Current and former Boston College hockey coaches remember Johnny and Matthew Gaudreau

coach when you first heard the news this morning unspeakable yeah it wasn't confirmed yet so we were hoping that was going to be a bad rumor but uh pH rang at 6:30 from coach Tado over at and he R [Music] unfortunately yeah hard to put into words R family is so close they're so tight uh there's so many people here that were affected by them uh their teammates everybody who knew them fact that they were together is horrific but ironic because they were that TI of family what was it like working with Johnny and Matthew well first I'd like to share what Greg said was it was shocking news to us you know it was just such a hard reality when you wake up in the morning and and hear that uh and the biggest thing and Cricket I've talked about this that you know Johnny is the national news and you know my phone's been ringing all over the Canada United States this morning but but they're both boys you know and they're both are so close to our program so can you imagine uh G and Jane the parents the one of the youngest the youngest daughter Katie is getting married today and they were all back to celebrate and now you lose two sons so it's it's almost unimaginable and uh you know we know life is difficult and this certainly one of those times but uh he was a special a connection like Greg said to us uh you're both amazing players and people all talk about Johnny as you know Olympic player and world class but just as someone to raise the level your practice to to uh be Johnny hockey but not wear that label uh well respected by all the students here the teachers uh and by Greg and I you know if you ask us the name our favorite players you know they've got to be both boys are to be among them you obviously they're good hockey players to be here great hockey players but when you speak of them being with them on on a daily basis what were they like as people what were your favorite things about them as as as people they brought a ton of Joy to the ring they were happy to be there like truly happy to be there big smiles all the time the things they could do on the ice that's what people who don't know them remember because they were both magical in their own ways but uh everyone just loved having them on the team they were tendous teammates yeah they L up the room when they came in so I don't you know we've had lots of Brothers at BC but when you had those two in the room uh you know it's just everything was amped up and that that joy that they had for for life and for being teammates onto the and you can see by the way they played we talked about them being very close can you talk about the dynamic between the two of them when they were teammates For That season how they would interact being on the same team yeah uh we had a great team um they would battle each other in practice they would how they looked out for each other like brothers do yeah I the only thing you can say is their their personality and their their enthusiasm was was truly infectious to the whole team they could Johnny was magical on the ice that year um M really be a big time player for us after that year but and together was just uh just brought a juice the father Tony talks about bring juice to the locker room those two guys brought it they were together three years here so you know like Greg said Johnny was a magical but Maddie just his compete level and he pushed his brother so much uh that they had a great bond between them but I think part of the reason Johnny was so good not Greg and myself here but the younger brother pushing him hard like that so it was it was fun Dynamic to watch and uh when we first recruit when he first came in I remember Kevin AES and we had a lot of really good players above MC Cryder and uh Tommy cross and they're looking at this little kid he looks like he's 14 years old and they' heard so much about him and very few had seen him play uh and he wasn't didn't want to be the first one in the room he he was he was never going to be that type of guy he just kind of came in sat down and and I'm sure Kevin was looking over this is the guy that's going to help us win a National Title yeah Kevin he is so uh but he he he really became close especially with I say Kevin Hayes that was his go-to and actually became a DOT rat spent a lot of weekends with uh Kevin Senior the family and in Dorchester so he even though he was a kind of Philly kid Jersey kid he became quite a Boston uh young guy Jerry you're telling me he almost didn't become an eagle he was going to be a husky first and then turned out playing for you as a Hobie Baker winner you know don't get a chance to coach too many of those guys yeah our best recruiter was Craig Corin I think uh and we've St Greg and I both stayed in touch with Greg all these years but he had left Northeastern prior to uh Johnny and Maddie both coming that that uh fall and so during the summer uh he reached out to you know Greg and Greg helped him I think pick some different schools to visit and uh then when he visited us and I think Maddie was a I think Greg a driving force I think that we knew you know the both brothers were tight but I think he was one John let's go to BC you know they could have go to Wisconsin bu anywhere they wanted to and so I think Maddie helped direct him I think that's right we were going to go together yeah no matter what so we're fortunate to have room and so excited to get him Johnny showed up and put us over the edge to win that first that National Title in 2004 what do you think his weight was when he came in did you guys say that if he was 140 lb M he was 20 lbs lighter than him the things that they could do for their size are I mean they both have a genius tool that you don't see of to be as effective not only at the college level but Johnny the NHL at that size takes such a high IQ level that you can't even describe everyone in that league is really good for him to be not just but be a star I remember a few practices who were and Mike Cav them was was was on our staff and and Michael look at Greg and and I'd be looking at both of them as Johnny did something wow what did he just do there you know as Elusive and as just incredible things he could do in the ice with the park and I just look over at Greg or something like we're going to be pretty good this year I think I big crier with him it was pretty interesting have either of you had the chance to speak with the family what did you say or if not what would you like to say to them a chance yet know how close they were at our as a family I had it's every parents I texted a Jane and guy this morning and just reminded him how especially to BC and um and even Katie uh Craig of course remembers her too she was like a 10-year-old younger sister never missed a game and it was well the BC gear and everything and for her you know to be getting married the the whole thing is so hard but we'll have a great contingent coming from here down to the uh wake and the funeral and I'm sure tonies avail he'll be father Tony be to say the MK too he go tell a story about the Skittles how he learned to skate I think that'd be kind of entertaining we heard it from guy I think that's that's how he got to get around the ice I think he would Chase Skittles he wasn't in love with hockey when he was little but he would chase the Skittles cuz he liked those his diet was was never uh that of a world class athlete name was Johnny H chees didn't like sushi his teammates are have a lot more of those stories it seems like they were the finest you guys have ever coached what did you learn from them as athletes the student athletes here at Boston College you guys are so busy coaching and teaching did they teach you guys anything oh absolutely every day uh you know not just hockey skills but how they heal themselves and and father Tony was always talking about you know you want to be great in the ice but you don't want to act great off the ice and just be a regular you know and they'd walk around the campus and you everybody was being all of of course the brother Johnny uh but he was just you know hello and very polite and so handled Fame extremely well and he did at the NHL level too he was always a great teammate and but that's kind of I remember about him very grounded grounded they had special abilities but they knew that was just their thing and didn't put them in any special light they treated every one of their teammates like brother like grounded you know giant finish up in calary the season he came back he slept on his brother's floor to get some more classes in so he did get his degree I didn't do that and it was important to his to him to his family he made sure he came back and finish up and that was recent or while while okay I remember pretty soon after he okay after he left craig and I were saying goodbye to Johnny because he's we were in Philadelphia the final four and uh Calgary had sent a plane to pick him up bring him right to the end of the season play some games for the Flames yeah and uh the mother was with us and she was and she was Jane she was adamant Johnny you're going to get that degree and she stayed right on him so that's awesome yeah both boys have degrees from BC and that's that's important to us yeah and it seem like they left an indelible Mark here how do the current players obviously they look him as as Legend to me he's a legend here on campus how how are the current players handling this did they get a chance to really know him did he come back and visit time Gregor know that I'm not yeah I spoke with Ryan Leonard who played with him at the world championships this last spring so he didn't know well but he said that Johnny and Kevin ha they treat him like he was over there with a little SP as young guys they don't know all the pros which was not shocking to usz they would bring them right in treat them great took C it's just a way was so we haven't had our team meeting yet today to talk about it but I'm sure several of our kids were growing up watching uh Johnny play here thought it was pretty cool to put on a BC Jersey all the time folks maybe time for our last question mat Matt went on to become was just starting to get into coaching that surprise either one of you that he would he would want to stay in the game not at all uh their father had a love for the game and a passion for it and and around Hockey coaching and everything helping his two boys achieve Great Heights uh so it isn't shocking at all uh hockey is in their blood M with PR coach be cerebral understand really the game within the game be thank you thank you for being here appreciate and one question you can ask who's problem [Music] sorry for your loss I know