'I'm going to miss that smile': Tributes pour in as Calgary Flames, Columbus Blue Jackets host vigils for Johnny and Matthew Gaudreau
Fans in Calgary and Columbus joined the players from their favourite teams in paying tribute to the Gaudreau brothers
Last week's sudden passing of NHL star Johnny Gaudreau and his brother, Matthew, shocked and saddened the hockey world, but the tragedy's impact is also being felt far and wide by those outside the sporting community.
The Gaudreau brothers — on the eve of their sister Katie's wedding in which they were set to serve as groomsmen — were riding bicycles on the evening of August 29 near New Jersey, their hometown, when 43-year-old Sean Higgins, who was allegedly impaired, attempted to pass two other vehicles before striking both cyclists from behind with his SUV. Both brothers were pronounced dead at the scene.
Matthew, who played hockey at Boston College before beginning a career in coaching, leaves behind a wife, Madeline, who is pregnant with their first child, Tripp. A GoFundMe page was set up in Matthew's honour to support Madeline and Tripp which, as of Wednesday morning, had garnered nearly $600,000 in donations.
Johnny, who starred in the NHL for 11 seasons, also leaves behind a wife, Meredith, and two young children — son Johnny, who is just 7-months old and daughter Noa, who turns two this October. Meredith, who has posted several tributes to her late husband and brother-in-law in the days following their deaths, wrote a heart-wrenching post to commemorate what would've been the couple's third wedding anniversary on Wednesday.
The unspeakable tragedy has ripped two families into pieces, but the heartbreak and pain extends far beyond bloodlines as friends, former teammates and coaches, fellow athletes, hockey fans and people from all walks of life have been absolutely gutted by what transpired on that horrific Thursday night.
One of those fanbases so deeply affected is that of the Calgary Flames, the franchise that drafted "Johnny Hockey" back in 2011 and the team with which the star forward spent the first eight full seasons of his NHL career.
On Wednesday evening, thousands of fans visited Calgary's Scotiabank Saddledome as the Flames held a candlelight vigil for Johnny and his brother, Matthew. The sombre crowd embraced each other, held hands and shed plenty of tears in front of a massive memorial engulfing the arena entrance and beyond as "Amazing Grace" played in the background.
Incredible scene outside the Saddledome in #Calgary for the candlelight vigil for Johnny and Matthew Gaudreau 🙏🏻pic.twitter.com/BaYB7Gc5O2
— Missin Curfew (@MissinCurfew) September 5, 2024
Thousands and thousands on hand just before the vigil for the Gaudreaus begins.
Calgary sends its ❤️. pic.twitter.com/PfZ6YskUYH— Eric Francis (@EricFrancis) September 5, 2024
As current Flames players and their families — as well as coaches, executives and team staff — arrived at the vigil wearing No. 13 jerseys, chants of “Johnny, Johnny” broke out from the crowd before speakers shared their best memories of their friend and former teammate.
A handful of Flames players, Craig Conroy and Lanny McDonald have arrived. New president and CEO Robert Hayes is here too alongside members of Flames ownership. pic.twitter.com/aXKFUzhWuK
— Julian McKenzie (@jkamckenzie) September 5, 2024
“My relationship with Johnny went far beyond this arena," said Flames General Manager Craig Conroy. "We had a bond that extended to his family, which I will cherish forever. Following his death, it took a couple days for me to compose myself before I could attempt to show my love for Johnny and the Gaudreau family. I believe the best way I can do that tonight is to share some stories from the beginning, before he became Johnny Hockey for the Calgary Flames.”
"You're mad, you're sad, and you think of all the good times we had together ... You can't even believe this is happening."
Flames GM Craig Conroy sits down with us outside the Saddledome to remember Johnny Hockey. pic.twitter.com/uqI7O64SkZ— Calgary Flames (@NHLFlames) September 3, 2024
On behalf of the players, former linemate Mikael Backlund shared some beautiful, tear-jerking stories of his late friend.
“Johnny always had a smile on his face, on and off the ice. I'm going to miss that smile. I'm going to miss Johnny chirping me about everything like he always loved to do,” said an emotional Backlund.
“He would always be all over me about anything. 'Come on, Backs, talk to the coach and get us a day off. Come on Backs, have a beer. Come on Backs, loosen up. Come on Backs, it's just hockey.'
"I know I'm not as chill as you were, Johnny, but I'm working on it.”
The Mikael Backlund speech about Johnny Gaudreau that got me and every Flames fan bawling. pic.twitter.com/VCVTlU4kVD
— Yegor Sharangovich replaced Breadman (@FierySharky) September 5, 2024
The vigil, which kicked off a 13-day observance of the memorial for the Gaudreau brothers, was brought to a close with a rendition of "Johnny B. Goode" by the Flames' anthem singer and country music artist, George Canyon.
George Canyon with a beautiful rendition of 'Johnny B. Goode' at the vigil for Johnny Gaudreau tonight 🥹❤️
(via @NHLFlames) pic.twitter.com/3nQf7Nm17r— Gino Hard (@GinoHard_) September 5, 2024
Even people who never personally met Gaudreau were eager to share stories and memories of the Flames legend, who clearly left his mark on a city and fanbase that will forever treat their former superstar as their own.
“Never met the guy, never talked to him, but he was part of my heart, and when he left, he was still part of my heart,” said Flames fan Craig McLeay, via the Canadian Press.
“You can see from all the people that are here right now, they're here for the guy and the person he was, what he did for this community. He came out and put a show on for us and it was a pleasure to watch every game he played here.”
Incredible crowd here in Calgary to celebrate Johnny and Matthew Gaudreau. pic.twitter.com/yHX96rC2yc
— Aaron Vickers (@AAVickers) September 5, 2024
Calgarian Sydney Salters, who left two towels from the 2022 postseason and a pair of pucks from two previous playoff runs on the team's arena steps, chimed in on the tragedy.
“I keep trying to not cry about it,” Salters said. “It's nice to be able to pay respects. It's good that it's here.”
“It's tragic,” added fan Andrew Scott, who got emotional as he surveyed the size of the memorial, per the Canadian Press. “It shows that Gaudreau was the heart and soul of this team.”
Gaudreau's former coach Darryl Sutter — along with his son Chris, who was around the team almost everyday during the Gaudreau-Sutter tenure — joined Sportsnet's Jamie Campbell ahead of Wednesday's Blue Jays vs. Phillies game in Toronto to shed some light on the impact Johnny had on their family.
Darryl Sutter and his son Chris spoke about the passing of Johnny Gaudreau and what he meant to them as a family
Via: @Sportsnet | #CalgaryFlamespic.twitter.com/z0oOpHds5Y— Missin Curfew (@MissinCurfew) September 4, 2024
Though Gaudreau spent the majority of his NHL career in Calgary with the Flames, he also made a massive impact with another another franchise and its fanbase: the Columbus Blue Jackets.
After signing with Columbus as a free agent in the summer of 2022, Gaudreau spent what would be his final two NHL campaigns with the Blue Jackets and instantly became a fan favourite — both for his on-ice prowess, and because he was one of the only true superstars to choose the non-traditional free-agent destination over other NHL markets.
On Wednesday, the same day Calgary held it's candlelight vigil, the Blue Jackets hosted a memorial of their own outside of their home arena as hundreds, if not thousands, of fans flooded to Nationwide Arena to pay their respects.
Hockey fans and members of the Columbus community gathered outside Nationwide Arena for a candlelight vigil in remembrance of Johnny and Matthew Gaudreau.
A 13:21 moment of silence was held honoring both brothers’ jersey numbers ❤️💙
(via @cotsonika) pic.twitter.com/jyjd1qYXsU— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) September 5, 2024
The Columbus vigil also featured speeches from Gaudreau's former teammates, as Blue Jackets captain Boone Jenner — along with Sean Kuraly, Zach Werenski and Erik Gudbranson, among others — shared tear-filled tributes to both Johnny and Matthew.
"Just being around John was a huge comfort for me. Even when he didn't even realize or try. That to me says everything about the kind of person he was," Jenner said.
Team captain Boone Jenner is the first player to speak. #CBJ @nbc4i pic.twitter.com/AwO4GZK9s7
— Whitney Harding (@WhitneyNBC4) September 4, 2024
“Thank you, John, for choosing Columbus when others wouldn’t,” said Werenski. "You brought so much joy and excitement to this city. I’ve never quite seen anything like it. Something only truly special players could do. And that’s what you were."
Here is part of Zach Werenski's remarks today about Johnny Gaudreau -- particularly the part where he thanked Johnny for "choosing Columbus when other people wouldn't." #CBJ @nbc4i @BlueJacketsNHL @NHL #SticksOutforJohnny pic.twitter.com/6F5vSX2CFH
— Whitney Harding (@WhitneyNBC4) September 4, 2024
Gudbranson, who wrote an emotional Instagram post last week the day after Gaudreau's passing, remembered how excited Johnny was when he became a father.
"I'll forever remember you complaining about a sore back after spending the night in Noa's crib. And the pride you carried when you brought Johnny into the room for the first time."
"You were one-of-a-kind and we loved you. We still do."#CBJ Alternate captain Erik Gudbranson highlights the family man Johnny was, having a sore back after spending the night in his daughter Noa's crib. pic.twitter.com/v85muPk7lL
— Kellyanne Stitts (@KellyanneStitts) September 5, 2024
In the days following the horrific tragedy, two of Gaudreau's former teammates and closest friends tried to express their grief via social media posts.
Matthew Tkachuk — who, along with Backlund and Gaudreau, formed arguably the NHL's best line during Gaudreau's career season in 2021-22 with the Flames — posted tributes on both Instagram and X last week.
Absolutely devastated. I will miss seeing that smile! RIP Hockey! love you bro 💔 pic.twitter.com/HbyV3vSDXk
— Matthew Tkachuk (@TKACHUKycheese_) August 30, 2024
Former Boston College teammate Kevin Hayes, who also lost his brother, Jimmy, just three years ago, posted these tear-jerking tributes in the days following the loss of one of his closest friends.
A heartfelt message from Kevin Hayes to his best friend ❤️ pic.twitter.com/Uh7GD8l91k
— B/R Open Ice (@BR_OpenIce) September 1, 2024
Kevin Hayes just shared this on Instagram.
Absolutely crushing pic.twitter.com/lQYp3MHAh4— Evan Sporer (@ev_sporer) August 30, 2024
Johnny and Matthew's agent, Lewis Gross, also paid his respects through a social media post on Thursday.
"Not a day will go by when I won't mis you two," he wrote.
From Lewis Gross, who represented the Gaudreau brothers https://t.co/iqWiCnMcAh
— Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) September 5, 2024
And then there's Montreal's Cole Caufield, another star player who, much like Johnny, was told for years that he's too small to excel in hockey. Johnny Gaudreau was Caufield's hero, and with the 2024-25 NHL season just around the corner, the Canadiens star revealed that he'll be switching numbers, from No. 22 to No. 13, in a tribute to Johnny Hockey.
Cole Caufield has changed his number to 13 in honor of Johnny Hockey according to his latest Instagram post.
Such a heartfelt post from the @CanadiensMTL star. pic.twitter.com/bMB3PiRhFe— Jonny Lazarus (@JLazzy23) September 4, 2024