Radko Gudas levels Brendan Lemieux with a hip check.
Radko Gudas lays a big hip check on Brendan Lemieux who quickly looks for a measure of revenge.
The hip check is largely a lost art in the modern era of the National Hockey League with very few players using it effectively, but one player who has always kept it in his arsenal of moves is Anaheim Ducks defenseman Radko Gudas.
On Sunday, Carolina Hurricanes agitator Brendan Lemieux learned that lesson the hard way when Gudas used his considerable backside to level the Hurricanes forward at the blue line.
Lemieux was attempting to catch up to a pass from Hurricanes defenseman Brady Skjei, but unfortunately for him he ran into a brick wall in the form of Radko Gudas' butt. The hit send Lemieux tumbling over Gudas as is often the case with these types of hits, but to his credit he quickly bounced back to his feet.
In fact, Lemieux not only bounced back to his feet in quick fashion but he also rapidly got back into the play and sought out a measure of revenge by returning the favor to Gudas with a hit of his own. That hit also knocked Gudas off of his feet and something tells me the physicality between these two is far from over, especially since this happened less than 4 minutes into tonight's game between the Ducks and Hurricanes.
Here's an angle showing both hits:
