Columbus Blue Jackets Pay Tribute To Johnny Gaudreau At Home Opener

It was an emotional house opener for the Columbus Blue Jackets … because the crew honored the lifetime of Johnny Gaudreau with a touching tribute earlier than the motion kicked off — and there wasn’t a dry eye within the enviornment.

Throughout pregame warmups, your entire crew wore #13 jerseys as they took the ice … which will probably be put up for public sale with proceeds going to the John and Matthew Gaudreau Basis.

The tribute to Johnny did not cease there. The crew welcomed Johnny’s spouse Meredith — and their two youngsters — to the ice as they raised a banner to the rafters “In his memory and the legacy of number 13.”

The digital camera panned to Gaudreau’s mother and father, who had been additionally in attendance. Johnny’s father — Man Gaudreau — joined the crew for follow for the primary time since his son’s dying, and head coach Dean Evason stated it was great to have him across the crew.

“All that family’s been through, it’s been fantastic and his attitude and the way that he had a such a positive attitude in our room. We were doing practice planning and he’s just jumping in on stuff. It was really nice.”

Lastly, because the puck was dropped, the Blue Jackets and the Florida Panthers paid their respects as soon as extra … as they left the left winger spot for Columbus vacant and let 13 seconds run off the clock.