Johnny Hockey - R.I.P.

ORRFForever

Registered User
Oct 29, 2018
20,214
11,357
I've never started a thread like this and I don't know what to say other than R.I.P. / God bless him and his family.

Just awful.

*********************************************************************************************************************

MANY years ago, I got in a car with someone, a driver, who was drunk and it was 10 of the scariest minutes of my life.

People who drink and drive should be <fill in the blank>. There are no words.
 

NorthStar

Registered User
Dec 24, 2004
348
45
Winnipeg, MB
Sad indeed...Johnny was a talented and great player as well.. impressed with his play while with Calgary and now Columbus... just heart wrecking to read what happened to him and his brother, on what of all this time, this coming weekend for their sister's wedding (I assume that will be called off for sure in light of the tragedy... )
 
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Czechboy

Náš f*cken barák!
Apr 15, 2018
28,508
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2 brothers... so tragic!

I'll wait for all the details but this is a cyclist nightmare.

By everything I've read.. they were biking.. a car went to pass them legally on the left (3 feet, 1 metre) and the driver behind that car who had been drinking decided to use that pass as an opening and pass on the right. This is where the brothers were cycling and got run over from behind by a car.

Just brutal if that is the true story.
 
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Urbanskog

Platinum Member
Feb 8, 2014
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807
Helsinki
In addition to his talents, he was rather exceptional as a US player in that he represented his country five times in the World Championship (and once in the World Juniors). Sad that we never got to see him in the Olympics.

RIP.
 

ORRFForever

Registered User
Oct 29, 2018
20,214
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You have to scrape the bottom of hell to find people who drink and drive.

***

I know he won it once so... Why not rename the Hobey Baker Award after him?
 
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jj cale

Registered User
Jan 5, 2016
16,761
10,160
Nova Scotia
I've got a personal story about Johnny Gaudreau. I got to watch him several times with the WJC and before his rookie year in the NHL. After watching him hurt us at the juniors while leading that team to gold I came away thinking man................this kids a talent, he's got ridiculous skill and offensive hockey I.Q.

Still at that size almost everybody is gonna wonder and have doubts, I mean...........the guy looked like he was 15 years old. His draft position reflected that thinking too, 4th rounder. The guy clearly had top line skill but would he be able to make that work in mostly a big mans game where you can get manhandled pretty easily at that size and lose all confidence or just not be able to overcome that disadvantage despite high end skill


Then the WHC came and he was picked to be on that U.S team and I got a serious revelation. He was driving play almost every shift and this was against MENS professionals, he was eating these guys alive. But there was one play that cinched it for me and convinced me that despite his very small physical stature he was going to make it in the NHL and be a star.


I forget what game it was but he took the puck and wheeled behind the net and without looking he goes behind his body and passes it out to put the puck take to tape on his teammates stick for just a very sweet goal. He sold me once and for all right there.

So, I'm in a hockey pool that year and I'm determined that I i'll grab him if nobody else is onto him later in the draft. I forget what pick it as now of course but it was in the later quarter and I still needed a winger and I stepped up to the mike lol...............and made my pick and chose Gaudreau.

Most of the guys went.."" johnny who?" and the ones that did know of him said that was an off the board pick for sure, they questioned whether he would even turn into an nhl player and if he even did make it it was probably going to be a year or 2 before he even solidified himself as a player in that league let alone prove he was worth taking as a pick in a deep draft in amount of teams where every single pick counts so much.

No question it was a risky pick but you see..............I was convinced, I had seen the special quality in him with my own eyes, I just knew it.

It didn't start out well as his production was very spotty and low for the first 13-15 games or so maybe longer, I can't remember. Now People in the draft were really questioning me and asking why I was holding on to him. But I kept watching Calgary's games and I could see the sparks of play that I knew he had in him and I said to myself..." nope it's gonna happen, he is just still getting his feel for the play here and the league, I can tell he is gonna bust out sooner or later"

It wasn't but a few games after that he started to take off and boy did he ever.........he was fantastic the rest of the season and we all know what he became after that.

No one was asking me who he was after that season and later on people were praising me saying that was some catch you made there man. I didn't get him in next years draft i'll tell you that !! lol

He was that kind of player, special skill...................................you couldn't take your eyes off him, he just popped as a player.

This is all so tragic.
 
Last edited:

ORRFForever

Registered User
Oct 29, 2018
20,214
11,357
I've got a personal story about Johnny Gaudreau. I got to watch him several times with the WJC and before his rookie year in the NHL. After watching him hurt us at the juniors while leading that team to gold I came away thinking man................this kids a talent, he's got ridiculous skill.

Still at that size almost everybody is gonna wonder and have doubts, I mean...........the guy looked like he was 15 years old. His draft position reflected that thinking too, 4th rounder. The guy clearly had top line skill but would he be able to make that work in mostly a big mans game where you can get manhandled pretty easily at that size and lose all confidence or just not be able to overcome that disadvantage despite high end skill


Then the WHC came and he was picked to be on that U.S team and I got a serious revelation. He was driving play almost every shift and this was against MENS professionals, he was eating these guys alive. But there was one play that cinched it for me and convinced me that despite his very small physical stature he was going to make it in the NHL and be a star.


I forget what game it was but he took the puck and wheeled behind the net and without looking he goes behind his body and passes it out to put the puck take to tape on his teammates stick for just a very sweet goal. He sold me once and for all right there.

So, I'm in a hockey pool that year and I'm determined that I i'll grab him if nobody else is onto him later in the draft. I forget what pick it as now of course but it was in the later quarter and I still needed a winger and I stepped up to the mike lol...............and made my pick and chose Gaudreau.

Most of the guys went.."" johnny who?" and the ones that did know of him said that was an off the board pick for sure, they questioned whether he would even turn into an nhl player and if he even did make it it was probably going to be a year or 2 before he even solidified himself as a player in that league let alone prove he was worth taking as a pick in a deep draft in amount of teams where every single pick counts so much.

No question it was a risky pick but you see..............I was convinced, I had seen the special quality in him with my own eyes, I just knew it.

It didn't start out well as his production was very spotty and low for the first 13-15 games or so maybe longer, I can't remember. Now People in the draft were really questioning me and asking why I was holding on to him. But I kept watching Calgary's games and I could see the sparks of play that I knew he had in him and I said to myself..." nope it's gonna happen, he is just still getting his feel for the play here and the league, I can tell he is gonna bust out sooner or later"

It wasn't but a few games after that he started to take off and boy did he ever.........he was fantastic the rest of the season and we all know what he became after that.

No one was asking me who he was after that season and later on people were praising me saying that was some catch you made there man. I didn't get him in next years draft i'll tell you that !! lol

He was that kind of player, special skill...................................you couldn't take your eyes off him, he just popped as a player.

This is all so tragic.
Nice!
 
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ES

Registered User
Feb 14, 2004
4,289
948
Finland
In addition to his talents, he was rather exceptional as a US player in that he represented his country five times in the World Championship (and once in the World Juniors). Sad that we never got to see him in the Olympics.

RIP.

Only seven US players have had more WCs
Weinrich 9
Mark Johnson 8
Joe Sacco, Aaron Broten, Housley, Hendrickson, Derek Plante 6
Gaudreau and 14 others with 5 (of those active players are Larkin, Connor Murphy, Nelson, Jack Johnson, Suter)
 
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Czechboy

Náš f*cken barák!
Apr 15, 2018
28,508
25,706
His last game was in Prague. He tore up the tourney too. 11 points in 8 games.

They had a nice tribute for him yesterday in Czech during the pasta vs Voracek exhibition game.
 

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