The widows of hockey player brothers Matthew and Johnny Gaudreau are speaking out about their grief nearly one year after their husbands were killed by an alleged drunk driver.
“He kissed all of us goodbye — just in the driveway at his parents’ house. And that was the last time I saw him,” Johnny Gaudreau’s wife, Meredith Gaudreau, told ABC News.
Johnny Gaudreau, 31, a Columbus Blue Jackets star, and Matthew Gaudreau, 29, a former pro hockey player, died on Aug. 29, 2024. The brothers, who were home in New Jersey for their sister Katie’s wedding, were riding bikes when they were struck by a driver suspected of being under the influence of alcohol, according to police. The suspected driver was arrested and has pleaded not guilty to charges of aggravated manslaughter, vehicular homicide, evidence tampering and leaving the scene of an accident.
Johnny Gaudreau #13 of the Columbus Blue Jackets warms up prior to a game against the Calgary Flames at Nationwide Arena on October 20, 2023 in Columbus, Ohio.
Ben Jackson/NHLI via Getty Images
Matthew Gaudreau of the New York Islanders poses for his official headshot for the 2017-2018 season on September 14, 2017 in Uniondale, New York.
Mike Stobe/NHLI via Getty Images
“Our kids didn’t deserve this,” Meredith said. “John and Matty didn’t even deserve that, especially the way it happened. It keeps me up at night.”
“There’s no healing when you didn’t get a goodbye,” Matthew Gaudreau’s wife, Madeline Gaudreau, said.
At the brothers’ funeral, Meredith said she told her husband “that I would take care of our kids, and I thanked him for such a great life.”
At the time of the brothers’ deaths, Meredith was a mom to her and Johnny’s two young children.
Madeline and Meredith were also both pregnant when their husbands died.
Madeline’s baby, Tripp, was born four months later and Meredith — who announced her pregnancy at the funeral — gave birth to baby Carter eight months after the crash.
Madeline said that at the funeral “Tripp was kicking a lot, so I just held Matt’s hand on my belly for Tripp.”
“I didn’t wanna say goodbye to either of them because I know I’ll see them again one day,” she said.
The extended interview with Meredith and Madeline Gaudreau will air on “Good Morning America” on Aug. 13, which would have been Johnny Gaudreau’s 32nd birthday.
Madeline and Meredith Gaudreau speak to ABC News.
ABC News
