Nearly a week after the world learned that hockey star Johnny Gaudreau and his brother Matthew had been killed while riding their bicycles, a candlelight vigil will be held outside the Scotiabank Saddledome on Wednesday night, the Calgary arena where “Johnny Hockey” spent years thrilling fans with his highlight-reel plays. Matthew Gaudreau had also played professional hockey.
The Flames sent out an invitation to Calgarians to attend the event in a social media post on Tuesday afternoon.
The vigil will begin near the west stairs of the arena at 8 p.m. local time and will feature multiple speakers.
“The candlelight vigil will be Day 1 of a 13-day observance for fans to continue to visit the memorial and pay tribute to Johnny and Matthew,” the Flames said in a post on the team’s website.
Earlier on Tuesday, the Flames announced the NHL club would need to move part of a massive makeshift memorial that has grown each day outside the Saddledome, in part to accommodate Wednesday’s vigil. The items that were moved now rest nearby, outside the Saddledome, and can still be visited by fans. The memorial includes a large stretch of concrete covered with tributes to the Gaudreau brothers written in chalk. It also features flowers and Gaudreau jerseys.
The Gaudreau brothers died after they were struck by a vehicle while riding their bicycles in New Jersey on Thursday night. Police said investigators suspect the driver of the vehicle was impaired. The collision occurred the night before the Gaudreau brothers were to be groomsmen at their sister Katie’s wedding.
After finishing his U.S. college hockey career, Johnny Gaudreau graduated to the NHL where he would then spend eight full seasons playing for the Flames and playing a starring role with the club. In 2022, he signed a contract to join the Columbus Blue Jackets, saying that he and his family wanted to be closer to relatives in New Jersey.
On Tuesday afternoon, the Blue Jackets posted on social media that fans in Columbus are invited to a candlelight vigil “in remembrance of Johnny and Matthew Gaudreau” at 7:30 p.m. local time in Ohio on Wednesday.
“The vigil will be held on the Front Street Plaza outside the east entrance to Nationwide Arena,” the NHL club said.
On the Blue Jackets’ website, club officials noted that the vigil will include 13 minutes and 21 seconds of “silent remembrance.” Johnny Gaudreau wore No. 13 with the Blue Jackets, the Flames and when he played for Boston College. Matthew Gaudreau wore No. 21 at Boston College.
Visitors continued to flock to the memorial outside the Saddledome on Tuesday. Among them was Flames general manager Craig Conroy, who spoke about the connection he had with Johnny Gaudreau ever since the club signed him to a contract.
“Seeing him go from where he was to getting married to Meredith, having kids … He’s like one of your kids too,” Conroy explained. “And you’re watching him grow and get older and learn how to be an adult.
“When he got here he was a kid, and then he grew into a man and then a dad.”
Lindsay Hamilton, a Flames fan who is also an artist, was seen painting a portrait of Johnny Gaudreau at the memorial on Tuesday.
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“Just being a Flames fan for my whole life and growing up in Calgary, this was obviously something that hit the city pretty deep. So I was just feeling extremely inspired,” she explained. “It hits home.
“It’s tough to see how many people have come out and are sad and show love for him.”
Flames fan Hayden Paddock suggested that visiting the memorial was more emotional than he anticipated.
“I knew what I was coming to see but it’s a different feeling when you get here in person,” he said. “Lots of memories.”
Gaudreau’s widow, Meredith, who is also the mother of their children, posted about the Saddledome memorial on social media.
“Thank you Calgary,” she wrote.
“This is amazing. But I’m not surprised. The best people ever.”
On Wednesday, Meredith Gaudreau posted on social media to remember Johnny on their wedding anniversary.
“Three years ago today I became yours forever,” she wrote. “One of the best days of my life, including the night we got engaged and the days we brought our babies into the world.
“The day I met you I remember saying to myself, ‘OMG I’m going to marry him.’ And every day after that kept getting better and better. I love you forever John and am so proud to be your wife.”
Over $500K raised to help Matthew Gaudreau’s family
A GoFundMe fundraiser set up to provide financial assistance to Matthew Gaudreau’s widow, Madeline, and their unborn child had raised over $500,000 as of noon on Tuesday. Over 7,600 people have made donations to the fundraiser.
Matthew Gaudreau was also a professional hockey player and many of the donations came from his peers in the sport.
As of noon on Tuesday, the top donation was listed as being $10,000 and came from Cliff Rucker. Rucker owns the East Coast Hockey League’s Worcester Railers HC organization. Matthew Gaudreau played for the team from 2017 to 2019.
“You and Matty will always be part of our Railer family, and I hope you can feel the love and support we are sending your way,” Rucker said.
Blue Jackets hold emotional news conference about Gaudreau brothers’ deaths
Ahead of Wednesday night’s vigil in Ohio, Columbus Blue Jackets general manager Don Waddell and several of Johnny Gaudreau’s teammates spoke at a news conference about the tragedy.
Waddell described the Gaudreau brothers’ deaths as a tragedy “that is immeasurable and impossible to comprehend.”
“I ask that everyone keep this very close-knit, loving family in your thoughts and prayers,” he said. “They also left behind friends, teammates and coaches all over the world. And fans that continue to mourn their passing.
“The outpouring of love for John and Matthew has been remarkable, … (and) that means the world to the Gaudreau family, and it means the world to our organization as well.”
One of the players who spoke was defenceman Erik Gudbranson, a teammate of Gaudreau’s with both the Flames and the Blue Jackets.
Gudbranson read a statement, directing various parts of it directly at Johnny and his brother Matthew.
“You were truly a family man,” he said of Johnny, speaking of the joy he saw his teammate share with his wife and children anytime he was around them.
Gudbranson directed part of his statement at Matthew, noting that while he had only met him a few times, he could instantly sense the close bond he shared with his older brother.
“I noticed a twinkle in John’s eye when you were around,” he said. “It’s the same one I share with my siblings.”
Blue Jackets captain Boone Jenner delivered an emotional statement, echoing Gudbranson’s sentiments about how Johnny and Matthew “shared an inseparable bond,” and also noting on how close the Gaudreau family is generally.
“Whenever you met one Gaudreau, it wasn’t long after you were meeting another,” Jenner said, recounting the special moments Johnny would share with his wife and children in the team’s family room after every home game. “His family meant everything to him.”
Jenner said among his teammates, there has been a general sense of “disbelief and emptiness” since Johnny Gaudreau died.
Blue Jackets alternate captain Sean Kuraly described Johnny as someone who was “universally adored” and someone who was “good to the core,” living his life with an approach of embracing “love, simplicity and joy.”
Some of Wednesday’s news conference included funny memories of Johnny Gaudreau.
“One of the many things I’ll miss is seeing people’s reaction to his pre-game meal routine for the first time: a mountain of sauce-free pasta topped with butter paired with a Coke,” Jenner recalled.
Gudbranson spoke of how Johnny Gaudreau would try to wind him up to get a laugh.
“Our rides to the rink and knowing my stress level for punctuality, you would walk out seven minutes late,” he said. “There was always a method to the madness.
“Your unique way of driving me crazy only brought me closer.”
Gaudreau’s teammates also spoke of his passion for playing hockey and how incredible his ability on the ice was.
Jenner noted that Gaudreau dominated at every level “despite the odds stacked against him because of his (small body).”
Defenceman Zach Werenski noted he has been a Blue Jacket for close to a decade but “there has never been a day as exciting as when John signed here.”
“We just couldn’t believe it,” he said of Gaudreau’s decision to leave the Flames and join the Blue Jackets. “(He) was a player that everyone watched, … (got) people on their feet at any given moment.
“Thank you, John, for choosing Columbus when other people wouldn’t. You brought so much joy and excitement to this city — I’ve never quite seen anything like it.”
“You were one of a kind,” Gudbranson said.
“We loved you and we still do.”
Jenner said the team will remember how Johnny’s “positive energy day in and day out was infectious.”
“While this pain will never go away, I think we can all find comfort knowing Johnny and Matty lived life to the fullest every day.”
— with files from The Associated Press’ Stephen Whyno and Global News’ Craig Momney
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