Words cannot begin to express the tragedy of the sudden passing of Johnny and Matthew Gaudreau last night due to the idiotic decision of a man who decided to drink and drive. Those actions took away two men from their families, kids, wives, parents, teammates, sister. Both these men should have been getting ready this morning to celebrate their sister getting married... instead funeral plans are being discussed.

For 8 years Johnny Hockey helped to reignite the Battle of Alberta. In the late 2000's and early 2010's, the Battle of Alberta had lost some of it's grit. Fans were still treated to some entertaining games, good players, fun fights, and a real dislike of their provincial rival but there wasn't a real face to the rivalry.

For the Edmonton Oilers starting in 2015, the faces of the Oilers became Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl. For Calgary around that same time it was Matthew Tkachuk and of course Johnny Gaudreau. The Battle of Alberta became more than just Edmonton vs Calgary, Oilers vs Flames, it was McDavid and Draisaitl vs Gaudreau and Tkachuk and the fanbases loved it. Calgary won some great games against Edmonton and the Oilers would come right back and win some themselves. Every time these two teams faced off when Gaudreau was playing for the Flames and McDavid for the Oilers, fans were in for a treat.

The pinnacle of this rivalry was Round 2 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs in 2022. Game 1 the Flames were up 6-2 only for the Oilers to come back and tie it, only for the Flames to come back and win 9-6. Game 2 the Oilers had a 3 goal lead only for the Flames to tie it up with RNH scoring the game winning goal in the third. Gaudreau scored his first of the series in Game 5. #13 started with the puck behind the Oilers net, slipped to the right side of Mike Smith and got a quick shot off past Cody Ceci and past Mike Smith to tie the game 3-3.

That play was a microcosm of the kind of player Johnny Gaudreau was. Listed as 5'9 and 163 pounds, Gaudreau not only was one of the smaller guys to play in the NHL, but one of the best at that size. He was quick but more impressive was his hockey IQ, his stick handling, and general slipperiness. He would make you think he was going one way and suddenly he was going the other way. The puck would be in the corner and despite a bunch of 6'4 guys in the scrum, Gaudreau would somehow be the guy to end up with the puck.

For the generation before, Martin St. Louis was the guy everyone looked to as how a small statured player can become an impact and elite NHLer. For the last 10 years, Johnny Gaudreau was that player. When I was writing blogs about Kailer Yamamoto as an exciting potential player for the Oilers, it was Johnny Gaudreau I referenced as the absolute ceiling that a small player like Yamamoto could reach. I know for a fact there are thousands of kids out there who grew up playing hockey as "the small kid" who dreamt that they could one day be as good as Johnny Gaudreau.

Today I join Blue Jackets fans, Flames fans, fans of the game of hockey, and everyone else in mourning the loss of two men who should have lived long lives filled with love. The only thing I know how to do now is to remember all those great moments that Johnny Gaudreau gave us, share them with others, and keep their memory alive.

Thanks for reading.

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