NHL player Johnny Gaudreau and brother killed when bicycles hit by car on eve of sister's wedding

NHL player Johnny Gaudreau and his younger brother were killed on the eve of their sister’s wedding when they were hit by a suspected drunken driver while riding bicycles in their home state of New Jersey, police said Friday.

New Jersey State Police said the Gaudreau brothers were cycling on a road in Oldmans Township on Thursday night when a man driving an SUV in the same direction attempted to pass two other vehicles and struck them from behind about 8 p.m., less than a half-hour after sunset. They were pronounced dead at the scene some 35 miles south of Philadelphia.

Gaudreau, 31, and brother, Matt, 29, are Carneys Point, New Jersey, natives and were set to serve as groomsmen at their sister Katie’s wedding that was scheduled for Friday in Philadelphia.

Police said the driver, 43-year-old Sean M. Higgins, was suspected of being under the influence of alcohol and charged with two counts of death by auto, along with reckless driving, possession of an open container and consuming alcohol in a motor vehicle.

Higgins told a responding officer he had five or six beers prior to the crash and admitted to consuming alcohol while driving, according to the criminal complaint obtained by The Associated Press. He failed a field sobriety test, the complaint said, though his blood-alcohol level was not immediately available.

Higgins was jailed at a Salem County facility and will remain there until his pretrial detention hearing, which is scheduled for Sept. 5. A court spokesperson said Higgins at his first appearance Friday was represented by a public defender but indicated he planned to hire his own attorney. Public defenders in New Jersey do not comment on cases.

Johnny Gaudreau, known as “Johnny Hockey,” played 10 full seasons in the league and was set to enter his third with the Columbus Blue Jackets after signing a seven-year, $68 million deal in 2022. He played his first eight seasons with the Calgary Flames, a tenure that included becoming one of the sport’s top players and a fan favorite across North America.

“Just devastating news for all of us connected with the Gaudreau family,” Jerry York, who coached the Gaudreau brothers at Boston College, said in a phone interview with the AP. “Both Matty and Johnny were terrifically admired by all of us. Wonderful young guys, and they impressed a lot of us off the ice."

York raved about parents Guy and Jane and the family's dedication to their children and hockey. Gaudreau had been married to his wife, Meredith, since 2021, and they have two children under 2, Noa, who was born in September 2022, and Johnny, who was born in February.

“We want to let everyone know we are receiving your messages of love and support, and we appreciated your continued thoughts and prayers,” an uncle, Jim Gaudreau, said in a statement on behalf of the families involved. “We ask for your continued respect and privacy during this very difficult period of grief.”

Fans laid flowers and hockey sticks for Gaudreau outside Nationwide Arena in downtown Columbus and outside the Flames' home rink in Calgary. Tributes reverberated near and far, with moments of silence in Cincinnati before a Major League Baseball game between the Reds and Milwaukee Brewers and prior to an Olympic qualifying hockey game between Slovakia and Hungary in the Slovakian capital of Bratislava.

The Blue Jackets said Gaudreau “was not only a great hockey player, but more significantly a loving husband, father, son, brother and friend.”

“Johnny played the game with great joy which was felt by everyone that saw him on the ice," the team said in a statement. “He brought a genuine love for hockey with him everywhere he played.”

Gaudreau’s death is the latest off-ice tragedy for the Blue Jackets. Goaltender Matiss Kivlenieks died in July 2021 when he was struck in the chest by a firework while attending the wedding of then-Blue Jackets goaltending coach Manny Legace’s daughter in Michigan.

Gaudreau, at 5-foot-9 and 180 pounds, was part of a generation of hockey players who thrived in an era of speed and skill that made being undersized less of a disadvantage. Winner of the Lady Byng Trophy in 2017 for sportsmanship and gentlemanly conduct combined with a high standard of play, he scored 20-plus goals six times and was a 115-point player in 2021-22 as a first-time NHL All-Star when he had a career-best 40 goals and 75 assists.

“While Johnny’s infectious spirit for the game and show-stopping skills on the ice earned him the nickname ‘Johnny Hockey,’ he was more than just a dazzling hockey player; he was a doting father and beloved husband, son, brother and teammate who endeared himself to every person fortunate enough to have crossed his path,” NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said.

NHL Players' Association executive director Marty Walsh said players and staff were devastated by these losses, calling Johnny “a beloved teammate and friend in both Calgary and Columbus (and) a joy to watch during his 10 years and 763 games in the NHL.”

A fourth-round pick by Calgary in 2011, Gaudreau had helped Boston College win the NCAA championship in 2012 and took home the Hobey Baker Award as the top college player in the country in 2014 — a season he and his brother played together for the Eagles.

Gaudreau was a nearly point-a-game player with 776 points in 805 regular-season and playoff games since breaking into the league. In 2022, he left the Flames to sign a big contract with the Blue Jackets that put him and his young family in central Ohio, closer to his family in New Jersey.

Social media was full of messages about Gaudreau, from USA Hockey to the Flames and beyond the sport itself. Former Flames teammate Blake Coleman posted that he was “completely gutted. The world just lost one of the best.” Retired goaltender Eddie Lack called Gaudreau one of his favorite teammates.

“Always happy, always spreading positivity around him," Lack said. "Rest in Peace my friend and prayers for your wonderful family."

NBA superstar LeBron James, who is from Akron, Ohio, said he instantly got sad after seeing the news.

“My thoughts and prayers goes out to the Gaudreau family,” James said. “May Johnny and Matthew fly high, guide/guard and bless their family/s from the heavens above.”

The tragedy comes as the Blue Jackets and other NHL teams prepare to open training camp for the season in about three weeks.

“We will miss him terribly and do everything that we can to support his family and each other through this tragedy,” the team said.

AP Sports Writer Dan Gelston, Associated Press writer Bruce Shipkowski and AP Hockey Writer John Wawrow contributed.

AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/NHL

Boston College NCAA college hockey player Johnny Gaudreau celebrates his goal against Notre Dame during the third period of quarterfinal round match at the Hockey East Tournament in Chestnut Hill, Mass., March 15, 2014. (Matthew J. Lee/The Boston Globe via AP)

FILE - Quinnipiac goalie Michael Garteig (34) makes the save on a shot by Boston College forward Matthew Gaudreau (21) during the first period of an NCAA Frozen Four semifinal NCAA college hockey game Thursday, April 7, 2016, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara, File)

FILE - Columbus Blue Jackets' Johnny Gaudreau (13) plays against the Nashville Predators during the second period of an NHL hockey game Saturday, April 13, 2024, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey, File)

FILE - Columbus Blue Jackets' Johnny Gaudreau (13) awaits the face-off during an NHL hockey game against the Nashville Predators, Saturday, March 9, 2024, in Columbus, Ohio. (AP Photo/Aaron Doster, file)

FILE - Columbus Blue Jackets' Johnny Gaudreau looks on during an NHL hockey game against the Philadelphia Flyers, Tuesday, April 11, 2023, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Chris Szagola, File)

FILE - Columbus Blue Jackets forward Johnny Gaudreau warms up before an NHL hockey game against the Pittsburgh Penguins in Columbus, Ohio, Saturday, March 30, 2024. (AP Photo/Paul Vernon, File)

FILE - Unted States' Johnny Gaudreau, right, challenges for a puck with Latvia's Janis Jaks during the preliminary round match between Latvia and United States at the Ice Hockey World Championships in Ostrava, Czech Republic, Tuesday, May 21, 2024. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic, file)

FILE - Columbus Blue Jackets' Johnny Gaudreau (13) awaits the face-off during an NHL hockey game against the Nashville Predators, March 9, 2024, in Columbus, Ohio. (AP Photo/Aaron Doster, File)

FILE - Columbus Blue Jackets' Johnny Gaudreau (13) plays against the Nashville Predators during the second period of an NHL hockey game, April 13, 2024, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey, File)

FILE - Columbus Blue Jackets' Johnny Gaudreau plays during an NHL hockey game, Jan. 4, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum, File)

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukraine made a new call Saturday on the West to allow it to strike deeper into Russia after a meeting between U.S. and British leaders a day earlier produced no visible shift in their policy on the use of long-range weapons.

“Russian terror begins at weapons depots, airfields, and military bases inside the Russian Federation,” Ukrainian presidential adviser Andriy Yermak said Saturday. “Permission to strike deep into Russia will speed up the solution.”

The renewed appeal came as Kyiv said Russia launched more drone and artillery attacks into Ukraine overnight.

Ukrainian officials have repeatedly called on allies to greenlight the use of Western-provided long-range weapons to strike targets deep inside Russian territory. So far, the U.S. has allowed Kyiv to use American-provided weapons only in a limited area inside Russia’s border with Ukraine.

Discussions on allowing long-range strikes were believed to be on the table when U.S. President Joe Biden and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer met in Washington on Friday but no decision was announced immediately.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has been pressing the U.S. and other allies to allow his forces to use Western weapons to target air bases and launch sites farther afield as Russia has stepped up assaults on Ukraine’s electricity grid and utilities before winter.

He did not directly comment on the meeting Saturday morning, but said that more than 70 Russian drones had been launched into Ukraine overnight. The Ukrainian air force later said that 76 Russian drones had been sighted, of which 72 were shot down.

“We need to boost our air defense and long-range capabilities to protect our people,” Zelenskyy wrote on social media. “We are working on this with all of Ukraine’s partners.”

Other overnight attacks saw one person killed by Russian artillery fire as energy infrastructure was targeted in Ukraine’s Sumy region. A 54-year-old driver was killed and seven more people were hospitalized, Ukraine’s Ministry of Energy said.

A KAB aerial bomb also fell on a garage complex in the eastern city of Kharkiv, said regional Gov. Ihor Terekhov. No injuries were reported.

Meanwhile, officials in Moscow have continued to make public statements warning that long-range strikes would provoke further escalation between Russia and the West. The remarks are in line with the narrative the Kremlin has promoted since early in the war, accusing NATO countries of de-facto participation in the conflict and threatening a response.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov told state news agency Tass on Saturday that the U.S. and British governments were pushing the conflict, which began with Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, toward “poorly controlled escalation.”

Biden on Friday brushed off similar comments by Russian President Vladimir Putin, who said on Thursday that allowing long-range strikes “would mean that NATO countries, the United States and European countries, are at war with Russia.”

Asked what he thought about Putin’s threat, Biden answered, “I don’t think much about Vladimir Putin.”

Russian and Ukrainian officials also announced on Saturday a prisoner swap brokered by the United Arab Emirates. It included 206 prisoners on both sides, including Russians captured in Ukraine’s incursion in the Kursk region.

The swap is the eighth of its kind since the beginning of 2024, and puts the total number of POWs exchanged at 1,994. Previous exchanges were also brokered by the UAE.

Both sides released images of soldiers traveling to meet friends and family, with Zelenskyy commenting, “Our people are home."

Elsewhere, Russia’s Defense Ministry said that 19 Ukrainian drones had been shot down over the country’s Kursk and Belgorod regions. No casualties were reported.

Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

A Ukrainian poses for a selfie as he is greeted after being released in a prisoner exchange at an undisclosed location in Ukraine, Saturday Sept. 14, 2024. (Ukrainian Presidential Press Office via AP)

Ukrainians pose for a photo after being released in a prisoner exchange at an undisclosed location in Ukraine, Saturday Sept. 14, 2024. (Ukrainian Presidential Press Office via AP)

Ukrainians pose for a photo after being released in a prisoner exchange at an undisclosed location in Ukraine, Saturday Sept. 14, 2024. (Ukrainian Presidential Press Office via AP)

Ukrainians pose for a photo after being released in a prisoner exchange at an undisclosed location in Ukraine, Saturday Sept. 14, 2024. (Ukrainian Presidential Press Office via AP)

A Ukrainian reacts after being released in a prisoner exchange at an undisclosed location in Ukraine, Saturday Sept. 14, 2024. (Ukrainian Presidential Press Office via AP)

Ukrainians react after being released in a prisoner exchange at an undisclosed location in Ukraine, Saturday Sept. 14, 2024. (Ukrainian Presidential Press Office via AP)

A Ukrainian serviceman, left, is greeted after being released in a prisoner exchange at an undisclosed location in Ukraine, Saturday Sept. 14, 2024. (Ukrainian Presidential Press Office via AP)