George Parris Rakes in Big Scoring With Auston Matthews' Injury Demands
George Parros has defended the NHL Player Safety’s decision to suspend Radko Gudas for five games, amid growing criticism following Auston Matthews ’ season-ending injury. The controversy stems from a knee-on-knee collision that left Matthews with a grade 3 MCL tear and a quad contusion. The injury will sideline the Toronto Maple Leafs star for the remainder of the regular season.
Many around the league argued the suspension was too short, given the severity of the outcome. Speaking at the NHL General Managers’ meetings, Parros said he is ‘confident’ the punishment matched the play. MORE: Maple Leafs coach challenges NHL ruling on Auston Matthews hit “When we evaluate these plays, we look at the play and not the players,” Parros said.
“If we determine that play was worthy of supplemental discipline, we then look at history of the players involved and if there is an injury or not. “This is how we come to make all of our decisions. We did this and made this decision under those circumstances, felt that this was the appropriate response, and so I stand by it.
” The decision to hold only a phone hearing drew further debate. Under NHL rules, that limits suspensions to five games. An in-person hearing could have opened the door for a longer penalty.
“It wasn’t like I decided to have a phone hearing, found out there was an injury, and then wished I had an in-person instead,” Parros said about his decision. Criticism has come from players, including Connor McDavid , who suggested the league should review its disciplinary system. Matthews’ agent also questioned the process.