Radko Gudas played 12:30 for the Florida Panthers in Sunday night's 3-2 win at Chicago, and one X post says he got away with something.
The post is vague about what that something was. I can't see any clip, so I won't pretend to know what play the author is pointing at.
What the sheet does confirm is the box score. Gudas finished without a point, went -1, took 2 PIM and put one shot on goal.
That's a quiet night on paper. But a quiet night on paper doesn't settle an argument that's really about reputation.
Gudas has carried that reputation for a long time. He has 1132 PIM over 893 regular-season games, and nobody builds that number by accident.
He's 36 now, signed at a $1,500,000 cap hit that runs from 2026-27 through 2031-32. That's a long runway for a depth defenseman.
Through eight games this season he has no goals, no assists and 8 PIM. He isn't there to fill the scoresheet, and everyone knows it.
Panthers and the ongoing officiating debate
Then there's the other half of the complaint, the idea that Florida can do no wrong. The Panthers beat the Blackhawks 3-2 on Sunday, so that crowd won't be quieted by this result.
Matthew Tkachuk scored on the power play, Lars Eller scored the game-winner, and Sandis Vilmanis added a goal. Akira Schmid stopped 19 of 21 shots in goal.
Still, the Panthers are 6-4-2 and sit 15th in the NHL. Their goal differential is -2, which isn't the profile of a team that gets everything.
Here's the part that matters. Fan frustration usually grows from the feeling that a team gets a different rulebook, and a 36-year-old with Gudas's history makes the perfect lightning rod.
The post's author, Mediocrity Sucks, wrote that he's shocked Gudas got away with it while playing for a team that can supposedly do no wrong.
Whether the league has any interest in that complaint is unknown. Nothing in the sheet points to any discipline.
Paul Maurice's group visits Winnipeg on Tuesday. If Gudas draws attention again there, the argument gets louder fast.
Does Radko Gudas get a free pass because he plays for the Florida Panthers?
Voting closed
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