The Toronto Maple Leafs finally stopped a difficult slide with an important home win against Anaheim. However, a moment during the game has changed the discussion around the result. The play involved the team’s captain and raised immediate concern on the bench.
Soon after the game ended, the incident began to draw reactions from within and outside the organization.
Radko Gudas Facing Scrutiny After Hit on Auston Matthews
The Maple Leafs defeated the Anaheim Ducks 6-4 on Thursday to end an eight-game losing streak. Toronto had struggled in recent weeks and entered the game needing a positive result. While the comeback win mattered in the standings, attention soon turned to an injury involving captain Auston Matthews.
The incident occurred during the second period in the slot. Matthews attempted to move around Ducks defenseman Radko Gudas when their legs collided in knee-on-knee contact. Matthews fell to the ice and remained down for several seconds before trainers reached him.
Defenseman Brandon Carlo and a team trainer helped Matthews leave the ice. The forward placed very little pressure on his left leg while heading to the locker room. Toronto ruled him out for the rest of the game shortly afterward with a lower-body injury.
Before leaving the game, Matthews had already made an impact on the scoreboard. He scored his 27th goal of the season earlier in the period, ending a personal 12-game stretch without a goal. Through 60 games this season, the 28-year-old center has recorded 27 goals and 26 assists for 53 points.
The NHL Department of Player Safety later scheduled a phone hearing for Friday. Since the hearing will be held by phone, any suspension cannot exceed five games.
Agent, Teammates React to Gudas Hit
The reaction extended beyond the bench after the game. TSN insider Darren Dreger reported that Matthews’ agent Judd Moldaver was “hot” after the knee-on-knee hit involving his client.
Several Maple Leafs players also discussed the play while speaking with reporters. Forward Matthew Knies explained that the situation developed quickly as Toronto tried to create a scoring chance near the net.
“It was a quick play. I was more focused on the puck because I knew (Auston) wanted to go back door to Cowboy there,” Knies said. “Obviously, saw him down in pain. You know the player: he’s done that quite often. I think it should be looked at. It’s our best player going down. It’s gotta be taken by the league here.”
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Knies also described the reaction within the team after Matthews left the ice. “Just the push back to fight back. There’s a lot of guys upset about what happened,” he added. “I think we did a good job responding to that in the third period, much better than we did at the time of the play.”
Toronto now waits for two updates in the coming days. The league must decide whether further discipline will follow the hit, while the Maple Leafs also await the results of Matthews’ medical evaluation.
