Former Calgary Flames forward, and most recently a player with the Columbus Blue Jackets, Johnny Gaudreau passed away on Thursday night. As confirmed by the Blue Jackets and 6abc Action News on Friday morning, Gaudreau and his younger brother, Matt, were struck and killed by a car while riding bicycles in Salem County, NJ on Thursday night.

Johnny Gaudreau was 31 years old. Matt was 29.

Born on Aug. 15, 1993 in Carneys Point Township, NJ – a Philadelphia suburb located just across the Delaware River from Pennsylvania – Johnny Gaudreau grew up equal parts undersized and in love with the game of hockey.

After starring in high school and youth hockey in the Philadelphia area, Gaudreau left home as a 17-year-old to join the Dubuque Fighting Saints of the United States Hockey League for the 2010-11 season. Despite being small relative to the rest of the league, Gaudreau adapted and excelled in the USHL, posting 72 points in 60 points en route to being named the league’s top rookie and helping Dubuque win their league championship.

Several teams had interest in Gaudreau as a mid-to-late round flier, but the Flames – who had camouflaged their interest in Gaudreau throughout the season – selected him in the fourth round, 104th overall, in the 2011 NHL Draft.

Gaudreau had several doubters coming out of the USHL. Sure, he posted crazy numbers, but the USHL wasn’t yet established as a top feeder league for NHL talent and the suspicion was Gaudreau would be exposed against larger, more physically developed players when he joined Boston College in 2011-12. Instead, Gaudreau adapted against and emerged as one of the top players in college hockey in recent memory and earning the moniker “Johnny Hockey.”

During three seasons with the Eagles, Gaudreau won an NCAA national championship, the Beanpot, a World Junior gold medal, and capped his run off with the Hobey Baker Award in 2013-14 as the top player in college hockey. Despite having largely conquered college hockey after his sophomore year, he stayed on for a third college season because he wanted to play a year with Matt, who was joining Boston College as a freshman.

Right after Gaudreau captured the Hobey Baker, he signed his entry-level deal with the Flames – ownership sent then-special assistant to the general manager Craig Conroy with a contract and a private plane – and made his NHL debut on the final day of the 2013-14 season, scoring his first NHL goal in a loss against the Vancouver Canucks.

Gaudreau began the 2014-15 season as a rookie with the Flames and struggled at times to figure out the nuances of the NHL game. With thoughts in the hockey world that perhaps he had finally hit his limitations, Gaudreau did what he always did: he adapted. He was a healthy scratch for a road game against Columbus – the fifth of a six-game trip – and watched as a spectator. His next outing against the Winnipeg Jets was a multi-point game, the first of 191 in his career.

In all, Gaudreau played eight full seasons with the Flames, from 2014-15 to 2021-22. He had three seasons where he scored 30 or more goals – including a 40-goal campaign in 2021-22 – and his offensive output was highlighted by 99 points in 2018-19 and 115 points in 2021-22. He set franchise single-season records in 2021-22 for even strength points (90) and plus/minus (plus-64). When his time with the Flames concluded, Gaudreau was fifth in franchise history in scoring with 609 points, trailing only Jarome Iginla, Theo Fleury, Al MacInnis and Joe Nieuwendyk. He left the club as a free agent in the 2022 off-season to join the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Gaudreau’s career ends prematurely with 743 points over 763 career games, just shy of point-per-game production, for a player that was frequently told he was too small to achieve his dreams.

We wish our sincerest condolences to all of Gaudreau’s family, friends, fans and all who knew him in this tragic time. May his memory be a comfort.