The Passing of Matt & Johnny Gaudreau | Live From The Blue Seats
hello everyone welcome to live from the blue seats uh no intro today you know um didn’t feel that it was appropriate for uh the events that had transpired in the last 24 hours um so if you probably already know we we just released the podcast uh last night and it talked about you know the Rangers Jacob trouba Brian lingren and some of the guys to fill out the bottom spots and and unbeknownst to all of us around that time uh something tragic in the hockey world was unfolding and if you already didn’t know um Johnny gdo and his brother Matthew were struck and killed by a drunk driver in South Jersey and it’s uh it’s shaken all of us here in the hockey world we root for different teams we have different rooting interests you know whether you’re fan of the Rangers Blue Jackets even the Devils Islanders you know Flyers Penguins you know we may not agree on who we root for but at the end of the day it’s just a game we’re human beings and when somebody or just even anybody in general first and foremost let me just say that when you lose anybody in that sort of fashion it’s heartbreaking and when you lose one of your own in the hockey community that is it it stings and the hockey Community has felt it we’ve all felt it whether you’re a ranger fan my heart goes out to the GD family and the extended family to Johnny’s family to Matthew’s family and to anyone that is directly involved with that my condolences and my prayers go out to your fam to the families affected by this tragedy that honestly is 100% avoidable And I don’t know if you could tell I’m I’m getting a little emotional speaking about it even though I didn’t know Johnny I knew of Johnny on what he did on the ice and from everything that I’ve read and everything that I’ve seen Johnny and also his brother Matthew were just salt to the Earth wonderful people and uh it seems as if there were this was just a life taken away too soon both him and his brother all because of some idiot and yes I will say that because it’s some idiot who didn’t want to turn on his phone and press a couple of buttons to go home um I’ve always liked at Johnny gdo as a player I openly advocated to him becoming a ranger um he was even though he was a smaller player i t I have an affinity for players like that you know being martan St Louis is one of my favorite players but Johnny gdo was your typical skilled everyday hockey player that was one of the League’s best and you know losing somebody like that and also you know his brother who’s also part of the hockey Community it’s just absolutely devastating and our heart breaks and is with the family like I said now here’s the thing so this whole situation is sad and and also and I apologize if a lot of this comes off as a bit much I I didn’t I didn’t prepare anything this is me speaking off the top of my heart I feel for Columbus fans I do because not even two years ago um they lost matis K clis if I apologize if I’m butchering that um on Fourth of July and that was devastating you know he was so young and had so much promise and so much talent and he died saving people from a catastrophe and you know it it really affected you know Elvis M’s Lincoln and really I think it just affected the city of Columbus as a whole and even just as us hockey fans you know like I said we we we you know we tend to root for different teams but we’re together as one community and even though we may not like certain players in sort of a rooting interest it’s you want to see Talent Thrive and you don’t want to see it get wasted and it’s also just a human life too you know you want to see players live about their potential go through life and and and do and showcase what they’re good at not only for themselves but also for us you know because we’re all part of it and I know Columbus and I know Elvis and the Columbus organization or even to this day are still mourning the loss of matis and then to be dropped with this I mean it it this is something that you just can’t even think of you know um Johnny gdo took a leap of faith in coming to Columbus he could have gone to New Jersey where he’s from he could have gone to Philadelphia but he decided to take a gamble on Columbus you know clearly something about Columbus also being close to home but also the organizational philosophy that they preach to him he liked it and he decided to take the Gamble and look I commend him for that because Columbus typically is not a market for players like him to stay at and I’m not trying to be derogatory in this because if you just look at the trends of Columbus over the years people have tended to leave in you know including guys like Artmy paner and serowski mat Shane whatever for other cities and that’s their choice but uh gdo took that leap of faith and decided to go to Columbus not only to be closer to home you know but also to really be the guy for the Columbus Blue Jackets and yeah you know we’ll mock it and we’ll make jokes about it you know this and that and the forth but Columbus is a really good hockey town and I’ve always maintained that Columbus is a wonderful hockey town they have a strong fan base that building is always packed you know and they show up when playoffs come around so for them to lose another skill player like that in less than three years that’s just heartbreaking and my heart goes out to all the blue jacket fans you know from a fan base who we lost you know I’m thinking of uh sharapanov back in 20072 2008 you know he was supposed to be the next one and he unfortunately passed away due to his heart condition it’s very sobering you know it’s very sobering to see players in their Prime pass away and it’s just sobering to see anybody die in general like that regardless you know and then you look at his brother who even though he was older that was his best friend you know they were each other strongest supporters and to see that be removed from our hockey Community all because somebody’s an idiot it’s heartbreaking and then you think of Kevin Hayes okay what this man look I’ve been very critical of Kevin Hayes as a player okay I I the one thing that I tend to do is I try not to criticize people off the ice because it’s not my place to do so you know I’m not going to critic unless they commit an egregious act that involves some sort of criminal activity or they do harm to themselves you know my only criticism of Kevin Hayes is on the ice okay but I can’t even imagine not only with the GD family his wife his two kids you know the mother and the father of the of the sons you know um the extended family but also you know keev that was his best friend you know that was his best friend and this is literally coming off almost about two years of his brother passing away who was also one of his you know close confidants it’s just I feel for him and I and I and I hope that you know he’s able to deal with this accordingly and you know all my prayers and my my my best wishes go to him too it just it sucks man honestly it sucks you know I you know I I I try not to say too much about stuff that goes on in my life so to speak but um you know this this hits a little harder because I’ve known people who are affected by reckless drivers and it hurts me when I see people making the same mistake and I know people aren’t perfect but it’s just very demoralizing to see that people fall into the same stuff and they end up hurting other people irreparably you know I’ve my life has been affected by it so I can only imagine what the Gad family and friends are dealing with right now I had a a cousin of mine who her husband who he was really close with our family uh died in a trucking accident because the other truck driver was negligent I’ve had many many family members of mine be affected negatively by alcohol and this isn’t like an anti-alcohol thing it’s just the effects of what alcohol can do to people I’ve had many a family affected by that I’ve known people who have gone to jail for killing someone with their car you know so when you see this happen in you know to somebody else who is universally loved you know the hockey stuff goes out the way and just the human decency just hurts for the people that are affected by it and it’s a shame Johnny Gad was one of the brightest stars in this league you know one of the best pure goal scorers this league has had you know in a while the kid could shoot the puck from anywhere and he could net it easy you know like I said I wanted him to be a ranger at one point and uh it it just it sucks it just that it sucks now I want to come off as preachy here but it’s 2024 okay I have a bone to pick with a couple things because the way that this kind of unfolded not only with the person that committed the crime but also the way that it was reported I not too thrilled at that that’s also what’s annoying me too about all this so first and foremost this [ __ ] yes and I’m not want to call people names like that but this dude is a [ __ ] and he should get the hammer hit to him with the law the law should hit him hard you know even if it was just a reg you know it was just a I don’t say regular person just a person who wasn’t famous like they were they should that person should still get the ultimate punishment in jail because what that person did something that has been preached and taught and driven into the minds of people for years you know something that has been preached since the 80s and 9s you know some it’s not like you know driving impaired has been something that just oh hey who whoa sorry I didn’t know how to do that no no people know you drive drunk you will pay and unfortunately some people it’s too late for them you know this guy thought it was okay to not only be aggressive on the road but also be impaired as well it’s 2024 download Uber download Lyft call somebody you everybody has to know somebody that could give them a lift if you can’t use Uber or lift like come on what are we doing here you know every time I hear of a story about some passing away about a drunk driver it just annoys me because it tells me what are you doing come on dude seriously it just absolute recklessness moronic Behavior he should be in jail for a very long time for what he did just come on you know I I I people have probably said it better than I have but what are we doing here what what’s the need to drink a bunch of beers fine you want to do that great but this stuff impairs you what’s the need to go and say oh well I’m GNA go drive my car because you want to take it back home if you’re if you’re well off enough to own your own car you’re definitely well off enough to buy an Uber and then the next morning go back with an Uber and pick up your car when you’re sober okay I don’t care what this guy was doing I don’t care where he was at what his situation was he made the conscious decision to take his keys while inebriated and drive on the road and unfortunately it led to the loss of two people how many times do we have to deal with this you know and this is where the plethora of problems that go on in our society but how many times does this have to happen for people to say you know what maybe I shouldn’t do that and yeah there have been the awareness campaigns for all this with the commercials and and the law really coming down hard on it has definitely decreased the rates a lot over the years but it still happens and unfortunately this is not going to be the last time it’s going to happen either but the only thing you can do is just be aware and make sure for your your yourself if you’re listening to this and whomever this goes out to if you’re drinking obviously don’t drive for goodness sake because you end up with stuff like this and then to make matters worse today was his sister’s wedding and he was going to be a part of it both him and his brother I mean come on it’s just it’s just a really crappy situation don’t drink and drive for goodness sake it’s not that difficult okay they have apps for this exact reason call an Uber call and lift like I said oh it may cost you a little much well deal with it or find a place to sit away from your car do something else besides drive your car or maybe wait till you’re sobered up and do it are you that was was he that much of an alcoholic that he you know couldn’t wait a little bit to go wherever was going that’s not my problem that he might have been late for something or whatever but either way what he did was reprehensible and it’s should be penalized harshly in the court of law and two people’s lives are taken away because of this man’s Reckless actions now another thing was the reporting of this okay this isn’t breaking a trade this isn’t breaking a signing okay there’s no agents that are uh going to tell you hey look how about you do this okay how about you report this no this is somebody’s life somebody’s lives some people’s lives being talked about here okay now what if it wasn’t true and you throw out something like that it’s very sensitive that’s very irresponsible that Flyers journalist who reported that initially and was putting it out there very irresponsible on your part I’m not one to sit and publicly shame people like this but I will shame you shame on you dude you should not be a journalist anymore because you just prove to everyone in your little Flyers community and now all over the hockey world that you have no Integrity you have no standards your journalistic integrity is non-existent and you should stop okay I’m not going to sit here and say that I’m holier than now but if I were to find out about something that was very sensitive like somebody dying I’m not going to go and post it on social media for clicks for what why what exactly do you benefit from that what who why who in this field will benefit from breaking the news that somebody died in a tragic fashion nonetheless also whomever was involved you know with the medical examiner or in terms of people who were part of the investigation shame on you as well for even disclosing that information to people who are not law enforcement in the first place and even if there were people who were part of law enforcement who were able who got this news and still disseminated it out shame on you too because stuff like this puts the family out in a public spot they should not be in because you know how the internet works people will take something and make a mockery of it regardless of whatever it is either they’ll make a mockery of it or there’ll be a speculation of things that could or could not be true and that in itself could be damaging to the family especially if that family is grieving So to that Flyers reporter and to the people who handled that situation with the least amount of cander possible shame on you for doing that because you don’t know what you could have done maybe somebody in that family saw that or maybe somebody who was a privy to that information online told the family and probably made their people’s their family’s lives a bit worse you don’t know you don’t know what’s going to happen when you disseminate that information to the public and it’s again it’s none of your business okay so to the reporter who put it out trying to get cred shame on you you should not be a journalist you should not be a writer you have no credibility you are you you you are you are scum okay now I don’t know you I don’t know you personally you’re probably a really nice guy but when it comes to your journalistic integrity and your method just by that you should not be doing what you do you are not a journalist you are not a writer okay shame on you and again shame on to the people who were privy to this information in law enforcement or the medical examiners whatever and telling people about that information when they shouldn’t have known look I work for a municipality I work for a city in the town that I live in I work for the town that I live in okay I’m privy to a lot of information very sensitive information but I’m not going to go out and tell the world about what goes on behind doors here behind closed doors because it’s nobody’s business and also there’s sort of this you know I don’t know maybe decorum that you go through so that people so that the the township or the people can do things properly that’s why there’s a thing called structure that’s why there’s a thing called class there’s a thing called ethics okay and if you don’t follow that you have no credibility you don’t you’re not you’re not worthy of people’s trust and that’s the important thing about being a reporter or being a writer or being in this type of field whether it’s media written media broadcasting whatever you only go as far as your credibility does in many aspects nobody’s going to want to be around someone who they know is not credible and would flip the table from under them if they wanted to get ahead and over the years people have gotten a lot better in making sure that those journalistic integrities hold up and the display that I saw last night going into this morning making and and unfortunately it was true but at the same time at what cost are you going to put something out there to benefit yourself what cost is that going to take like what are you going to sell for that sort of interactions this like I said this is not somebody getting traded to another team this is somebody’s freaking life here this is somebody’s private life something that should not be known to public until it’s disseminated by the proper authorities I don’t know I sound like I’m rambling here but I was very disgusted at the way that that news was leaked out last night it’s just a shame because it just kind of turns this whole thing on its head and it just kind of adds an extra element to something that doesn’t need a sour element to the guy’s gone his brother’s gone a family’s grieving why do you have to go out and put this out when it’s not confirmed causing people to uh uh causing people to potentially be in a panic you know I I just I I I can’t I I don’t I don’t appreciate that and again I just want to you know again give my my condolences and my prayers to the Gad family to anyone who was affected by this the Columbus fans uh anyone who knew him closely because I’ll tell you what he will be missed I as much as as much as I don’t like when players score on my favorite team like I said it’s just nice to see when good talent is showcased and Johnny gdo was one of those guys you know um there’s a bunch of stories about him online everybody praised the guy and his brother too you know I I I want to make sure that his brother gets enough mention in all of this as well you know Ma you know I was reading something earlier today like I said where you know Matthew was the one that really pushed Johnny to do a lot of things they were each other’s like best friends pretty much and although Matthew didn’t have the same NHL career like Johnny did he was still a very good hockey player played in in the l a lot you know I think most recently was with the Bridgeport sound tigers and you know hockey really we really did lose two valuable members of our community you know you know I’ve been I saw a lot of the uh I saw a lot of the clips that had been circulated around Twitter um especially the uh Johnny gadr overtime winner against uh Dallas um so I have a friend who’s a Flames fan right and I was you know I was basically talking to him about cadro and and before when he left and it was essentially like you know listen he’s not doing it on purpose you know I told him why and you know he’s he’s he’s a classy guy this cadro and I was just filling him in on you know because he’s a relatively new Flames fan so I I showed him uh the the goal and he was like wow I really wish we had kept this guy you know and um you know he he’s probably feeling it a little bit too I would I would I would imagine you know um and it’s just I and then it also like you know being even though I was born in Brooklyn I’m I’m Jersey bred you know I mean a part of me is still in you know part of me still is in Brooklyn of course I can’t ever escape that but I’m Jersey born and I’m always a bit proud of people who come from the state whether you’re South Jersey Central Jersey North Jersey doesn’t matter we’re all the same um I always have a little bit of you know pride of knowing like that guy is one of the best and he’s from the same state that I’m from and I me personally I take pride in that you know and seeing that his life and his brother’s life were just taken away so suddenly you know it it hurts you know just as a human being too you know you lost one of your own you know he was his he was a you know I think I was reading something that he put South Jersey hockey on the map you know because a lot of the stuff usually happens around where I’m at here in Central Jersey or North Jersey it’s a little more affluent you know and they kind of the hockey rinks are more up there you know down South Jersey you’re more prone to go to Philly and he was the one that kind of put hockey on the map somewhat down in South Jersey because undersized kid immense skill you know and then you think about any everyone who’s watched him over the years you know and obviously I include his brother into this because they both have a direct impact they both had a direct impact on each other and you know what he’s been able to do in his career as a pure goal scorer um it’s definitely something that this league is going to miss and then you know just from reading all the stories like the the the story about him you know not liking sushi but him bringing cheese sandwiches to hang out with his friends like come on dude that that’s like that’s so cool like what a what a cool guy he is for doing that you know uh all the love that he shown you know for his brother and for his friends you know there’s the clip going around of him you know celebrating at someone’s wedding it seemed like he at Mat I think it was Kevin Hayes’s wedding I think it was um it just seemed like he was universally loved and the hockey world will miss him and uh obviously you know give his family you know the Privacy that they deserve and they need in this time of uh morning and um you know I was talking on the podcast recording it yesterday that you know The Season’s turning and we’re going into um we’re going into the fall and this is not a great way to start you know as the weather’s turning the ice is going to get a bit colder the skates are going to skate on the ice training camps opening up and it it’s just unfortunate that we um that we lost two valuable members of the community a family you know a father lost his son a wife lost a wife lost a husband a mother lost her kid and a kid lost their father and I didn’t expect to get emotional about this a little bit but you know I think back um when Jose Fernandez uh unfortunately tragically passed away and what you do is you kind of you’re so used to seeing these people in front of your screens and in this in this field that we’re in we talk about them so much that it just becomes unfathomable to see that they’re not here anymore you know in the case of Fernandez uh I got to see him a lot because he pitched against the Mets a lot with the Miami Marlins and even though he was killing us or we you know the games would be really close you appreciate that kind of talent like I said and the same thing with Johnny gadr boy did it annoy me when he would score against us but that’s what happens when you’re a fan you don’t want to see your team get scored on what what what like what Ranger fan would I be if I were to cheer for somebody else that scored against us but at the end of the day it’s just a hockey fan in general you you you you appreciate that kind of talent being in this league and for me this stuff hits hard because like I had mentioned before a lot of the stuff that I had gone through with my family you know I you know I can only imagine like I said what the gdo family is currently dealing with I can’t even imagine I’m not a parent I don’t have a kid but many of us on many of my fellow bloggers on our team have kids and with the you know and I had mentioned this um some somewhat during my martan St Louis um sort of uh retrospective is when you’re close with your family you have kind of that bond with them right and um it seems as if Johnny had that with his family and um no no parent should ever have to bury their child I you know I’m a very emotional guy so I put myself in a lot of situations and I try to understand the feeling of you know obviously it’s it’s a bit different you know I haven’t experienced that yet but um and I don’t want to or if I have a kid I don’t ever want to lose them but um I think about what would how would How would how would my parents feel if I were to suddenly pass away just from seeing how other people have reacted to it and even just thinking about that breaks my heart and then seeing it actually happen to somebody whether it’s Johnny or Matthew G or some people in my family that I’ve known or other people and their friends and and and them losing their kids like I I just I can’t imagine the pain and the suffering that that has to be going through their hearts and their minds and their souls and that’s what really makes this sad is just the loss of a life that shouldn’t have been taken away so I apologize in advance if any of this comes out insensitive I I’m just speaking from Straight From the Heart I didn’t plan or rehearse anything I just popped open my computer and I just set it up and I just started recording but I just felt it was only right that um at least either myself or at least the blog had something in regards to the passing of of Johnny Gill because it is hockey related but it’s also just human decency human life related you know you know like I said us hockey fans we we appreciate good talent and even though guys like Sydney Crosby oetkin and people who play against the Rangers are here to go against our rooting interests you know the growth of a sport really hinges on its talent and Johnny gdo was one of those guys that really made it stand out he he was he was he was one of the better one one of the best honestly one of the better one of the best American players to ever play the game you know he may not have all the fancy records or whatever but the kid was damn talented so again like I said I apologize if any this is insensitive or anything I’m just just trying I’m trying to process this myself because now you know even someone as far back as I am relative to the situation it it it’s you know it it’s affecting me you know it’s just the loss of a human life in general just just eats me up especially the way that it happened you know but thankfully if there was a silver lining to any of this which it’s really hard to do that but I’m a very optimistic person is that people will never forget him as somebody who was a bad person and unfortunately even though he was taken away from us too soon way too soon like he should have been able to finish his career retire and be a part of the hockey Community you know in perpetuity until you know old age um there will always be good memories of him and everyone loved them and cherished them and and and and that seems like it will be his legacy you know he did a lot in Calgary he donated to a lot of charitable organizations from what I’ve read he was very instrumental in helping his teammates out with mental health that is what we will remember him by along with his skill not for what happened to him and I think that’s the one thing I’ve noticed online over the last couple of hours is that he’s being remembered for the good that he did not for how he was taken away and I think that’s a silver lining if there were ever was one in any in this very very incredibly tragic and sad situation so with that being said um I just I wanted to say something I’m not sure if anyone else on the blog will say anything um but I felt at least as the producer of a hockey podcast um even though it’s not Rangers Rel it’s Rangers adjacent but we’re all part of the hockey community and I F I just needed to say something more than just putting out a tweet you know you can only say something in 180 characters and I don’t think that’s Justice at least to me from how what I want to say for GD and his brother and his family so again my deepest condolences and prayers go out to the Gad family to everyone involved close friends family to the Columbus fans even though we’re rivals our hearts are with you I I can’t even imagine having to deal with two big losses like this you know with players that have been on the team so we all stand together as one in this very difficult time and and just know that the hockey Community is with you so with that being said um I guess I guess we’ll have a podcast later next week after Labor Day not entirely sure if we’ll have the full gang back um but either way we’ll definitely have something for you next week so uh rest in peace to Johnny and Matt um May their memory uh May their memories continue May their memories excuse me their memories be Everlasting and we we continue to remember them as the good people and players that they were so thank you very much and uh I guess both uh we’ll talk next week
Producer JL discusses the tragic passing of hockey players Matt and Johnny Gaudreau.
Don’t drive drunk. Save a life.