In Memoriam Johnny Gaudreau & Matthew Gaudreau killed by drunk driver while cycling (MOD WARNING. No Flaming, Trolling, or Politics.)

[SeanMoneyHands]

On top of it, having to bury two of his children at the same time. As someone that doesn't have kids (at least not yet), I don't even want to imagine it

This. I've worked thousands of funerals over the years and only 4 or 5 times I've worked one where there were two people deceased. It's pretty rare but the pain is that much worse.

 

[Coffey]

Man, people in general have lost so much sympathy as a whole. I still see Instagram or Facebook posts regarding to Johnny saying “OMG STOP TALKING ABOUT JOHNNY ALREADY”

Our society has failed completely in regards to caring about one another.

 

[SeanMoneyHands]

Huberdeau comments on the passing of Johnny hockey.

 

[General Fanager]

Man, people in general have lost so much sympathy as a whole. I still see Instagram or Facebook posts regarding to Johnny saying “OMG STOP TALKING ABOUT JOHNNY ALREADY”

Our society has failed completely in regards to caring about one another.

I kind of get it. I mean things like this happen many times everyday but this one is 2 hockey guys so we have to care more?

 

[Alexander the Gr8]

Man, people in general have lost so much sympathy as a whole. I still see Instagram or Facebook posts regarding to Johnny saying “OMG STOP TALKING ABOUT JOHNNY ALREADY”

Our society has failed completely in regards to caring about one another.

I don’t think it’s society failing, I think it’s just that idiots have a bigger platform to post ridiculous or disrespectful things.

I think the real measure of compassion is to see how many people showed up in Calgary or Columbus to pay their respects.

 

[Hippasus]

I kind of get it. I mean things like this happen many times everyday but this one is 2 hockey guys so we have to care more?

To some degree they're like a symbol. We all care about some others and we've all experienced loss. Some more recently than others. The response to this tragedy has been amazing, in my opinion. Makes me proud to be a hockey fan.

 

[Bounces R Way]

Alright everyone, story time. Sorry in advance for oversharing.

How Whiskey became the biggest Johnny Gaudreau homer on HF

I first spotted Johnny during his time in Dubuque, when I went to watch a family friend of mine (he was a goaltender for another USHL team). I knew instantly that Johnny was a special talent. He couldn't have been any bigger than 5'6 130, yet the puck followed him all over the ice. One thing that most people may not know is that, during his time in Dubuque, Johnny really wasn't that great of a skater, especially for a guy his size. He had a quick first few steps and great edges, but he wasn't all that fast. And he wasn't the prolific NZ puck carrier that he became in the NHL. Yet he was still getting more puck touches than anyone else on the ice, making the niftiest little passes and dangles you could imagine. I'd never seen a player consistently create such a high volume of scoring chances out of seemingly nothing. He truly had that once in a generation hockey IQ. I ambitiously ranked as a late first in my 2011 draft rankings. He had me hooked - and I was lucky enough to become acquainted with some of the Gaudreau family and Lewis.

Fast forward to 2014. My parents had come over for Halloween, so my Dad and I watched the Nashville - Calgary game. I had been following Johnny very closely to this point, so I told my dad to keep an eye out for the peewee winger wearing #13 red. And Johnny did not disappoint.

Early in the 3rd, with the Flames trailing 2-1, Johnny put together 3 consecutive shifts in a 4 min span that completely changed the game.
You can watch this sequence of shifts starting here:
- First shift: He weaves thru traffic and then crashes the net to setup the tying goal.
- Second shift: He dances past Jones and Ekholm to create a great chance, and then draws the penalty that leads to the go ahead goal.
- Third shift: He outmuscles Craig Smith down the wing and snipe Rinne for the eventual GWG.

It was the type of performance that made it impossible not to be a fan, which was perfect since it was my Dad's first viewing. What made it even better was when Eric Francis, in the first intermission, explained how he was "worried about Gaudreau", that he was "a timbit" who was going to need protection against big, tough teams. All because Johnny got knocked over by Volchenkov after absolutely walking him at the blue line:

Listening to Francis consistently put his foot in his mouth was one of our favorite past times. Generally, one of the best things about cheering for Johnny was the way he seemed to always prove the doubters wrong. I'm layering on the hyperbole here, but it went something like:

• "He's gonna get demolished by college players"
• "He won't be able to pull that stuff off against NHL defenseman"
• "He needs to get sent to the AHL, 0 points in his first 5 games shows he's too small"
• "He needs a body guard or else he's gonna get really hurt vs big teams like LA"
• "Sure, he scored a natural hat trick to come back down 3-0 vs the defending cup champs, but the third goal off Doughty was all luck"
• "He may have had an okay regular season, but he's a tiny rookie, let's see him do it in the playoffs"
• "Yeah, he had a lucky playoff run, but he's gonna slump so hard as a sophomore"
• "Okay, he was 6th in scoring in his 2nd year, but he couldn't even carry the Flames to the playoffs"
• "Sure, he carried the Flames to the playoffs, but he can't even get them out of the first round"
• "I expect Johnny Gaudreau to take a backseat to Matthew Tkachuk"
• "He may have led the Flames in goals and points, but he's still ineffective at ES and is a huge defensive liability"
• "Yeah, he scored the most ES points since 90s Jagr while posting the highest +/- since 80's Gretzky, but he still can't get it done when it matters"
• "Lucky shot vs Oettinger"

Anyways, from that point on, my dad and I watched almost every game of Johnny Gaudreau's career together. Even though we lived 3 hours apart, we would call each other at the start of every game and talk about how great this kid was, and how amazing he'd prove to be if Calgary could get a real NHL coach and some more talent around him. On those rare nights where we couldn't call to watch the game together, I'd be sure to call him on my way into work to talk about it. And when we were lucky enough to get the family all together, Johnny would seemingly always do something special (like his natural hattrick vs the Kings right before Christmas 2014). It went like this for 4 years.

Then in the late summer of 2018, my mom passed away unexpectedly, and my dad came home to live with me, my wife, and our 2 young daughters. That first winter was incredibly difficult for all of us, but my dad completely shut down, and started drinking again after 2 decades of sobriety. He didn't get out of bed most days. Unless Calgary was playing. Watching Johnny gave him something to look forward to that first year.

And as if by some miracle, those next few months were some of the best hockey Johnny would play, He was a front runner for the Hart through his first 48 games, leading the flames to 1st in the West, with 28 goals and 71 points, (only 4 points back of Kucherov for the league lead at the time). His electric play helped my Dad get through the most painful loss of his life. He had even started to joke that "at least we don't have to call each other to watch Johnny anymore."

Honestly, I don't know if my dad would have made it through that winter without having Johnny to look forward to, as the following summer he had to be institutionalized for a week because of suicidal threats.

We continued to watch him game in and game out, through COVID, his Hart worthy performance in 2022 (which again helped my Dad, as he was diagnosed with Parkinson's in 2021), his game 7 OT winner, his move to Columbus, his time wearing the stars and stripes...

Between preseason, regular season, playoffs, and international tournaments, we probably watched anywhere from 780-800 Johnny Gaudreau games together in these last 11 years. That's roughly 2,000 hours that I got to spend bonding and healing with my sick Dad, sharing moments that will last a life time.

Thanks for the memories John. Rest in Peace.


We as a society need to make some changes with our relationship to alcohol. The narrative that heavy alcohol consumption is needed to have a good time is pervasive in our society, and the continued encouragement and normalization of the type of behavior that so often leads to unspeakable tragedies such as these is pretty unforgivable.

I 100% support any organization that takes explicit action to avoid perpetuating this dangerous narrative. Anyone who doesn't drink will tell you how lonely it can feel, and how aggressively curious your "friends" can be when they can't fathom why anybody would not like drinking. They seem to think it's their social duty to convince you to have a drink, because if your not having fun how can they???

That's not to say I'm completely anti-alcohol - I'll have a locker room beer after a game, and I enjoy having a drink or two every few months to celebrate special occasions or to wind down from a particularly stressful day.

But when I think back to the most fun memories of my life, pretty much none of them involved alcohol. When I was younger it was hockey with my brothers, LAN parties, poker tournaments, and board games. And now as a father, it's coaching my girls to play the sport I love, taking the family to Canes games, and sitting with my sick dad watching Johnny Gaudreau make magic, which we'll never be able to do again because some asshole decided to drive drunk.

Great post Whiskey, thanks for sharing. Sports have always been something I can connect with my dad on too. He's had some health problems as well this summer and I'm glad I got to take him to down to the Dome for game 7 against Dallas in 2022 to see Johnny put that series away for the Flames. It was in the nosebleeds but it was still as juiced as I've seen the old man in a long time.

I know it's cliche but tragedy such as this always brings back into focus how much we don't know how much time we have left with our loved ones.

I kind of get it. I mean things like this happen many times everyday but this one is 2 hockey guys so we have to care more?

Care as much or as little as feels right to you. I can tell you I did care a lot. Was leaking a lot that shitty Friday, more than I have in a while. Never understood the need for people to quantify and qualify tragedy. Where does it rank? Buzzfeeds' Top 20 Tragedies of the 20th Century. Let's measure and weigh the human anguish. Really don't get it.

What I do understand is the hockey community showing up for each other. Those were touching tributes to Johnny and Matthew in Calgary and Columbus, I haven't felt like watching any of the funeral yet. Their children are going to grow up without their fathers, and I'm certain this is horrible and unjust, but what I'm also certain of is that none of the Gaudreau family are ever going to lack for someone to lean on if they need to. Hockey players and fans might hate each other on the ice and in the stands/online, but they also can be amazing when needed to be.

 

[snag]

On top of it, having to bury two of his children at the same time. As someone that doesn't have kids (at least not yet), I don't even want to imagine it

I get shivers down my spine any time I see mine just get a nick or scrape....

If they were ever killed by someone else in this fashion...or any other that warranted a criminal trial for that matter, it would likely be a very short 1st trial cause the 2nd would be mine.

 

[WhiskeyYerTheDevils]

I get shivers down my spine any time I see mine just get a nick or scrape....

If they were ever killed by someone else in this fashion...or any other that warranted a criminal trial for that matter, it would likely be a very short 1st trial cause the 2nd would be mine.

I'm honestly shocked that sort of thing doesn't happen more often when people have so much taken from them at once.

That feeling of despair, that life may not be worth living anymore, coupled with unyielding rage.... I could definitely imagine a scenario where I'd rationalize vigilante justice.

 

[snag]

I'm honestly shocked that sort of thing doesn't happen more often when people have so much taken from them at once.

That feeling of despair, that life may not be worth living anymore, coupled with unyielding rage.... I could definitely imagine a scenario where I'd rationalize vigilante justice.

Yep. Coupled with the assholery of the perp.

I would have completely lost my shit if I was Guy Gaudreau hearing the "So...I'm here until Thursday".
Like, I'm sorry for the f***ing inconvenience. Would you like a voucher?!

 

[WhiskeyYerTheDevils]

Yep. Coupled with the assholery of the perp.

I would have completely lost my shit if I was Guy Gaudreau hearing the "So...I'm here until Thursday".
Like, I'm sorry for the f***ing inconvenience. Would you like a voucher?!

Yeah, I mean I know they say forgiveness is the best way to move on from stuff like this, and that's probably the case for most people, but I think there are still a lot of people who get nothing out of forgiveness, and can only really move on when they feel justice has been served. And in this case, 5-10 years in prison doesn't feel like justice.

Hopefully cooler minds prevail, but if not, could you really blame them?

 

[Indrid Cold]

I don’t think it’s society failing, I think it’s just that idiots have a bigger platform to post ridiculous or disrespectful things.

I think the real measure of compassion is to see how many people showed up in Calgary or Columbus to pay their respects.

This. Society isn't failing. Were just learning the truth about it, thanks for FAKEBOOK.

 

[Lunatik]

Yep. Coupled with the assholery of the perp.

I would have completely lost my shit if I was Guy Gaudreau hearing the "So...I'm here until Thursday".
Like, I'm sorry for the f***ing inconvenience. Would you like a voucher?!

Guy (and Jane, because she's feeling this too) also know that they need to be there for their spouse, their 2 daughters, their 2 daughters-in-law, 2 grandchildren and soon to be 2 more grandchildren.

This is why it doesn't happen more often IMO. Because those grieving aren't alone and they realize how much they need each other and vengeance will just take them away from those others that have lost so much already.

 

[Figgy44]

I'm honestly shocked that sort of thing doesn't happen more often when people have so much taken from them at once.

That feeling of despair, that life may not be worth living anymore, coupled with unyielding rage.... I could definitely imagine a scenario where I'd rationalize vigilante justice.

I think it's two things. As mentioned, not allowing others who also have experienced loss to lose more. Also because when you're in a situation like that, the emotional and mental toll of things cause your response to break down and you're overloaded well past rage into auto pilot zombie. You basically just can't anymore.

But yes, sooner or later, forgiveness is the path forward. Even if you don't want to forgive the other person, basically, it's exhausting clenching a fist forever.

 

[Coffey]

basically, it's exhausting clenching a fist forever.

Nope, if that happened to me, I'd die with that fist

 

[hangman005]

Nope, if that happened to me, I'd die with that fist

I think most people would, I like to think I wouldn't but I probably would... but I also completely agree with @Fig I've lived with hate in my heart long enough to know how exhausting it is. I'm more zen now but going through this at a personal level would probably destroy that.

 

[Filthy Dangles]

Hope this aint inappropriate to ask, this thread should mostly be about remembering JG and bro, i get that....but i am interested in following the case too.

Do we know intoxication level of the scumbag and if he was on other drugs too?
Does he remain incarcerated at this time?

 

[Figgy44]

Nope, if that happened to me, I'd die with that fist

I get your POV, but I'd also say that a tired fist doesn't punch as hard.

Guy's health isn't great. Unlike the rest of us who are probably healthy enough to maintain that rage, for him, I'd worry it would increase his odds of having a heart attack or stroke.

 

[hangman005]

I get your POV, but I'd also say that a tired fist doesn't punch as hard.

Guy's health isn't great. Unlike the rest of us who are probably healthy enough to maintain that rage, for him, I'd worry it would increase his odds of having a heart attack or stroke.

I don't even know if he has rage him right now, Guy just looks completely and utterly broken from what I've seen of him.

 

[ijuka]

Yeah, I mean I know they say forgiveness is the best way to move on from stuff like this, and that's probably the case for most people, but I think there are still a lot of people who get nothing out of forgiveness, and can only really move on when they feel justice has been served. And in this case, 5-10 years in prison doesn't feel like justice.

Hopefully cooler minds prevail, but if not, could you really blame them?

People are surprisingly adaptable, as long as you get through the initial hurdle. There is the saying, "time heals all wounds" and it's more accurate than you'd think. Seeking revenge doesn't do much in the long run, even though it might make you feel better temporarily. It doesn't bring back the dead, either.

Usually, the best way to spend your energy is to try to prevent a similar thing from happening again. This can be done via policy changes, via public awareness and influencing people to avoid drunk driving, and so forth. This tends to be more productive.

As justified as hating someone for a crime they committed might be, it doesn't actually accomplish a whole lot.

 

[1989]

It's not really important or relevant but I was curious about how Guy has been doing so I did a quick search for his name only and came up with this, from his playing days as a student at Norwich University as one of their school's Hall of Famers:

Just couldn't ignore how much his sons really resembled him physically and athletically.

Guy Gaudreau (2000) - Hall of Fame - Norwich University

Guy Gaudreau, Class: 1980 Induction: 2000 Sport(s): Soccer, Ice Hockey - Guy Gaudreau was a two-sport standout in soccer and hockey at Norwich as a four-year letter

norwichathletics.com

 

[Hippasus]

It's not really important or relevant but I was curious about how Guy has been doing so I did a quick search for his name only and came up with this, from his playing days as a student at Norwich University as one of their school's Hall of Famers:

View attachment 906691

Just couldn't ignore how much his sons really resembled him physically and athletically.

Guy Gaudreau (2000) - Hall of Fame - Norwich University

Guy Gaudreau, Class: 1980 Induction: 2000 Sport(s): Soccer, Ice Hockey - Guy Gaudreau was a two-sport standout in soccer and hockey at Norwich as a four-year letter

norwichathletics.com

Guy might make the NHL one of these days.

 

[red devil]

https://x.com/i/web/status/1834686352757043435

 

[overtime12]

Johnny Gaudreau was not only an excellent ice hockey player, but also an exceptional person off the ice.
I will miss both very much.

 

[Taro Tsujimoto]

https://x.com/i/web/status/1834728262875930725