When Meredith Gaudreau got the invite to the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026, she knew it was a no-brainer.
“Quick decision,” Gaudreau said in a new video produced by the NHL. “We thought, ‘We can’t pass this up.’ Once in a lifetime opportunity.”
Gaudreau – wife to the late Johnny Gaudreau – was in attendance for Team USA’s semifinal win against Team Slovakia on Friday, a 6-2 rout to put the red, white and blue into the gold medal game.
She was joined by her 3-year-old daughter Noa, and Johnny’s parents, Jane and Guy Gaudreau.
“It’s fun to be a part of this,” Meredith said. “We wished we were a part of it, so when we got the call to come out, it felt like maybe [Johnny] did make the team.
“So it’s fun here to represent him, and support everyone who’s honoring him as well.”
Johnny and his brother, Matthew, died Aug. 29, 2024 – the night before they were to attend the wedding of their sister, Katie – when they were riding bicycles near their home in Salem County, New Jersey, and were struck by a car. An alleged drunk driver has been charged with two counts of death by auto.
Throughout the Olympic tournament, which Johnny surely would’ve been a part of, Team USA has had his No. 13 jersey hung up in the locker room. The team pulled a similar gesture during 4 Nations Face-Off last February, and then at the 2025 IIHF World Championship in Denmark.
“We saw it on TV, so I told Noa, ‘Those are daddy’s friends,’” Meredith said. “And we saw his picture and No. 13 she knows, so she knows we’re at a special game.”
Coach Mike Sullivan said Johnny has been a source of inspiration for the team.
“He provides a lot of inspiration for all of us with how he lived his life, his dedication to the game, his family,” Sullivan said. “He’s just a good person on the ice and off the ice, and I think he’s an inspiration to our players to this very day.”
Johnny represented the United States several times throughout his career, suiting up for Team USA in the IIHF World Championships in 2014, 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2024. He tallied 43 points in 40 games, the most points in USA men's IIHF history.
Gaudreau also won gold at the 2013 IIHF World Junior Ice Hockey Championship, leading the tournament with seven goals.
Team USA plays Team Canada for the gold medal on Sunday (8:10 a.m. ET; Peacock, NBC, ICI Tele, CBC Gem, CBC, SN [JIP], TSN [JIP], RDS2).
“It’s really nice that they continue to keep him a part of it,” Meredith said. “It means the world to us as a family. It’s heavy being here but it’s one of those things that you can’t not come out. … I really thank all of them for bringing his jersey, hanging it up, talking about it. That’s all I can ask for.”
-- NHL.com Columnist Nicholas J. Cotsonika contributed to this report
