In the days and weeks since his passing Aug. 29, CBJ players past and present have reflected about Johnny Gaudreau and what he meant to them.
Here are some of the memories they chose to share about his exceptional hockey skill, his unique personality, and his love of his family including wife Meredith, daughter Noa and son Johnny.
Don Waddell, CBJ president of hockey operations and general manager: “My personal experience with Johnny is through USA Hockey between World Juniors and playing on multiple national teams. Johnny was always very proud to put on that USA Hockey jersey. He was obviously an excellent hockey player, one of the best in the National Hockey League. He played the game with great joy, which was apparent to everyone who ever saw him.”
Dean Evason, first-year CBJ head coach: “When I first got the job, I talked to Don Waddell and I said, ‘I think it’s important that I meet with one player, and that’s Johnny Gaudreau, that he sees me and we get our relationship started.' Not that I didn’t want to build a relationship with every other player, but I thought it was important that I meet Johnny. He said, ‘Absolutely, book a flight.’ So I booked a flight to Philadelphia, called him and said, ‘I’m gonna have lunch.’ He just got off the ice with his dad. He came over, we had lunch. We ended up spending two, two and a half hours together talking about the team.
"Obviously it was quite an honor to speak with him and have that time with him personally. But at no point in our conversation in the two and a half hours did he mention he wanted to play with this guy, wanted the power play to be this. All he talked about was the team, how he felt that this team could win and have success. He wanted to be part of it. He was all in, didn’t care where he played or who he played with. He just wanted to play hockey and win in Columbus.”
Boone Jenner, Blue Jackets captain: “As a teammate, he didn’t just win us countless games, take our fans out of their seats and set up for many of us for easy goals. His positive energy day in and day out was infectious when you were around him.”
Zach Werenski, Blue Jackets defenseman: “I’ve been in Columbus for nine years, and I don’t think there’s ever been a day as exciting as when John signed here. I remember texting Boone and Eric Robinson when the reports were coming out. We just couldn’t believe it. My dad even drove over and we had a celebratory drink because we were so excited about it.”
Cole Sillinger, Blue Jackets forward: “Growing up, I was an Edmonton fan. When Johnny came into the NHL, I became an Oilers and Gaudreau fan, which is pretty oxymoronic. My brothers and I played a lot of pond hockey in Saskatchewan, and quite often we’d be pretending to be No. 13 for the Calgary Flames.”
Kent Johnson, Blue Jackets forward: “When he just broke in the league, he was obviously really small and had a lot of doubters early on. He started lighting it up his rookie year, and everyone was like, ‘Oh, he can’t keep it up. He’s too small.’ At the time, I was tiny. I was the smallest guy on my team by far. I thought I probably wouldn’t grow up past like 5-7 or 5-8 at that time with how small I was, so he was my favorite player.”
Eric Robinson, childhood friend of the Gaudreaus and former Blue Jackets forward: “I think the memories that come to mind are just being in the summer and John and Matty and me and my brother always competing against each other. John was always the most competitive guy in the summer. It would just be a scrimmage, but he was doing anything he can to win, slashing guys if he was losing. He was always just the most competitive.”
Jenner: “I don’t think I’ve ever met a more competitive guy. It wasn’t just in hockey during his scoring competitions in warmups or pregame skates. At our team gatherings, you could always find Johnny challenging someone to a game, whether it was Big Buck Hunter, cornhole, Golden Tee or pool. He was good at everything and rarely lost. But if he did, he was asking for a rematch – double or nothing.”
Johnson: “My rookie year, at the end of the year, there were a bunch of guys hurt and they needed somebody to play cards at the table on the plane. I joined, and he was so happy I did. At first I didn’t know the game and I was losing every game, and he went out of his way to help me out. He was telling me, ‘Download this app and practice the game before the next road trip.’ He was like, ‘I’m still going to beat you, but I want to make it fair.’”
Mathieu Olivier, Blue Jackets forward: “The two seasons I was with Johnny, we were playing cards every single trip on the plane. You think about the hockey player and how good he was, but that’s one memory that always comes back to me is being on the plane and shooting the breeze and talking about this and that. He would say the funniest stuff all the time. He loved calling me and Guddy out because we didn’t play the game like we should have.”
Erik Gudbranson, Blue Jackets defenseman: “Last year our equipment staff were really losing their minds the day before training camp because John used the same skates for two years, and he showed up with a skate with no toe cap on it. They couldn’t fix it. And it turns out the day before, he was drying his gear in the driveway and he ran it over with his Escalade.”
James van Riemsdyk, Blue Jackets forward: “I got a chance to play with him in some USA Hockey stuff. He was a few years younger than me, but I vividly remember at the World Championships, he and his brother running amok in the city there having a great time. Being someone that has two younger brothers, you have a soft spot in your heart for those types of relationships.”
Jenner: “His jokes and banter were always a constant presence, whether we were in the locker room, on the bus, on a plane or in a hotel room. John was truly one of a kind. One of the main things I’ll miss is seeing people’s reaction to his pregame meal routine for the first time – a mountain of sauce-free pasta topped with butter and paired with a Coke.”
Werenski: “There are so many things I’m going to miss about John, starting with that huge plate of pasta and a Coke before games.”
Gudbranson: “On a personal note, something that I’ll very dearly miss – I had this little thing with John where I’d pick him up and give him a bear hug, and I wouldn’t let him down until he told me he loved me. And he wouldn’t tell me for a long time. But I know here today, it was because he enjoyed the hugs.”
Olivier: “Last year we were in Washington and Coach decides to try something new and try to get some jam going because I think Johnny and Patrik (Laine) were off to a little bit of a slower start than they usually are. So they put me on a line with them. I include Patty in this, but especially Johnny, they could have been like ‘What the hell is this?’ But they were both super positive and happy to do it. They were like, ‘No, we need a guy like you. We need a guy to do the dirty work for us,’ and I was happy to do it. I always used to joke around that night was the peak of my career.”
Sillinger: “He always reminded me to never sweat the small stuff – without actually telling me that, you know? It was my second season in the NHL, Johnny’s first with the Blue Jackets. We were in Ottawa. I’m coming down for pregame snack. I’m ready to get a coffee, I have my headphones in and I’m ready to get ramped up for the game. Only one person is in the meal room at the time, and it’s Johnny. He’s on his phone just kind of hanging. He’s got a bowl of Froot Loops – no worries in the world. Super authentic. He was one of a kind.”
Johnson: “He didn’t stress about the small stuff. That was something for me, coming in as a rookie, I was worried about every little thing, and he was like, ‘You can’t do that for 82 games throughout the year.’ That was great for me to hear.”
Olivier: “We should probably put a nameplate on that couch in the lounge there because he was there as long as he could be before and after practice. He probably had that right, honestly. While some of us were dealing with the stress of the season, the ups and downs, he was always the same. Sometimes we thought it was crazy, but looking back he probably had a lot of that right.”
Gudbranson: “Your unique way of driving me crazy only brought us closer. There was always a method to the madness. Our rides to the rink and knowing my stress level for punctuality, you would walk out seven minutes late. Trying to look professional at dinner the night before a game, wearing a hoodie and a toque and 10-year-old sweatpants. You were one of a kind.”
Werenski: “I’m going to miss hearing him call Guddy a donkey and watching the two of them banter like the buddies that they were.”
Sean Monahan, Blue Jackets forward and former Calgary teammate: "If you knew John, he probably called you a donkey 1,000 times."
Gudbranson: “(If) we had to be in shorts and ready for a coaches meeting at 5 o’clock, he’d walk in at 4:59 and a half. Guys would be sweating for him, and he’d walk in dragging his heels, just perfectly on time, not sweating it at all. Right after games, I’d have my left skate still on and he’d be walking out in his suit. You got to thinking, we try so hard and work so hard to be professional and there on time and prepared and whatnot. It’s made me wonder since Matty and Johnny have passed whether he had it right and we didn’t. That entire time he was away from the rink, he was sitting on the couch with Meredith and his children being the best possible father he could be.”
Jenner: “I’ll miss seeing his joy coming upstairs to our family room after every home game to greet Meredith and the kids despite being the last to join us after a well-earned sauna and a beer. The smile on his and Noa’s face when they saw each other was unmatched.”
Monahan: "I think one of my favorite moments was the day he found out Mer was pregnant for the first time."
Gudbranson: “I’ll forever remember you complaining about a sore back after spending a night in Noa’s crib, and the pride you carried the day you brought Johnny into the room for the first time. The love you shared with Meredith was a sight to behold. You truly were a family man, and you will continue to inspire me to be just like you.”
Werenski: “I’m going to miss being in the family room after games when he would walk in and Noa would run over to him yelling for dad and putting her arms out for a hug.”
Robinson: “Being around it, the way he was close to his family was something special. Getting to go over to the Gaudreau family household for bonfires in the summer, going swimming, whatever it was, it was a special family.”
Gudbranson: “To Matt, I had the pleasure of meeting you a few times. I noticed the twinkle in John’s eye when you were around. It’s the same one I share with my siblings, a deep love and a deep appreciation of your presence. Anywhere you were together, John felt at home.”
Monahan: "We were about to live three houses down from each other. When I came in, we stall mates. He's arguably my best friend, teammate for many years. I'm going to miss him the rest of my life."
Jenner: “Their memory will stay with us forever. We will cherish their joy and passion for hockey and family. Words cannot fully express how much they will be missed. They will remain in our hearts forever.”
