Toronto Maple Leafs captain Auston Matthews will miss the rest of the season after sustaining a Grade 3 MCL tear and quad contusion Thursday against the Anaheim Ducks, the team announced Friday.
Ducks defenseman Radko Gudas hit Matthews in a knee-on-knee collision during the second period of the contest.
Gudas received a major penalty and game misconduct for the hit, and was suspended five games by NHL's Department of Player Safety on Friday. Though Gudas has been suspended four times in his NHL career, none have occurred since 2019.
Matthews' agent Judd Moldaver called the five-game suspension "laughable and preposterous," according to TSN's Chris Johnston.
"While the hearing process is pre-fixed in our CBA, that there was no further discipline is a reckless and ridiculous position for player safety," Moldaver added. "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."
Maple Leafs head coach Craig Berube called the hit a "dirty play" postgame, per TSN's Mark Masters. Berube was also irked by his team's lack of response to the hit.
"We should have had four guys in there doing something about it," Berube said, according to SDPN's Jesse Blake. "I thought they responded in the third. ... But we all would have liked everyone to get in there right away."
Matthews tallied 27 goals and 53 points in 60 games this season. This will mark the first time since his rookie campaign in 2016-17 that he has fewer points than games played. The 28-year-old captained Team USA to gold at the Olympics in February.
Matthews won the Hart Trophy as NHL MVP in 2022. He's led the league in goals three times, most recently in 2023-24 when he notched a career-high 69 in 81 games.
The Maple Leafs sit 25th in the NHL with a 28-27-11 record and are 11 points out of the second wild card in the Eastern Conference.
