Johnny Gaudreau’s Wife Meredith Says the Night of His Death Still ‘Haunts’ Her 2 Years After Tragedy (Exclusive)
Johnny Gaudreau’s Wife Meredith Says the Night of His Death Still ‘Haunts’ Her 2 Years After Tragedy (Exclusive)
Julie MazziottaThu, August 27, 2026 at 4:01 PM UTC
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Johnny and Meredith Gaudreau with Noa and Johnny in April 2024Credit: Meredith Gaudreau/Instagram -
Meredith Gaudreau tells PEOPLE about the two years since the loss of her husband, NHL star Johnny Gaudreau, and his brother, Matthew
Meredith credits her family’s support for helping her navigate the grief while raising their three young children
“It still feels like yesterday,” she says. “It’s hard to believe that it’s been almost two years.”
Nearly two years have passed since Johnny Gaudreau’s death, but to his wife, Meredith, it “still feels like yesterday.”
On Aug. 29, 2024, the NHL star, 31, and his younger brother, Matthew, 29, were biking in their New Jersey hometown on the eve of their sister Katie’s wedding when they were struck and killed by an alleged drunk driver.
That night, Meredith says, is “something that is just always replaying in my head,” she tells PEOPLE.
“Sometimes I find myself kind of just zoning out, and I think about what I’m thinking about, and it’s that night,” the mom of three says. “And it haunts me.”
“It’s playing in my head all the time,” she continues. “But I’m thinking about John 24/7. I think about him in that moment a lot and think about the better moments too. Whenever I see our kids, I remember the nicer times.”
Meredith, who was around seven weeks pregnant with the couple’s third child at the time, has managed the devastating tragedy as best she can, with support from her parents, five siblings, Johnny’s family and her extended family. “My dad has pretty much retired to help me,” she says.
“I really relied on my siblings,” Meredith, 34, adds. “They all fully stepped in and helped me with my kids. I wanted to make sure I was taking care of myself for my pregnancy. That was the most important thing to me, just making sure my kids were okay and my baby was doing fine. And I didn’t do a whole lot,” she says of the seven months leading up to the birth of her and Johnny’s third child, son Carter, in April 2025.
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In the two years since Johnny and Matthew’s deaths, Meredith struggles to understand how the time has passed.
“It still feels like yesterday,” she says. “It’s hard to believe that it’s been almost two years.”
“It hasn’t really shifted a lot for me. I mean, I’ve learned to be more present, don’t take anything for granted and just sort of slow down and enjoy my time with my kids while they are so young,” she adds.
Meredith says it can be “chaos” with three kids under three years old — their oldest, daughter Noa, is 3, “baby” Johnny is 2 and Carter is now 16 months old — but she “really enjoys” soaking up their days together.
Meredith Gaudreau with children (L-R) Noa, Carter and JohnnyCredit: Christaan Felber
“When I see the three of them, I just always think John would be really loving this,” she says. “It’s hard for me to get out the door and go places, but when we are home alone, and it’s just the three of us — those are my favorite moments, when I’m just slowing down and really being appreciative that I have my three kids and reflecting on what John would want for us.”
To watch the full video, visit the PEOPLE App. For more from Meredith Gaudreau, pick up the new issue of PEOPLE on stands Friday.
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Source: “AOL Entertainment”
