COLUMBUS, Ohio — One by one, they made their way to the microphone, a somber mood in the air and emotional cracks in their voices just barely below the surface.
Six days after a car struck and killed Columbus Blue Jackets forward Johnny Gaudreau and his brother, Matthew, the Blue Jackets gathered in Nationwide Arena and tried to articulate their feelings at a time when no such words existed.
“As a team, we’re going to get through this,” Blue Jackets captain Boone Jenner said. “We’re going to grieve, cry, be vulnerable, and support each other every step of the way, but we will persevere, because I know that’s what John would want.
“We’re not only going to remember John and Matthew during these difficult days or during this season alone. Their memories will stay with us forever.”
Jenner was the first player to speak, followed by Erik Gudbranson, Zach Werenski and Sean Kuraly. That’s the team captain and his three alternates. All of them wore matching blue team-issued polo shirts, with Gaudreau’s familiar No. 13 on the right side of the chest.
Club president and general manager Don Waddell, hired in late May, spoke first and was the only speaker, understandably, to take questions from media.
“The outpouring of love for Johnny and Matthew has been remarkable,” Waddell said, “not only from the NHL family, but from sports communities and people around the world. From New Jersey to Boston, Calgary to Columbus and everywhere in between, it has inspired us with love and support.
“I know it means the world to the Gaudreau family, and it means the world to our organization, as well.”
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Waddell said the family is working to finalize memorial plans, and that the entire Blue Jackets club will travel to New Jersey for the funeral. Many Blue Jackets players and coaches are already in Columbus ahead of the beginning of training camp in two weeks. Candlelight vigils are scheduled for Wednesday night in both Columbus and Calgary, where Gaudreau started his NHL career.
For Waddell, this tragedy is an unfortunate reminder of one that occurred earlier in his career when he was general manager of the Atlanta Thrashers. On Sept. 29, 2003, Thrashers forward Dan Snyder was critically injured when a car driven by teammate Dany Heatley was involved in a single-car crash. Snyder died six days later.
When an organization is rocked to its foundation by such a loss, Waddell said, it’s more important than ever that a team function like a team.
“We have four leaders right here (Jenner, Gudbranson, Kuraly and Werenski) who are going to play a major role in it,” Waddell said. “I was talking to Boone this weekend about getting the team together. They are each others’ brothers. It’s everybody’s job to help everybody through.”
Right now, and for the next little while, everybody is leaning on each other.
Jenner is one of the most sturdy, stoic players in the NHL. But he fought back tears on several occasions as he poured out how close he’d become with Gaudreau in just two years as his teammate.
“It was easy to see very quickly how tight-knit and together the Gaudreau family is,” Jenner said. “And one thing I admired was that John never forgot where he came from. In the past few days, moving through all of the emotions — anger, sadness, disbelief, emptiness — I’ve come to realize how much love I have for John.
“He lived and played with a joy I was so lucky to have witnessed. He was a close friend, someone I felt I’d known for a lifetime.”
Werenski remembered the day Gaudreau signed a free agent contract with Columbus — July 13, 2022 — as one of the most exciting days in his nine seasons in the organization.
“I’m going to miss watching him be an amazing dad,” Werenski said. “All of us are just going to miss Johnny so much. I just want to say thanks for letting me be a part of your life for two years.”
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Kuraly said the outpouring of love, and the expressions of grief, from across North America have matched the feeling among players.
“We’re gutted and heartbroken for the family,” he said. “John leaves us a life example of love, simplicity and joy. He expressed that for the masses through hockey, and he expressed it personally through his relationships — which explains why he was universally adored in the community and with the lives who were lucky enough to know No. 13.”
Gudbranson and Gaudreau played together in both Calgary and Columbus. They signed with the Blue Jackets on the same day and became even closer in Ohio than they’d been with the Flames. Their families, both with young kids, were bonded, too.
“My hope for his family is that one day your grief and sorrow is relieved by the beautiful memories those boys gave you,” Gudbranson said. “In the interim, we will always think of you and pray for you. And we will always be available to you,”
Gudbranson ended his thoughts with a public service plea to end impaired driving. The driver of the car that struck the Gaudreau brothers is being investigated for driving under the influence and has been charged with two counts of death by auto, according to police.
(Photo of Johnny Gaudreau: Bruce Bennett / Getty Images)
