Widows of Gaudreau Brothers Reflect on Heartbreak Nearly One Year After Tragic DUI Crash

The widows of hockey player siblings Matthew and Johnny Gaudreau are expressing their sorrow almost a year after their husbands were tragically killed by a suspected drunk driver in New Jersey.

“He gave us all a kiss goodbye — just in the driveway at his parents’ home. That was the last moment I spent with him,” shared Johnny Gaudreau’s wife, Meredith Gaudreau, with ABC News.

Johnny Gaudreau, 31, a Columbus Blue Jackets star, and Matthew Gaudreau, 29, who previously played professional hockey, lost their lives on August 29, 2024. The brothers were in New Jersey for their sister Katie’s wedding and were cycling when they were hit by a driver suspected of being intoxicated, according to police reports. The individual suspected of the crime was apprehended and has pled not guilty to charges including aggravated manslaughter, vehicular homicide, tampering with evidence, and fleeing the scene of an accident.

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“Our kids didn’t deserve this,” Meredith said. “John and Mattie didn’t even deserve that, especially the way it happened. It keeps me up at night.”

“There’s no healing when you didn’t get a goodbye,” Matthew Gaudreau’s wife, Madeline Gaudreau, said.

At the brothers’ funeral, Meredith said she told her husband “that I would take care of our kids, and I thanked him for such a great life.”

At the time of the brothers’ deaths, Meredith was a mom to her and Johnny’s two young children.

Madeline and Meredith were also both pregnant when their husbands died.

Madeline, who was pregnant at the time, welcomed her son Tripp four months after, and Meredith, who disclosed her pregnancy at the funeral, gave birth to baby Carter eight months following the accident.

Madeline said that at the funeral “Tripp was kicking a lot, so I just held Matt’s hand on my belly for Tripp.”

“I didn’t wanna say goodbye to either of them because I know I’ll see them again one day,” she said.

An extensive interview with Meredith and Madeline Gaudreau is set to air on “Good Morning America” on August 13, which marks what would have been Johnny Gaudreau’s 32nd birthday.