A shaky Sean Monahan delivers moving statement following Jackets’ home opener

The night was almost perfect in Columbus on Tuesday when the Blue Jackets honoured the Gaudreau brothers, and raised a banner for Johnny Gaudreau ahead of their home opener against the Florida Panthers. Every player on both teams wore Gaudreau jerseys during warmups and the set up for the opening faceoff just gave you chill. The puck dropped without a left wing for Columbus, leaving the spot for Gaudreau, and Jackets center and Johnny’s best friend Sean Monahan sent the puck to one of Gaudreau’s former teammate in Calgary, now Florida center Sam Bennett, who settled the puck in Gaudreau’s spot. The teams stood still — for 13 seconds officially to symbolize Gaudreau’s number with the crowd chanting “Johnny Hockey.”

After the game, a shaky Monahan spoke about the emotional moment and what the night meant for him.

“It was hard, to be honest,” said Monahan, his voice shaking. “It was a special, special moment that I’ll remember forever.”

All clubs around the NHL have been putting classy moves to honor of Gaudreau and his brother, Matthew, who tragically died when they were stuck and killed by a drunk driver while riding bikes in Oldmans Township, New Jersey, on August 29, on the eve of their sister’s wedding, where both brothers were to be groomsmen. But it was especially special in Columbus, where Johnny had played for the past two seasons.

Shortly before puck drop, the Jackets shared a touching video tribute to Johnny and a recorded message of his wife Meredith encouraging fans not to be sad but to instead be inspired by her late husband’s life was shown. When the team lifted a banner with “JOHNNY GAUDREAU 1993-2024” and No. 13 in a blue circle to the rafters, Meredith was there with her two kids along with Monahan, who signed with the Jackets this summer as a free agent to play with his best friend.

“It means a lot for his family, his wife, his kids, the way they honored him here,” Monahan added. “I mean, the whole League. The Florida Panthers behind the ceremony there, showing their support, yeah, it means a lot.”

In a beautiful moment in the contest, Monahan scored at 11:22 of the second period, giving Columbus a 2-1 lead. Upon scoring, the emotional forward immediately pointed to Gaudreau’s banner.

The only reason why the night was not perfect is because, in the end, the Blue Jackets fell short, losing to the defending Stanley Cup champions 4-3.

But they fought proudly with No. 13 patches on their jerseys.

“I felt like Johnny was watching down on us today,” Monahan said. “I had a feeling I was going to get one. Fortunately enough, I did. We lost, which [stinks]. But yeah, no, I definitely could feel John today.”

This had to be a tough game for Monahan and all players that were close to Gaudreau. It’s easy to say that Johnny Hockey is proud of his teammates and moved by the ceremony and the fight they displayed on the ice.