The Toronto Maple Leafs will play the rest of the 2025-26 NHL season without their captain, Auston Matthews.
Matthews suffered a Grade 3 torn MCL after a knee-on-knee hit from Anaheim Ducks captain Radko Gudas. It was a dirty hit by Gudas, who is known as someone who plays on the edge. The NHL ended up suspending Gudas for five games.
Following the suspension, Judd Moldaver – the agent of Matthews – spoke to Elliotte Friedman and blasted the NHL for the decision.
“In light of the obvious severity of the play, I am disappointed and shocked the league would allow such a ruling,” Moldaver said. “A phone hearing and 5 games is laughable and preposterous. While the process is set in our CBA, that this was the discipline is reckless and ridiculous.
“This decision results in a further loss of confidence in the disciplinary process for all players. Players and fans deserve better. The Player Safety Department should be suspended.”
Moldaver clearly isn’t happy that the NHL only suspended Gudas for five games for injuring the Maple Leafs star. Matthews is one of the best players in the NHL, and he is now lost for the season, so Moldaver doesn’t understand how it’s just a five-game suspension.
Maple Leafs Announce Matthews is Done for Season
Toronto is having a disappointing season, and now Matthews is done for the season.
Matthews will be out due to a knee injury, as the Maple Leafs announced the news in a statement.
“The Toronto Maple Leafs announced today that captain Auston Matthews sustained a Grade 3 MCL tear and quad contusion on March 12 during the second period of the team’s game against the Anaheim Ducks,” the statement read.
“Matthews will be re-evaluated in approximately two weeks. A further update will be provided at that time. He will miss the remainder of the 2025-26 NHL season.”
Matthews was having a disappointing season as he had 27 goals and 26 assists for 53 points in 60 games. It’s well down from the 69 goals he had two seasons ago, as last season, he had just 33 goals.
Matthews is in the second year of his four-year, $53 million deal.
Craig Berube Calls Gudas’ Hit Dirty
Matthews had to be helped off the ice in Thursday’s win, and Maple Leafs head coach Craig Berube wasn’t happy with the hit.
Berube felt like it was dirty and something that Gudas could have avoided.
“That’s a dirty play,” Berube said postgame. “The league is obviously going to look at it and see what the suspension will be, or whatever happens.”
Not only was Berube frustrated about the hit, but he didn’t like his team’s response. Not a single player went after Gudas, which is something the coach felt was unacceptable.
“We should’ve had four guys in there doing something about it,” Berube said. “It didn’t happen then, but I thought they responded in the third. It was a good response there. We all would’ve liked everyone to get in there right away.”
The Maple Leafs did start scrums and fights in the third period, but Berube felt like it should have happened sooner.
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