“You were unique and we loved you”

After nearly a week of mourning, the Blue Jackets are still reeling from the loss of Johnny Gaudreau and his brother Matthew in a tragic accident.

Johnny, 31, and Matthew, 29, were killed last Thursday in South Jersey by a suspected drunk driver as they rode bicycles together on a road in Oldmans Township – not far from the family's Salem County home. Their shocking deaths rocked the hockey world and left players, coaches, former teammates, fans and their families in deep mourning.

More: Johnny Gaudreau: Columbus Blue Jackets hold press conference on player's death and next steps for NHL team

From Calgary to Columbus to Boston to their hometown in South Jersey, all places where Johnny Gaudreau played and Matthew visited, impromptu memorials were set up. At Nationwide Arena, fans left dozens of sticks, flowers, pucks, jerseys and homemade signs outside the building's east entrance – where a candlelight vigil was held by fans the night the tragedy was confirmed.

A vigil for fans was planned at the same location on Wednesday after hockey president and general manager Don Waddell and four players – captain Boone Jenner and alternates Erik Gudbranson, Zach Werenski and Sean Kuraly – spoke publicly for the first time since the Gaudreau brothers' deaths. All read prepared statements and fought back tears.

Time will heal the wounds, but right now the Jackets as a team and organization are devastated and heartbroken.

“It is difficult to find the right words in light of this heartbreaking and unimaginable tragedy that took the lives of our teammate John Gaudreau and his brother Matty Gaudreau,” Jenner said. “Over the last few days, as I have experienced all of the emotions – anger, sadness, disbelief and emptiness – I have realized how much I love John. I am so honored to be able to speak about what John meant not only to me, but to all of his teammates, and the positive impact he had on our lives.”

Columbus Blue Jackets players share memories of Johnny Gaudreau and express condolences to the Gaudreau family

Jenner and Gaudreau had become close after the latter shocked the NHL in July 2022 by leaving Calgary for Columbus as a free agent. They played on the same forward line, the top, for most of Gaudreau's time with the Blue Jackets and developed a close bond as linemates. Gudbranson was also close to Gaudreau after they became friends in Calgary the year before both joined the Blue Jackets.

They traveled to games together, knew each other's families like their own and felt like brothers. In fact, that was a recurring theme in the comments from all four players on Wednesday. Losing Gaudreau as a teammate is like losing a brother, and knowing that his family has lost two of their brothers, sons, husbands and fathers is even harder to take.

“We thought about you every second of the day,” Jenner said, addressing the Gaudreau family, headed by Guy and Jane. “When you met one Gaudreau, you would meet another one shortly after and then get a bottle of Guy's homemade maple syrup. You could see very quickly how close their family was.”

Gudbranson, whose NHL career was rather checkered before signing a four-year contract with the Blue Jackets, said his friendship with Gaudreau meant even more to him because they remained teammates for three years.

“John, I've been fortunate to be able to play all over North America, and I've been fortunate to have a lot of great teammates,” Gaudreau said. “But with all that traveling, I struggled to build a lasting connection with many of them. When I moved to Calgary … I knew it was different.”

Gudbranson said Gaudreau's pre-game antics drove him “crazy” and that he did it all on purpose – from leaving the house “seven minutes late” to driving to the arena together to wearing a hoodie, hat and “ten-year-old sweatpants” the night before the games.

“You were one of a kind and we loved you,” Gudbranson said in a choked voice. “And we still do.”

Columbus Blue Jackets GM Don Waddell says the team will continue to support the Gaudreau family and participate as a team in the memorial service

Waddell was also shocked.

Although the Jackets' new GM only started the job in late May, he knew Gaudreau from his time working at global tournaments for USA Hockey and was keen to make the star the leader of his new NHL team's resurgence.

“As I talk to people across the organization, including the people here with me today, it's clear what a special person Johnny was and how deeply his loss has been felt by everyone,” Waddell said. “Where there is a big hole in our roster, there is an even bigger one in our hearts.”

Waddell briefly addressed a topic that neither he nor the rest of the Blue Jackets want to talk about.

“I know there are questions about our team and how we move forward without Johnny and what impact his loss will have on our lineup,” Waddell said. “Those questions are for us to answer another day. Our immediate focus is supporting the Gaudreau family and supporting each other as we continue to mourn the loss of Johnny and Matthew.”

More: Johnny Gaudreau Review: 5 Memorable Moments with the Columbus Blue Jackets

That support includes attending as a team memorial services for the Gaudreau brothers whenever they are held. In the meantime, the Jackets will continue to support one another.

“Four team leaders are going to play a big role here,” Waddell said. “I talked to Boone this weekend and brought the team together. They're brothers to each other and these guys are going to do a great job helping everyone through this.”

[email protected]

@BrianHedger

For more information about the Columbus Blue Jackets, check out the Cannon Fodder podcast

This article originally appeared in the Columbus Dispatch: Blue Jackets players and Waddell mourn Gaudreau: “We loved you”