Johnny Gaudreau Named First Star After Emotional Flames, Blue Jackets Game

There have been countless tributes to late NHL star Johnny Gaudreau and his brother Matthew after the two were tragically killed by a drunk driver while riding their bikes over the offseason.

Still, one game that a lot of people had circled on the calendar was Tuesday night's meeting between the Calgary Flames and Columbus Blue Jackets, the two teams Gaudreau played for during his career.

While the two teams met last week in what turned into a slugfest, the game in Calgary was especially notable given that's where Gaudreau spent most of his career. Plus, the Gaudreau family was in town for the occasion to honor the late brothers.

There were special moments leading up to the game including a visit to a local rink where a bench made from sticks left outside the Saddledome had been placed in the brothers' memory and the Gaudreaus' father, Guy, hit the ice with the Flames during practice.

Ahead of the game, the Gaudreau family dropped the puck with both the Flames and Blue Jackets' entire lineups joining them.

Once the game got started it was all Flames, with Rasmus Andersson opening the scoring.

During the intermission, Andersson said that it was the most emotional goal he had ever scored.

Calgary went on to win this one 3-0, and there was a special moment at the end of the game when Johnny Gaudreau was named the first star, with his father coming down the tunnel to wave to the crowd in his place alongside Rasmussen and Flames captain Mikael Backlund.

What a moment, after the game, the Flames gifted Gaudreau the game puck, and he gave one hell of a post-game speech.

What a night, and what a fantastic job by both the Flames organization to show everyone — and most importantly the Gaudreau family — just how much they loved Johhny hockey in Calgary.