Gaudreau brothers impact still felt in NHL as 2024 comes to a close

Johnny Gaudreau’s impact on the hockey world was never felt more than when we were no longer able to watch his breathtaking skill.

Johnny and his brother Matthew died Aug. 29 when they were struck by an alleged drunk driver while riding bicycles near their home in Salem County, New Jersey. On Dec. 12, the driver was indicted by a grand jury on two counts of second-degree reckless vehicular homicide, two counts of first-degree aggravated manslaughter, fourth-degree tampering with physical evidence and second-degree leaving the scene of a fatal accident.

Johnny, who had 743 points (243 goals, 500 assists) in 763 games during his 11 seasons in the NHL with the Columbus Blue Jackets and Calgary Flames, was 31. Matthew, who played professionally for five seasons in the American Hockey League, ECHL and Sweden, was 29.

The NHL is still in mourning as 2024 nears its end. The Flames and Blue Jackets remembered the 5-foot-9 forward known as “Johnny Hockey” in a special ceremony prior to their game at Scotiabank Saddledome in Calgary on Dec. 3. Gaudreau played for Calgary for nine seasons before signing with Columbus in 2022.

Johnny’s father Guy, mother Jane, wife Meredith and two children, along with sisters Kristen and Katie, were there to take part in the ceremonial face-off and celebrate Johnny’s life and hockey career.

“We were so excited to see the family, but also so sad,” Flames captain Mikael Backlund said. “It’s such a tragedy. It’s so many mixed emotions; it’s the first time I’m dealing with it. It’s always good to have teammates that were close to Johnny, too, that we can share stories and connect with each other.”

The Flyers, the closest NHL team to where Gaudreau grew up, held a special ceremony for the brothers on Dec. 21, with the players arriving to their game against the Blue Jackets wearing their Glouchester Catholic jerseys. The Gaudreau family then took the ice for the ceremonial puck drop. It was the first time the Blue Jackets visited Philadelphia this season.

The Blue Jackets held a similar ceremony prior to their home opener against the Florida Panthers on Oct. 15. That night at Nationwide Arena, Columbus center Sean Monahan, who played with Gaudreau in Calgary from 2014-22, took the opening face-off, slid the puck over to Sam Bennett, who played with Gaudreau in Calgary from 2015-21 and was lined up at right wing for Florida.

Bennett then nudged the puck forward into the empty spot where Gaudreau would’ve been stationed as Monahan’s left wing. For 13 seconds, symbolizing Gaudreau’s No. 13, the players on the ice and on each bench stood in respect and tapped their sticks. Fans applauded and then broke into a chant of, “JOHN-NY HOCK-EY!”

“It was hard, to be honest,” said Monahan, who signed with the Blue Jackets on July 1 so he could play with his good friend Gaudreau again. “It was a special, special moment that I’ll remember forever.”

Later, after Monahan scored in the second period, he pointed up to a banner that was hung in the rafters during the pregame ceremony. It reads, “Johnny Gaudreau 1993-2024” with his No. 13 under it.

“It means a lot for his family, his wife, his kids, the way they honored him here,” Monahan said.

The honors were not limited to Columbus and Calgary. The Gaudreau brothers were remembered throughout the NHL with each team holding video tributes and moments of silence before preseason games. Players on all 32 NHL teams had decals on the backs of their helmets with the letter G in the middle for Gaudreau, and No. 13 on the left for Johnny and No. 21 on the right for Matthew.

Cole Caufield of the Montreal Canadiens, a 5-foot-8 forward who grew up idolizing Johnny because he overcame his size to star in the NHL, changed his jersey number to 13 this season to honor Gaudreau.

Beyond the NHL, a public memorial was held on Sept. 6 at Gloucester Catholic, the New Jersey high school where Johnny was coached by his father, and Matthew coached the past two seasons. Boston College, where Johnny and Matthew each played, held a pregame ceremony before its home opener against American International College on Oct. 19 to honor them and Tony Voce, another former Eagles player who died July 8.

Johnny and Matthew were inseparable. When the Flames, who selected Johnny in the fourth round (No. 104) of the 2011 NHL Draft, tried to sign him after his sophomore season, he turned down the offer to stay in college for one more season and play alongside Matthew, who had followed him to the Hockey East school.

Johnny won the Hobey Baker Award as the NCAA's top men's player as a junior in 2014 before turning pro and scoring a goal in his NHL debut with the Flames.

“Everything was always John and Matty,” Meredith Gaudreau said in her eulogy at the brothers’ funeral in Media, Pennsylvania on Sept. 9. “Matty was the best, the best brother to John. He was John's biggest fan and John was his. Matty wanted everything for John, and all John wanted to do was share it with his brother and they did.

“Matty was the perfect brother. ... I know John would not be able to live a day without his brother. He loved him so much.”

While the Gaudreau family has tried to heal, their NHL family has done its best to help. The Philadelphia Flyers, Blue Jackets and Flames each have had Guy Gaudreau serve as a guest coach at practices.

“I think it will be therapeutic for him to be part of it, run some drills,” Flyers coach John Tortorella said on Sept. 23. “He's done it before. He's a coach. It was great to have him here. We'll see where it goes.”

The Blue Jackets will play on with heavy hearts into 2025 and beyond, but Johnny will never be far from their thoughts. His No. 13 jersey hangs in his locker stall at Nationwide Arena and accompanies them to road games as well.

“What happened with John and Matt, it’s not something that’s going to go away or we’re magically going to stop thinking about,” Blues Jackets captain Boone Jenner said before the season. “It’s going to be with us. … It’s not like we’re trying to park it and, ‘OK, now it’s the season.’ Those emotions are going to be there for a long, long time.”

NHL.com columnist Nicholas J. Cotsonika, deputy managing editor Adam Kimelman and staff writer Derek van Diest contributed to this report.