The Blue Jackets recognized that early, as there have been times that because of injuries each of the past two seasons that Gaudreau has worn an alternate captain’s “A” on his sweater. And as the largest free-agent signing both in terms of impact and dollar amounts in team history, Gaudreau knows that leadership is one of the extra things he’s expected to bring on a young team that is learning the ropes.
He went through a similar situation in Calgary but on the other side as one of the young players, learning the ropes from players like Mark Giordano, Matt Stajan and Dennis Wideman. It was all part of a culture-building journey there that led to a 50-win, 111-point season in his final year, and Gaudreau sees the Blue Jackets trying to build like the Flames did in his tenure there.
“Honestly, I try to be that (leader) night in and night out and try to be a guy that helps this team win games,” Gaudreau said. “I was excited to come here, and I was so excited to get here. Obviously, it’s been a tough year and a half with our record and the way we’ve lost some games, but I’m excited. There’s a lot to be excited about. We have such a good group of young players who are so talented, and they love coming to the rink and being part of the locker room and hanging out with the guys. That’s fun stuff to be around.”
Gaudreau fully acknowledges he’s not the loudest guy in the room, preferring to leave that to the Boone Jenners and Sean Kuralys of the world, but Vincent has noticed how he’s still able to impact the young players on the team.
“People don’t really know Johnny Gaudreau,” Vincent said. “They see him on the ice but not as a person. He’s a quiet guy, low maintenance. He does his stuff. He’s a great teammate. I know he is, but he’s not necessarily vocal. He’s not looking for attention. He’s not a guy that necessarily wants to be in front of the cameras. He’ll do it, but he’s more of a person that says, ‘Let me do my job and I’ll do it the best I can.’
“But what I’m seeing, I see a guy that is more vocal, that is having more fun. I see a guy that is spending more time on the ice post practice. It takes time. He’s becoming more and more of a true Blue Jacket.”
It also helps that Gaudreau’s recent play has seen an uptick. It’s an old adage in sports that it’s difficult to be a leader when you’re not performing, and Gaudreau went through a tough start to the season with just four goals and 15 points in his first 30 games. That included just a goal and an assist in a November stretch in which the Blue Jackets lost nine straight games.
It was a frustrating time for Gaudreau, but his game has rounded into form in the meantime. After last night's three-point effort in Anaheim, the 30-year-old forward has posted 25 points in the last 25 games, including a recent six-game point streak and an earlier five-gamer. After notching two assists in San Jose on Saturday night, Gaudreau became one of just three players in CBJ history to post 12 assists in an 11-game span without scoring a goal.
Ironically, he had been close to lighting the lamp multiple times at the start of the recently concluded California trip, with a tally vs. San Jose wiped out because of offside and another vs. Los Angeles taken off the board because of goaltender interference. Finally, last night in Anaheim, he was able to deke out goalie John Gibson and get on the board for his eighth goal of the year and first since December.
“Obviously I didn’t really like the way I started the season with my play, but recently, I’ve been playing a lot better,” said Gaudreau, whose 74 points in his debut season last year are fifth most in team history. “I’ve been a lot harder on pucks and stuff. I guess just lead by example on the ice as much as I can and go from there.”
One of the biggest pieces of the puzzle for the Jackets going forward, Gaudreau has embraced the expectations and is helping push the team forward.
“When I say the team is coming together, he’s one of the guys,” Vincent said. “He’s not a big talker, but he’s taking more space in the room now.”
