Gudas apologizes for saying homophobic slur vs. Canada

Radko Gudas has apologized for saying what is considered a homophobic slur during the Canada-Czechia quarterfinal at the Olympics last week.

Gudas told Athletic reporter Eric Stephens he “didn’t mean anything by” the slur and that it came out of frustration in a story published Tuesday. During the broadcast of the game, Gudas can be heard yelling two words as he goes to the penalty box for roughing Canada forward Brandon Hagel in the second period.

“I’m a very passionate guy,” Gudas told Stephens. “I put my heart on a sleeve, and I take the game very seriously. I didn’t realize at that moment the full meaning of the word and I’m really sorry they had to be part of it. Learn from our mistakes.”

Gudas also told Stephens in a follow-up answer that “in the heat of the moment, the emotions got the best of me and I’m sorry for the way it looks in all of hockey. Nothing I can do about right now, but I feel sorry about that.”

Canada won the game, 4-3, to advance to the semifinals against Finland before losing in the gold-medal final to the Americans.

Gudas also was involved in the hit on Sidney Crosby that appears to have resulted in a leg injury that sidelined the Canadian superstar for the remainder of the Olympics as well as the next four weeks.

Although he was not penalized during the game for the comment or disciplined by the IIHF or IOC afterward, in the NHL, Ryan Getzlaf was fined $10,000 for saying a similar thing in a game in 2017.

In 2018, Chicago forward Andrew Shaw was suspended for one game and fined $5,000 for directing a homophobic slur toward an official during a playoff game.