{"id":531929,"date":"2026-03-30T23:50:20","date_gmt":"2026-03-30T23:50:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/531929\/"},"modified":"2026-03-30T23:50:20","modified_gmt":"2026-03-30T23:50:20","slug":"radko-gudas-ready-and-willing-to-stand-behind-my-own-mistakes-in-toronto-maple-leafs-rematch","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/531929\/","title":{"rendered":"Radko Gudas ready and willing to ‘stand behind my own mistakes’ in Toronto Maple Leafs rematch"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Maple Leafs and Anaheim Ducks<\/a> skated at the Honda Center on Monday. <\/p>\n

—<\/p>\n

Radko Gudas<\/a> left last Thursday\u2019s game in Calgary in a walking boot after sustaining a lower-body injury against the Flames. The 35-year-old defenceman then missed Saturday\u2019s crucial showdown in Edmonton. But Gudas will be in the lineup on Monday night against the Maple Leafs. <\/p>\n

It is the first meeting between the teams since Gudas ended the season of Leafs captain Auston Matthews<\/a> with a knee-on-knee hit. <\/p>\n

\u201cStand behind my own mistakes,\u201d Gudas explained when asked about his desire to play despite not being in top physical condition. \u201cI want to address it myself, so that\u2019s one of the reasons, 100 per cent. That\u2019s one of those games where I have to play.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Ducks captain is expecting fireworks early on. <\/p>\n

\u201cWhen it\u2019s addressed early in the game everybody can, I don\u2019t want to say relax a little bit, but everybody knows that the thing is going to [be] addressed,\u201d Gudas said. \u201cI would assume something like that\u2019s going to happen again.\u201d<\/p>\n

Gudas ready to face the fire against Maple Leafs: ‘I know they’re going to be coming’ The Maple Leafs and Ducks face off for the first time since Auston Matthews went down with a serious knee injury suffered from a dirty hit from Radko Gudas, who he himself called a mistake that he’s ready to address in Anaheim. Mark Masters has more on the mood around both teams heading into tonight’s emotional rematch. <\/p>\n

—<\/p>\n

Gudas reached out to Matthews and expressed regret for what happened. Toronto\u2019s top-line centre sustained a Grade 3 MCL tear, which required surgery. <\/p>\n

Gudas was assessed a five-game suspension, which the Leafs made clear they felt was too lenient. <\/p>\n

Are the Leafs still angry? <\/p>\n

\u201cWe lost our best player so (pause) that\u2019s my response,\u201d defenceman Simon Benoit<\/a> said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s going to be a game that means a lot for our side so, yeah, we\u2019ll be fired up,\u201d winger William Nylander<\/a> told reporters after Saturday\u2019s loss in St. Louis.<\/p>\n

The other Leafs skaters on the ice when Matthews got hurt (Nylander, Easton Cowan<\/a>, Morgan Rielly<\/a> and Brandon Carlo<\/a>) did not confront Gudas, which led to a rebuke from coach Craig Berube<\/a> and criticism across the hockey world. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe all kind of saw the media after that game, so we know that it\u2019s going to be an emotional game out there,\u201d said Ducks rookie Beckett Sennecke<\/a>. \u201cWe\u2019re a strong, hard team to play against so we\u2019re excited for the challenge.\u201d<\/p>\n

Benoit said the initial non-response to Gudas was \u201ca wake-up call.\u201d Toronto is the most penalized team in the league since that game against the Ducks on March 12. <\/p>\n

On Monday night, they get another chance to confront Gudas. <\/p>\n

\u201cJust play him hard like anyone else,\u201d said winger Dakota Joshua<\/a>, who leads the Leafs in hits. \u201cIf there\u2019s a chance to hit him, I\u2019m sure we\u2019ll make sure we\u2019re physical.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJust be hard on him,\u201d Benoit echoed. \u201cBut it doesn\u2019t mean I\u2019m going to take my stick and rip his head off. It\u2019s just being hard on him. Those two points are important for them as well so being hard on them, being physical, and grabbing those two points from them will hurt too.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Ducks are just three points up on the Oilers in the race for top spot in the Pacific Division. <\/p>\n

‘We lost our best player’: Leafs haven’t forgot hit on Matthews, plan to play Gudas hard Radko Gudas was handed a five-game suspension for a knee-on-knee hit on Auston Matthews, which knocked the Maple Leafs captain out for the rest of the season. The Leafs haven’t forgot that hit and plan to play the Ducks defenceman hard in the rematch tonight. <\/p>\n

—<\/p>\n

George Parros<\/a>, who is the head of the NHL\u2019s department of player safety, will be in attendance on Monday night. <\/p>\n

\u201cThey don\u2019t want the game to get out of hand,\u201d Leafs coach Craig Berube<\/a> said. \u201cI don\u2019t blame them. I don\u2019t think it\u2019s good for anybody. You don\u2019t want anything stupid happening, suspensions, things like that, that doesn\u2019t solve anything. Just go out and play the game with a lot of emotion, energy, be physical and be hard on their skill players.\u201d<\/p>\n

Still, these are the type of games where things can go off the rails quickly. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s hard to predict but you anticipate a physical game,\u201d Ducks coach Joel Quenneville<\/a> said. \u201cBoth teams are probably going to come out playing hard. That\u2019s what I expect, and let\u2019s be smart about it.\u201d<\/p>\n

‘Don\u2019t want anything stupid happening’: Leafs, Ducks realize NHL is watching rematch closely Head coaches Joel Quenneville and Craig Berube are well aware that Department of Player Safety head George Parros will be in attendance for the Maple Leafs-Ducks clash in Anaheim and don’t blame the league for not wanting the game to get out of hand. <\/p>\n

—<\/p>\n

Gudas describes his health as \u201cgood to play\u201d but didn\u2019t look comfortable at times during the morning skate. <\/p>\n

Ducks teammates appreciate his desire to fight his own battle. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s huge,\u201d said winger Cutter Gauthier<\/a>. \u201cWhen you\u2019re the leader of a team and you\u2019re willing to do whatever it takes to be in front of the guys and support the guys and step up for your actions it\u2019s obviously great. So, super happy he\u2019s able to get healthy enough to play tonight and we\u2019ll be behind his back and help him through it all.\u201d<\/p>\n

Quenneville checked in with Gudas at the end of the skate just to make sure he was good to go. <\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s been around so he knows how games like this can be played out and the experience can help him,\u201d the coach said. \u201cHe wants to play and he\u2019s going to play.\u201d<\/p>\n

Gudas is beloved in the Ducks dressing room. <\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s got the \u2018C\u2019 for a reason,\u201d Gauthier noted. \u201cAll the things he does on and off the ice to help this group and bond this group, I\u2019ve never seen anything like it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s the best. He\u2019s the voice that keeps us all together,\u201d said Sennecke. \u201cHe looks out for all of us and we look out for him too.\u201d <\/p>\n

Ducks determined to have Gudas’ back: ‘We’re going to stick together no matter what’ The Ducks are determined to have captain Radko Gudas’ back no matter what happens against the Maple Leafs on Monday night and rave about the leadership the rugged defenceman brings to the locker room. <\/p>\n

—<\/p>\n

During the game between the teams earlier this month, Max Domi<\/a> received a misconduct for going after Sennecke in the third period. <\/p>\n

\u201cHonestly, I don\u2019t really know what happened,\u201d the 20-year-old Ducks rookie recalled with a smile. \u201cHe got a little aggressive there in that scrum. It\u2019s an emotional game and he\u2019s an emotional player.\u201d<\/p>\n

Domi appeared to have Sennecke in his sights for much of the night. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt was interesting,\u201d said Sennecke. \u201cI don\u2019t really know why, but he\u2019s a competitive guy and I\u2019m excited to get out there against him today.\u201d<\/p>\n

Domi was not available to the media after Monday\u2019s skate. <\/p>\n

Ducks rookie Sennecke unsure why ’emotional player’ Domi targeted him in Toronto Ducks rookie forward Beckett Sennecke is unsure why Max Domi targeted him in Toronto but say the Leafs veteran is a competitive, emotional player. Head coach Joel Quenneville thinks Sennecke has handled the physicality well in his first season and says he will only get better at dealing with the extra attention. <\/p>\n

— <\/p>\n

Lines at Leafs skate on Monday: <\/p>\n

Cowan – Tavares – Nylander<\/p>\n

Knies – Groulx – Maccelli<\/p>\n

Joshua – Domi – Robertson<\/p>\n

Pezzetta – Quillan – Lorentz<\/p>\n

Jarnkrok<\/p>\n

Rielly – Carlo<\/p>\n

McCabe – Stecher<\/p>\n

Benoit – Ekman-Larsson<\/p>\n

Myers<\/p>\n

Stolarz<\/p>\n

Woll<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Maple Leafs and Anaheim Ducks skated at the Honda Center on Monday. — Radko Gudas left last…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":531930,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[5106],"tags":[33381,4759,5,20,5172,4,59305,66,31,32467,5171],"class_list":{"0":"post-531929","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-toronto-maple-leafs","8":"tag-anaheim-ducks-sports-hockey-team-team-nhl-api-24","9":"tag-apple-news","10":"tag-hockey","11":"tag-maple-leafs","12":"tag-mapleleafs","13":"tag-nhl","14":"tag-radko-gudas-sports-hockey-player-player-nhl-api-8475462","15":"tag-toronto","16":"tag-toronto-maple-leafs","17":"tag-toronto-maple-leafs-sports-hockey-team-team-nhl-api-10","18":"tag-torontomapleleafs"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nhl\/116320811533875406","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/531929","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=531929"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/531929\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/531930"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=531929"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=531929"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=531929"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}