Johnny Gaudreau's sister shares heartwarming story of late NHL star staying the night with family 'instead of a hotel' before playing the Flyers

Late NHL star Johnny Gaudreau was known for his character on and off the ice. The former Columbus Blue Jackets forward was a family man and prioritized family above all else.

On Friday, Johnny’s sister Katie reposted a throwback picture from five years ago on her Instagram stories where Johnny posed with his nephews and nieces. The picture was originally shared by Johnny’s elder sister Kristen.

“John always came home and spent the night at the house instead of a hotel before they played the Flyers. Nothing like just being at home. Miss you 💙”, the post was captioned.

via Instagram/@kgaudreau13

The Gaudreaus live in Salem, New Jersey. Whenever his team traveled to play at the Wells Fargo Center, Johnny made sure to pay his family a visit.

Johnny shared a close bond with all three of his siblings. Last month, Katie Gaudreau posted a TikTok video featuring a compilation of funny and adorable moments of the siblings together.

“Pov your brothers and sister were your best friends. 🤍🪽🪽🤍”, Katie captioned the video.

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The video showed glimpses of special moments in their lives, from road trips, concert outings, a karaoke party and Johnny Gaudreau’s wedding afterparty.

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Johnny Gaudreau’s wife melts over fan made scrapbook

The hockey community has continued to pay tribute to Matthew and Johnny Gaudreau since a tragic accident claimed the lives of the two NHL stars in late August. Johnny’s wife, Meredith, reacted to one such fan tribute on Thursday.

The scrapbook featured newspaper and magazine cutouts of Johnny during his time with the Calgary Flames. It was created by a fan, Holly Leis, and the Instagram page ‘johnnyhockeyfan_13’ shared images of the scrapbook.

“This beautiful Johnny fan started creating a scrap book throughout Johnnys career in Calgary. So beautiful, thank you for sharing @holly.leis ❤️ this is so beautiful, and deserved to be posted,” read the caption of the post.

Leis later shared the post on her Instagram stories and wrote a note of gratitude, tagging Meredith Gaudreau in the story.

“Thank you @johnnyhockeyfan_13 for sharing this for the world to see how inspiring and incredible Johnny played the game of hockey! @meredithgaudreau ❤️.”

Meredith made sure to repost the tribute and Leis’ story on her own account. She added in the caption:

“❤️❤️❤️ love this.”

Meanwhile, the driver accused of killing the Gaudreau brothers appeared in court this month for the first time in person, as previous hearings were held virtually. The judge extended the timeline for prosecutors to file an indictment.

Authorities reported that Higgins had consumed six beers and was driving under the influence at the time of the accident. His blood-alcohol level was .087, above the legal limit of 0.08 and he failed a sobriety test.

Higgins, who reportedly has a history of road rage, faces several charges, including two counts of death by auto, reckless driving and consuming alcohol in a vehicle. If convicted, he could face up to 20 years in prison.