Maple Leafs Notebook: The case for splitting a healthy Matthews and Marner
A couple of dusty ol’ sporting clichés find themselves in direct opposition when it comes to Auston Matthews, who is targeting a healthy return to game action sometime this week in Florida.
DETROIT — Inside the tongue of Rasmus Andersson’s left skate, he had the name Gaudreau stitched in to honour his longtime teammate and closest of friends.
In his heart, there is a far more indelible mark left by the memory of Johnny Gaudreau.
The next week won’t be easy for Andersson and several Flames players returning to Columbus Friday for the first time since Gaudreau’s passing.
Four days later, the two teams will have a return engagement in Calgary, where the Gaudreau family will be in attendance for a highly anticipated tribute to No. 13.
“Honestly, I don’t want to look too far ahead. I’m just gonna try to get through the game — to go there will be hard,” said Andersson of Friday afternoon’s game at Nationwide Arena.
“You know, seeing the banner (with Gaudreau’s name and number on it), that kind of stuff will be tough.
There are probably going to be a lot of emotions, and rightfully so. Johnny was a dear friend.”
Gaudreau’s stall in the Blue Jackets dressing room remains intact, as do memories of the team’s opening night banner-raising and stirring puck drop that saw Sean Monahan pass it to his left, where it remained in Gaudreau’s stead for 13 powerful seconds.
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Andersson thinks of his pal with stirring regularity, has stayed in touch with his wife Meredith, and has plans to visit her house and the kids, Noa and Johnny, on American Thanksgiving Thursday.
“Whatever I can do to help out his family, I’m trying to do because I know he would have done the same thing if it was the other way around,” said Andersson, who flew in from Sweden to attend Gaudreau’s funeral.
“So you just try to be there, you try to check in on the kids and the family as much as you can, but at the same time, you know it’s a fine line, right?
“I’m excited to see the kids. I know they’re coming home to Calgary too, and hopefully, they’re gonna spend some time at our house, and I just hope they can think of the good times they had in Calgary and remember looking back at it with a smile.
“He had a lot of good years in Calgary and how beloved he was to everyone in our city.
“I kind of look forward to (the Calgary game on Tuesday) because it’s to honour him and is the right thing to do. But at the same time, it’s going to be very emotional.
“I just hope the family has a good time when they’re there and it’s not too emotional for them.”
Staring pensively as he spoke of his pal after an optional skate in Detroit Tuesday, Andersson’s mind is also preoccupied by the scare he endured here almost two years ago when a scooter he was riding to dinner was struck by a vehicle.
He was knocked unconscious, waking up in an ambulance en route to the hospital, where he underwent an MRI before they even got his name.
“Yeah, it’s back in the front of my mind for sure,” said Andersson, who missed a week of action and later admitted the incident had affected him for much longer than that.
“I was suspended last year, so this is the first time I’ve played here in three years.”
A leader (and leading scorer) on a team that is one of the most pleasant surprises in the NHL this season, Andersson has a lot on his plate.
This trip means plenty to the 28-year-old alternate captain, who is also vying for one of the last spots on Team Sweden’s vaunted blue line for the 4 Nations Face-Off.
Andersson spent parts of six seasons in Calgary with Gaudreau and was reminded at Andrew Mangiapane’s wedding over the summer just how special their relationship was.
“Except for Mangy and Backs (Mikael Backlund), Johnny was one of my first good, real friends in the NHL,” said Andersson, a father of two young kids of his own.
“And we grew closer and closer each year we played together. When we were at Mangy’s wedding this summer I think we both realized that we miss each other quite a bit, and we had so much fun together, like we did back in the day. So it’s gonna be emotional. I just don’t know what to expect, honestly.”
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Ever since Johnny Hockey and his brother Matthew were struck and killed on Aug. 29 by an alleged drunk driver while bicycling on a rural road, the Blue Jackets have done well to honour both.
The Flames tribute plans have been kept under wraps, but both games will be played with Johnny at the forefront of everyone’s minds.
“Yeah, I’d imagine the two games against them are going to be pretty heavy,” said Blake Coleman, who played with Gaudreau in Calgary, on a world championship team and against one another as kids.
His parents are still close to Guy and Jane Gaudreau, who spoke of their appreciation for the family invite to Calgary.
“It’s going to be hard,” added Coleman.
“It’s always hard. Seeing Jane and Guy at the funeral, and how heavy it was… it’s tough to watch.
“Having three kids on my own. I can’t fathom going through what they have gone through.
“So I guess all you can really hope is that being around the team hopefully lifts their spirits a little bit. They just get to see how much Johnny is remembered and is not to be forgotten.”
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