A home opener in sports is supposed to be full of adrenaline and excitement — but Tuesday night in Columbus was much different.
The Blue Jackets were back on their own home ice for the first time of the 2024-25 season. It was also their first home game since the death of their star, Johnny Gaudreau.
Gaudreau and his brother Matthew, aged 31 and 29 respectively, were killed in late August by a suspected drunk driver while riding their bikes in their hometown in New Jersey the day before their sister’s wedding.
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Columbus Blue Jackets players warm up before the game against the Florida Panthers at Nationwide Arena on Oct. 15, 2024 in Columbus, Ohio. Players from both teams are wearing #13 in warm up jerseys in remembrance of Blue Jackets player Johnny Gaudreau, who along with his brother, was killed by a driver while biking in Salem County, New Jersey in August. (Jason Mowry/Getty Images)
Makeshift memorials popped up almost immediately in both Columbus and Calgary, where he had played his first eight NHL seasons.
Moments of silence and other tributes have been all over the NHL since the season began last week, but Columbus’ awaited, and they did not disappoint in honoring their fallen star.
The team announced that a memorial had been placed inside the arena with game-worn equipment and a replica locker, and items from the fan memorial.
A memorial on honor of Johnny Gaudreau on display before the game between the Columbus Blue Jackets and the Florida Panthers at Nationwide Arena on Oct. 15, 2024 in Columbus, Ohio. (Jason Mowry/Getty Images)
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During warmups, both the Blue Jackets and reigning Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers wore Gaudreau jerseys with his No. 13.
The team also hung Gaudreau’s No. 13 in the rafters.
Then, as the puck dropped, Columbus took the ice with just four players, absent a left-winger, the position Gaudreau played. Both the Panthers and Blue Jackets let 13 seconds run off the clock.
And to put the cherry on top, in what could only be described as destiny, one of Gaudreau’s best friends on the team, Sean Monahan, scored the team’s second goal of the night – Monahan and Gaudreau had played together in Calgary, and Monahan signed with Columbus over this offseason to rejoin him. He then pointed to the 13 hanging in the rafters.
Gaudreau’s father, Guy, was with the team on their morning skates Monday and Tuesday.
“It looked like he was just having a blast,” Jackets head coach Dean Evason said. “Just having fun skating. I said to him ‘any time you want to come out, you’re more than welcome.'”
Guy Gaudreau attended a Philadelphia Flyers practice last month. The Gaudreaus live right outside of Philly.
Fans mourn at the makeshift memorial set up by fans for Blue Jackets hockey player Johnny Gaudreau in Columbus, Ohio, Friday, Aug. 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Joe Maiorana)
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According to New Jersey State police, the Gaudreau brothers were cycling on a road when 43-year-old Sean Higgins, driving in the same direction, attempted to pass two other vehicles and struck them from behind at around 8:30 p.m. ET.
They were pronounced dead at the scene. Police said Higgins was suspected of being under the influence of alcohol and charged with two counts of death by auto and jailed at the Salem County Correctional Facility.
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