Matthew Gaudreau, who was tragically killed along with his brother Johnny Gaudreau, a seven-time NHL All-Star, when they were struck by a suspected drunk driver while riding their bikes in New Jersey, said he was hopeful for the future during one of his final conversations with his former pro hockey roommate.
Gaudreau, who coached high school and junior hockey after wrapping up a 160-game professional hockey career, recently accepted a job as the skills coach for a new junior team in West Chester, Pennsylvania.
The job would have allowed him to spend more time with his wife, Madeline, and their first child. Due later this year.
Former teammate Frankie DiChiara also said he would have liked to see more of Gaudreau.
The two shared hotel rooms while on the road as members of the Worcester Railers and Reading Royals of the ECHL, two levels below the NHL.
DiChiara currently coaches the Long Island-based PAL Islanders team, which competes in the same league as the Timberwolves.
“Mattie and I always kept in touch. He was one of my best friends,” DiChiara said. “Two summers ago I attended his wedding and visited him at the Jersey Shore.”
DiChiara, 30, of Farmingville, Long Island, said he spoke with his former teammate just a week before the tragic accident and “caught up and talked about hockey.”
He said he was excited about the two being reunited as coaches in the same league and that Gaudreau's family would grow.
“He's been on the road a lot the last few years as a junior coach and he was excited about this position, which would allow him to be closer to his wife and new baby,” DiChiara said.
Check out the NY Post's coverage of the tragic death of NHL star Johnny Gaudreau at age 31.
Gaudreau enrolled at Boston University with his brother Johnny in the 2013-14 season and played four seasons with the Eagles.
From there, Gaudreau briefly played two seasons for the New York Islanders' top affiliate in Bridgeport, Connecticut, but spent the majority of his career in the ECHL.
DiChiara remembers Gaudreau as a tough competitor and a great teammate.
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“Mattie was a great hockey player and was a lot like his brother on the ice. He was a good skater and had a good eye for the ice that was second to none,” DiChiara said. “He was scoring over a point per game in the ECHL and he could have continued playing.”
In recent years, Gaudreau served as head coach at Gloucester Catholic High School in New Jersey and as an assistant coach with the Philadelphia Rebels, a junior program that develops NCAA and professional prospects.
DiChiara said he feels Gaudreau's best days are ahead of him because of Gaudreau's vast hockey knowledge.
“He had one of the highest hockey IQs I've ever known,” DiChiara said. “He was a great coach.”
