The sister of late hockey players Johnny Gaudreau and Matthew Gaudreau has welcomed a baby boy and named him after one of her siblings in his memory.
Katie Gaudreau-Joyce gave birth to a son on June 20 and revealed the arrival of the new family member in a post to Instagram.
The post revealed that the child was named Matthew Guy Joyce.
‘The moment our hearts grew bigger than we ever imagined,’ Katie captioned the post. ‘Welcome to the world, sweet boy.’
On the eve of Katie’s wedding in New Jersey, Johnny and Matthew were riding bikes when they were struck and killed by a suspected drunk driver.
The tragedy shocked the family, as well as the hockey community. At the time, Matthew had recently stopped playing professionally while Johnny was a star for the NHL’s Columbus Blue Jackets.
The sister of late hockey brothers Johnny and Matthew Gaudreau has given birth to a boy
In honor of her brother, Katie Gaudreau named her son Matthew Guy Joyce
Johnny (R) and Matthew were killed by an alleged drunk driver on the eve of Katie’s wedding
After the deaths of her siblings, Katie postponed her marriage for a year before tying the knot with husband Devin Joyce in July of 2025.
Both Johnny and Matthew were fathers who left behind wives – Meredith and Madeline Gaudreau, respectively.
Johnny left behind a daughter, Noa, and a son, Johnny Jr. Meredith and Madeline were pregnant at the time of their husbands’ deaths and gave birth to sons Carter and Tripp, respectively.
The driver suspected of killing the brothers, Sean Higgins, has pled not guilty to charges of aggravated manslaughter and vehicular homicide. The case has not yet gone to trial.
