Defenseman Radko Gudas of the Philadelphia Flyers will miss 10 games without pay due to suspension, the NHL announced on Sunday night. Gudas is suspended for a slash against Mathieu Perreault’s neck in the game against the Winnipeg Jets.
Before the incident, Gudas and Perreault battled for the pack which resulted in Gudas tripping Perreault. While Perreault was laying on the ice, Gudas lifted his stick and brought it down on his neck. Luckily, Perreault avoided a more significant injury. NHL’s department of player safety ruled that this was a “forceful chopping motion delivered to a player in a vulnerable position.“
Gudas defended himself by saying that the slash was not intentional, although he admitted that he was aware of Perreault’s presence. Gudas’ 10 games suspension is this severe because he is considered a repeat offender, being already suspended twice in the last two years. In December 2015, Gudas received a three games suspension for a headshot aimed at Ottawa Senators Mika Zibanejad. In October 2016, Gudas was suspended for six games for hitting Boston Bruins’ Austin Czarnik in the head.
Radko Gudas was selected by Tampa Bay Lightning in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft with the 66th overall pick. During his first three years with the Lightning, Gudas was mostly assigned to the team’s affiliates Norfolk Admirals and Syracuse Crunch. The Lightning resigned Gudas to a three-year deal in 2013. After a respectable first full season in the NHL, Gudas was ruled out for the majority of 2014-15 season after he underwent knee surgery. On March 2015, he was traded to the Philadelphia Flyers in a deal for Braydon Coburn. Gudas also competes for the Czech Republic on the national level, participating in the country’s 7th place run on 2017 Ice Hockey World Championships.
