An early morning rainbow above Sewell, New Jersey, brought a quick smile to participants heading to Washington Lake Park for the Gaudreau Family 5K Run/Walk and Family Fun Day on May 31. Not only did more than 1,000 members of the local community arrive in South Jersey to honor the memory of late NHLer Johnny Gaudreau and his brother Matthew Gaudreau, but the NHL community also showed its support for the Gaudreau Family on Saturday afternoon.
Gaudreau Brothers Left a Lasting Hockey Legacy in South Jersey
Washington Lake Park is a five-minute drive from where the Gaudreau brothers learned to play hockey at the Hollydell Ice Arena. It was renamed the Gaudreau Rink in their honor weeks after the brothers were killed while cycling the night before their sister Katie Gaudreau’s wedding by an alleged drunk driver.
“This rink has been a home to our family for many years,” Katie said last September at the rink renaming ceremony. “So many of you here today have watched Johnny and Matty grow up here on this ice. Hollydell Ice Arena will forever be a place where we feel closest to them.”
Related: Remembering Johnny & Matthew Gaudreau With Their Lasting Impact
Johnny Gaudreau, who was 31, recorded 794 points in 763 games in his NHL career and made seven All-Star appearances. He recorded 40 goals and 115 points for the Calgary Flames in 2021-22, which landed the 5-foot-9 forward a seven-year, $68.25 million contract with the Columbus Blue Jackets in the 2022 offseason. Gaudreau was awarded the 2017 Lady Byng Memorial Trophy, awarded to the player “who exhibited the best type of sportsmanship and gentlemanly conduct combined with a high standard of playing ability.” He was preparing for his 12th NHL season and his third campaign with the Blue Jackets when he died.
Matthew, 29, primarily played in the ECHL between 2017 and 2020, while also earning 21 games in the American Hockey League. After his pro career ended in 2022, Matthew returned to the South Jersey community to help guide the next generation of Philadelphia-area hockey players. He spent several seasons as an assistant coach for the Philadelphia Rebels, whose home rink is Hollydell Arena.
“I would like to thank everyone for coming,” Johnny and Mathew’s father, Guy Gaudreau, said during the awards presentation on Saturday morning. “It really means a lot to Jane and the girls and the family. We miss the boys, and it really means a lot to have you here to honor my boys.” The proceeds from Saturday’s event will benefit students at Archbishop Damiano School, a Private Special Educational school that serves over 130 families in Southern New Jersey. Jane Gaudreau, Johnny and Matthew’s mother, works in finance for the school in Westville, New Jersey.
Several members of the NHL community arrived in South Jersey to show their support for the Gaudreau family, including Ottawa Senators captain Brady Tkachuk. “I think it speaks to them as a family, how close they were and how everybody loved being around them,” Tkachuk told The Associated Press. “You just see the support from this community and from other players as well that are here and traveled in. It just says a lot about Johnny, Matty, their legacy, and this family as a whole, how much support they have because they are such amazing people.”
The Tkachuk and Gaudreau families became close during the six seasons that Johnny played alongside Matthew Tkachuk, Brady’s brother, in Calgary. In a franchise-defining 2022 offseason, the Flames traded Tkachuk to the Florida Panthers, while Johnny skated off to Columbus in free agency.
A pair of Johnny’s Blue Jackets teammates, Zach Aston-Reese and Erik Gudbranson, were in attendance on Saturday to participate in the event. Aston-Reese, a graphic design major in college, helped design the event’s logo. Meanwhile, Gudbranson’s family arrived in New Jersey directly from Disney World, according to The Athletic (From ‘At Gaudreau Family 5K, memory of late brothers Johnny and Matthew shines bright: ‘The boys are here’ – The Athletic, 6/1/2025).
Florida Panthers Participate From Fort Lauderdale
While the Panthers organization prepares for the 2025 Stanley Cup Final against the Edmonton Oilers, that didn’t stop players, coaches, and other staff members from virtually participating in the event on Saturday. Following practice at the FTL War Memorial Auditorium, the Panthers took the 3.1-mile walk to raise additional funds towards the campaign goal, an adaptive playground for students.
🏒❤️ While we hosted the in-person Inaugural Gaudreau Family 5K event in New Jersey with over 1,000 participants, something incredible happened virtually.
The Florida Panthers – focused on their upcoming Stanley Cup Finals – took time out of their championship preparations to… pic.twitter.com/CHU3hhcwqs
— Gaudreau Family 5K (@Gaudreau5K) June 1, 2025
“This kind of just happened really last second,” Matthew Tkachuk said after practice. “We were planning on potentially being in Carolina for Game 7. Once we won the second round, the girls and the families were talking about potentially doing something … to honor the Gaudreau brothers. Once we won in five, we were able to partake. The wives, girlfriends, and families were already going to do it. I think it was a bonus that the players, coaches, and managers could join as well. To honor them is really special. It means a lot to me.”
Related: 2025 Stanley Cup Final Hub
It was a special moment in South Florida as the Panthers briefly turned their attention toward a worthy cause that will ultimately benefit the special needs community in New Jersey. Florida’s X profile generated over 250,000 views in under 48 hours on social media, helping to raise additional awareness for the inaugural Gaudreau Family 5K this weekend.
