MILAN — They gathered on the ice, two dozen of the best hockey players the United States has ever produced, all of them with wide smiles on their faces and gold medals around their necks having justbeaten Canada 2-1 in an overtime thriller. They carried the American flag with them, but they carried something else, too: a Team USA jersey emblazoned with the No. 13 on the back, the name of Johnny Gaudreau embroidered along the shoulders.
It felt good to have a jersey for Gaudreau,who died in a shocking traffic accident 18 months ago, out there in the team's finest moment. But it didn't feel quite right.
And then Matthew Tkachuk and Zach Werenski went to the stands and hoisted up Gaudreau's two oldest children, Noa and Johnny Jr., and brought them out onto the ice. In that perfect moment, all of American hockey smiled through tears.
"To have Johnny and Noa out there," Dylan Larkin said afterward, "it just felt right."
Johnny Gaudreau was one of the best hockey players of his generation, a prolific scorer, seven-time All-Star and member of the NHL's Quarter Century Team. On the night of Aug. 29, 2024, he and his brother Matthew were riding bikes near Oldmans Township, N.J. It had been a good day; they were in town for their sister Katie's wedding the next day. But around 8 p.m., the two were struck by a car making an illegal pass. The brothers were pronounced dead at the scene, and the driver was charged with vehicular homicide.
Gaudreau's death devastated the hockey world, including so many members of Team USA. "We miss him on the ice dearly," Brady Tkachuk said. "He would have been on this team."
Throughout its international competitions over the past two years, Team USA has brought along a Gaudreau jersey as motivation, inspiration and comfort. The No. 13 jersey hung in American locker rooms during the 4 Nations Face-Off and the 2025 IIHF World Championships, a testament to Gaudreau's love of international hockey.
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Just prior to the start of the Olympics, Gaudreau's family released a statement noting just how much he would have loved to be a part of these Games.
"In that final summer, John was training harder than ever, with his dad, pushing himself to be in the best shape of his life," the family wrote in a statement. "He was determined to earn his spot on that Olympic roster. While it breaks our hearts that John won't be there to live out that dream, we know he will be so very present with Team USA and all of his close friends competing throughout these games."
Larkin said that maybe the Gaudreau brothers were here in some way after all, helping Team USA on a spiritual level. "Somehow," he said while laughing, "they put a spell around our net where the puck didn't go in."
Members of the Gaudreau family, including Johnny's widow Meredith, parents Guy and Jane, and 10-month-old son Carter, have attended the past two United States hockey games. Cameras captured them in the crowd Sunday in tearful celebration.
"He's touched everybody on the ice, everybody in Team USA's lives," Brady Tkachuk said. "We just wanted to show the Gaudreau family our support. He was so near and dear to a lot of us."
"We miss him and we love him and we love his family," Larkin said. "We can't wait to celebrate with them."
"He's had a big impact on a lot of guys in our room. A lot of guys grew up with him, played with him, spent a lot of time with him," Team USA captain Auston Matthews said, adding that the jersey was "just a subtle reminder that him and his brother, they're with us in spirit."
Nothing will replace Johnny and Matt Goudreau in the lives of all who loved them. But thanks to Team USA, his children will have a treasured memory honoring their father. And thanks to the gold-medal win, his memory will live on as long as there's American hockey.