Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
A fundraiser for Matthew Gaudreau’s wife and baby has raised more than $500,000 in four days.
Matthew Gaudreau, a former professional hockey player and husband of Madeline Gaudreau, died at 29 years old Thursday night with 31-year-old NHL veteran Johnny Gaudreau.
The brothers were riding their bicycles when a driver struck them with a Jeep in Oldmans Township, N.J. They were expected to be groomsmen at their sister Katie’s wedding, which was scheduled for last Friday.
The accused driver, Sean M. Higgins, was arrested and charged with two counts of death by auto, per CBS Philadelphia. The 43-year-old man is also facing additional charges of reckless driving, possession of an open container and consuming alcohol in a motor vehicle, the Associated Press reported.
Related: NHL Forward Johnny Gaudreau, Brother Matthew Gaudreau, Pass Away
Madeline Gaudreau is pregnant with her and Matthew Gaudreau’s first child, named Tripp. In hopes of supporting Madeline Gaudreau, her sister Holland Korbitz created a fundraiser on gofundme.com on Friday.
“There are no words big or strong enough to convey our condolences,” Korbitz said in a Facebook post on Friday. “Let’s come together to support them during this difficult time.”
The goal was to raise $30,000 to support expenses for the funeral and their baby while also helping Gaudreau take time off work to grieve. But they have raised more than 16 times that goal with more than 7,000 donations.
As of noon ET on Monday, the total stands at $503,324, with all proceeds being directly donated to Gaudreau, per the campaign description.
On Saturday, Madeline Gaudreau posted a tribute to Matthew Gaudreau on Instagram.
“I have no words. I just miss you,” Gaudreau wrote. “I don’t know my life without you. I have never experienced a pain like this. I am so blessed you chose me to be your wife. To love me.
“You are the best thing about me. I know you are watching down in just as much pain as I am looking up. I will keep going for you and our son. I love you so much Matthew.”
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Matthew Gaudreau, who’s from Carney’s Point Township, N.J., played two seasons for the USHL’s Omaha Lancers and four years at Boston College in the NCAA before turning pro. He split the next three seasons between the AHL and ECHL, playing for the AHL’s Bridgeport Sound Tigers and Stockton Heat and ECHL’s Worcester Railers and Reading Royals. Gaudreau then played one season in Sweden in 2020-21 and one game for the Railers in 2021-22 before becoming a coach, according to eliteprospects.com.
Gaudreau most recently coached Gloucester Catholic High School, where he and Johnny Gaudreau attended growing up. Their father, Guy Gaudreau, also coached there.
“It was always Matty and John,” Madeline Gaudreau wrote in a separate Instagram post. “I can’t even put into words the bond these two had, and right now, I don’t have the strength. They were each other’s biggest cheerleaders.”
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Madeline is expecting Tripp in December, according to Korbitz.
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Related: ‘I Realized That My Size Wasn’t a Downfall To My Game’: Johnny Gaudreau Will Be Remembered As a Trailblazer For Smaller Players
News Summary:
- Fundraiser for Matthew Gaudreau's Family Surpasses Half a Million Dollars
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