‘A lot of people thought I was stringing Calgary along, but no.’ Johnny Gaudreau faces former Flames team Friday
On Friday night, the Columbus Blue Jackets will play at home against the Calgary Flames. That means it is Johnny Gaudreau’s first game ever against his former club.
In case you aren’t familiar with the situation let me catch you up to speed on why this is a big deal. Gaudreau was Calgary’s franchise player. He was drafted fourth round, 104th overall, in the 2011 NHL Draft. Gaudreau made his NHL debut with the Flames in 2013-14 after winning the Hobey Baker Award as the NCAA Top Collegiate Player. He scored his first NHL goal in his first game. Over the next eight seasons, Gaudreau would rise to the top as one of the Flames’ best players and a big fan favorite. In 2021-22, Gaudreau, also known as ‘Johnny Hockey’ registered a career-high 115 points (40G, 75A) in 82 games. He tied for second league-wide in points with none other than Jonathan Huberdeau. His contract was due though, and he was an unrestricted free agent. The Flames and Gaudreau were unable to negotiate a new contract and thus Gaudreau went to NHL Free Agency and instantly became one of the hottest free agents available. On July 13th, Gaudreau and the Blue Jackets agreed on a seven-year, $68.25 million contract with an average annual value of $9.75 million. The signing shocked the hockey world.
Gaudreau gets ready to suit up against his former club for the first time after donning a Flames jersey for 602 games. In an exclusive interview with Postmedia Flames beat reporter Wes Gilbertson, Gaudreau commented on the free agency ordeal and what the city of Calgary means to him and his family.
“I know a lot of people thought I was just stringing Calgary along, but no. It was one of the hardest decisions I’ve ever had to make,” said Gaudreau. “I was sitting there, it was, like, 8 o’clock on the night before free agency, and I was still thinking about re-signing in Calgary. So yeah, it was super close. I know that a lot of people won’t believe me, but I remember sitting there with my mom and (my wife) Meredith, and it was just really, really hard. I didn’t have an answer. I didn’t know what to do.” Gaudreau was also asked if choosing Columbus over Calgary was the right decision. He answered right away.
“I’ll never say that I didn’t make the right decision,” he replied. “Looking back, obviously I made so many great friendships in Calgary. Not just players, everyone in the city, people that don’t even play hockey, my neighbours in the condo, this and that … I remember all those people, and hopefully, I will see them when I go out to Calgary. But it was time for me to go a different direction, I guess. When you look back at the guys that you played with like Gio (Mark Giordano) and Brods (TJ Brodie) and Mony (Sean Monahan) and Benny (Sam Bennett) … All these guys leaving. It’s hard to watch them go” he says. “But, we had some real good times in Calgary, some fun playoff experiences and stuff. It’s just a different time now.”
Gaudreau currently has 28 points (9G, 19A) in 25 games with the Blue Jackets so far this season. The Blue Jackets hold a record of 8-15-2 through 25 games and currently sit last in the Metropolitan Division.