NHL Star Johnny Gaudreau Spoke About How He Wanted to Be Remembered 2 Years Before His Tragic Death

In a resurfaced clip, he hoped to be remembered “as a good person off the ice, a good teammate and just a good person”

 

Two years before his tragic death, NHL star Johnny Gaudreau discussed what he wanted his legacy to be in the hockey world and in life.

In a resurfaced clip shared on the hftvsports Instagram page from May 2022, Johnny, 31, answered a question about how he would like to be remembered in Calgary, Canada, if he ever left their NHL team, the Flames.

“When my time does end here, I hope people remember me as a good person off the ice, a good teammate and just a good person,” Gaudreau, who played for the Flames from 2013 to 2022, said at the time.

Gaudreau, who months later agreed to join the Columbus Blue Jackets, added: “People can think what I did on the ice, but for me personally, I just want people to know how grateful I am for them welcoming me here and hopefully it’s a few more years here and they can get stuck with me.”

His words from 2022 feel especially poignant now following the deaths of him and his brother Matthew, 29, who were killed in a bike accident on Thursday, Aug. 29 in Oldmans Township near Salem County, N.J.

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The brothers had returned to their hometown that weekend for their sister Katie’s Aug. 30 wedding and were slated to be groomsmen. The wedding was reportedly canceled, according to TMZ.

The brothers were biking on Country Route 551 North just after 8 p.m. when a driver suspected to be under the influence of alcohol tried to pass another car and fatally hit Johnny and Matthew, New Jersey State Police told PEOPLE. The driver, Sean M. Higgins, was charged with two counts of death by auto and arrested, and the investigation is ongoing.

Higgins’ first court appearance was Aug. 30. His detention hearing is scheduled for Thursday, Sept. 5.

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Matthew is survived by his wife, Madeline, who is pregnant with their first child. Johnny’s widow, Meredith, shared two tributes to her late husband on Saturday, Aug. 31.

“Thank you for the best years of my life. Despite losing you, I am still the luckiest girl in the world to have been yours. I love you so so much,” she wrote in one post.

“You were perfect,” she continued. “Some days it felt too good to be true. I love every single thing about you. You are my forever and I can’t wait to be with you again. I love you so much forever and ever.”

In a second post, Meredith praised Johnny as the “best partner to go through parenthood with.” The couple shared daughter Noa, who turns 2 in October, and 7-month-old son Johnny.