Philadelphia Flyers D Radko Gudas Needs to Consider His Reputation
By Marc Naples
Philadelphia Flyers’ Radko Gudas should start considering his reputation before it gets away from him
With a narrow lead in the third period of an important game Tuesday night against the Montreal Canadiens, the Philadelphia Flyers were put in a tough spot. Radko Gudas did what he does so often this year by trying to deliver big hit in the neutral zone. Lining up Lucas Lessio, Gudas didn’t get his timing quite right and winged Lessio, causing him to tumble awkwardly and stay down.
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Play continued as normal following the hit. About 10 seconds later however, the referees blew the play dead as Lessio was unable to rise. The game went to commercial, giving the referees some time to consider what just happened. After the commercial break, the officials decided to come down hard on Gudas, giving him a major penalty and a game misconduct.
Gudas was not please with the call.
I don’t blame him. Here’s a clip of the hit.
He was technically called for clipping. As this official video from the NHL explains, the difference between a perfectly legal hip check and an illegal clip is purely about the height of principle contact.
When I watch the hit, I see principle contact above the knee. Lessio jumped to avoid the contact, but this last minute evasion just led to an awkward fall. In considering penalties and suspensions, the league always expressly considers such last minute moves by the victim, and this is a factor that may exonerate an aggressor.
Either way, the hit was not illegal in my opinion, and no penalty should’ve been called. Fortunately the Flyers killed off the penalty and won the game. Furthermore, revered official Kerry Fraser agreed that the hit was legal, and the league did not pursue any supplemental discipline.
All those bullets were dodged, but why did it come to this in the first place? PK Subban ripped Gudas after the game, and his comments point to a growing reputation. “I mean, when I saw the replay on the screen in front of the bench — I didn’t see it live — it looked like it was low. I don’t know the player personally but it seems like when you’re on the ice with him he’s the type of guy who will do stuff like that.”
Philadelphia Flyers know all too well that the NHL makes reputation calls. Zac Rinaldo is Exhibit A there. Gudas was already suspended earlier this year for an illegal check to the head, which means he will be considered a repeat offender upon consideration of any new suspension.
A second suspension hasn’t happened, but signs point to a reputation that has taken root. The official story on the call against the Canadiens is that a linesman made the call, which they can do in certain circumstances. Still, one can’t help but wonder if Gudas’ apparent reputation pushed the officials to make the severe call on a close play.
Radko Gudas is an aggressive and physical player. No defenseman in the NHL hits more often than Gudas, and many of his hits fall into the “big hit” category. Gudas cannot and should not stray from that style of play. Unfortunately last night’s call may be the beginning of a trend of reputation calls against Gudas. It’s something he will have to be mindful of in the future, as Philadelphia Flyers players rarely get the benefit of the doubt on borderline hits.