the label of being a repeat offender. Technically right in the rules that they decided to make up for their own suspension rulings, but it feels unjust.
There has been no timeline for the suspension hearing but we will hear what the result is in the coming days.