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They were brothers, sons, husbands and fathers, and they are gone far too soon because someone apparently decided to drink and drive.
Johnny Gaudreau and his brother Matt should have stood with their sister Katie at her wedding Friday in Philadelphia.
Instead, what was supposed to be a joyful weekend for the Gaudreau family became the beginning of an unimaginable tragedy that has left the family grief-stricken and shattered.
A suspected drunken driver ran down the Gaudreau brothers from behind -- killing both of them -- as they rode bicycles not far from the family home in Oldmans Township, New Jersey.
Johnny, 31, was a 10-year NHL veteran who was about to begin his third season with the Columbus Blue Jackets. Matt, 29, had played with his brother for one year at Boston College.
The brothers had gathered with family in South Jersey to be groomsmen at Katie's wedding. Their other sister, Kristen, was going to be the maid of honor.
But there was no wedding. It was called off after Sean M. Higgins -- admittedly with "five or six beers" already down and more coming behind the wheel -- tried to pass two slower-moving vehicles and instead struck the Gaudreau brothers.
Johnny was known as "Johnny Hockey" -- never the biggest player on the ice at 5-foot-9 and 180 pounds -- but often the most skilled. He and wife Meredith settled in central Ohio with their children Noa, born in November 2022, and Johnny, who was born in February. The children will never know their father, aside from stories from their mother and other family members.
Matt had bounced around lower levels of hockey before retiring two years ago and becoming a high school hockey coach. He and wife were expecting their first child.
The grief swept across two countries and overwhelmed the hockey world. Johnny had spent his first seven years in the NHL with the Calgary Flames before signing a $68 million contract with the Blue Jackets in order to be closer to his family in New Jersey, where the Gaudreaus were the first family of hockey.
Higgins, 43, seemingly didn't grasp the gravity of his actions during a court appearance. He seemed exasperated when he learned he wasn't going home for the weekend. Drunken drivers are selfish when they get behind the wheel and even after they kill innocents.
Johnny and Matt are never coming home, all because of drunken driving. It was so unnecessary.
There are so many ways to avoid these senseless deaths on our roads, streets and highways. Drivers from Uber, Lyft and countless other ride-share apps are a phone call or a few clicks away. Old-school cabbies will take you anywhere you need to go. Or you can imbibe safely from your own couch. Some delivery services will bring the booze to your front door, so you don't even have to leave the house.
Higgins could have done any of that or simply handed his keys to a designated driver and the Gaudreau family would be celebrating Katie's wedding instead of planning two funerals and trying to figure out how to navigate life without Johnny and Matt.
editorial@tribtoday.com