So, who’s the bigger idiot?
Radko “The Butcher” Gudas or George “Safety My Ass” Parros?
After the latest Gudas assault on an opponent (this time ending Auston Matthew’s season) the above question deserves an answer.
Although most people were totally surprised at the latest lenient punishment (five games) doled out by Parros and the NHL’s laughable Department of Player Safety—no one should have been.
Parros has been repeatedly panned for his ongoing ridiculous rulings when players cross the line. But then again, that’s what you get when you hire a former NHLer whose only skill was caving in opponent’s faces and/or knocking out their teeth.
🏒 Putting George Parros in charge of player safety is like hiring a pyromaniac as the fire marshal.
🏒 Putting George Parros in charge of player safety is like appointing the former schoolyard bully as hall monitor.
🏒 Putting George Parros in charge of player safety is like hiring a kleptomaniac as a bank teller
🏒 Putting George Parros in charge of player safety is like putting a junk-food addict in charge of the diabetes clinic.
🏒 Putting George Parros in charge of player safety is like putting a burglar in charge of the alarm system.
It’s not like Gudas is a first-time offender. Here’s his up-to-date rap sheet:
2015: Illegal check to the head of Mika Zibanejad (3 games)
2016: Interference hit on Austin Czarnik (6 games)
2017: Slashing Mathieu Perreault across the neck/head (10 games)
2019: High sticking on Nikita Kucherov (2 games)
2026: Knee-on-knee hit on Auston Matthews (5 games)
We should also note that the Matthews incident comes only two weeks after Gudas removed Canada’s Sidney Crosby from the men’s Olympic hockey tournament with another over-the-top attempt to hurt rather than hit.
The ongoing narrative that George Parros has two sets of guidelines tucked away in his office drawer—one for the Maple Leafs, another for the rest of the league—has been revived once again. Sour grapes, you say? Perhaps. But one should recall that Toronto’s Morgan Rielly, a first-time offender, was given a five-game vacation by Parros for his late game crosscheck on Ottawa’s Ridley Greig. Greig’s only injury was to his pride, but Rielly still paid a huge price.
Contrast that Parros ruling with this baseball swing by then-Rangers defender Jacob Trouba aimed at a Boston forward. Parros opted to basically exonerate Trouba by slapping him on the wrist with a $5,000 fine. Based on Trouba’s annual salary that’s akin to one of us being fined $2.25
Radko Gudas’ idiocy is not restricted to his ongoing physical assaults:
During the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, Gudas was caught on broadcast microphones yelling a homophobic slur at an official while protesting a penalty during a Czechia–Canada game. The remark came in the middle of an already heated sequence in which Gudas had been penalized and was arguing with the referee. When the clip later circulated publicly, Gudas issued an apology but claimed he “didn’t realize at that moment the full meaning of the word” and that it came out in the heat of the moment, insisting he “didn’t mean anything by it.”
He never does “mean it”…other than the fact he always means it.
The explanation struck many observers as dubious, given that Gudas is a long-time NHL veteran and the phrase he used has been widely recognized for years as an offensive slur in professional sports. Critics argued that pretending not to understand its meaning sounded less like an explanation and more like an attempt to dodge responsibility for language that players across major leagues have repeatedly been warned to avoid.
With the Anaheim Ducks likely to make a return to the NHL playoffs this spring, Radko Gudas should probably send a fruit-basket to George Parros thanking him for the brief vacation and a chance to freshen up before the playdowns begin. After all, Gudas wants to be fully armed. Despite his likely desire to do so, he still hasn’t ended anyone’s career permanently. Yet.
For those needing pronunciation assistance, it’s:
RADD-KO GUDE-ASS
For George Parros it’s just:
ASS
