It was supposed to be a weekend of celebration. The kind of summer Friday that families circle on their calendars for months. Katie Gaudreau was getting married, and her brothers, Johnny and Matthew, were back home in New Jersey to stand by her side as groomsmen.
Then everything went dark.
The gaudreau brothers accident didn't just take away an NHL superstar and his younger brother; it ripped a hole in the fabric of a tight-knit community and left us staring at the ugly, preventable reality of drunk driving. Honestly, even a couple of years later, the details still feel like a gut punch. You’ve probably seen the jerseys hanging in the rafters or the "13" and "21" patches on every sleeve in Columbus and Calgary. But behind the tributes is a story of a split-second decision that ruined lives forever.
What Really Happened on County Route 551?
It was August 29, 2024. Just after 8 p.m., Johnny and Matthew were out for a bike ride in Oldmans Township, Salem County. They were basically home—riding on the same roads they grew up on.
According to the police reports and subsequent court filings, the brothers were riding single file on the right side of the road, right near the fog line. They were doing everything right. A sedan and an SUV in front of a Jeep Grand Cherokee saw the cyclists and slowed down, moving toward the center of the road to give the brothers space.
That’s when Sean M. Higgins, the driver of the Jeep, made a choice.
Impatience is a hell of a thing. Higgins tried to pass the slower-moving vehicles. First, he veered into the southbound lane to get around the sedan. When the SUV in front of him moved toward the middle to clear the Gaudreaus, Higgins reportedly thought they were blocking him. He swung his Jeep to the right to pass them on the shoulder.
He never saw the bikes.
The impact was immediate and fatal. Both Johnny, 31, and Matthew, 29, died at the scene. Higgins, a 43-year-old from Woodstown, later admitted to police that he had consumed "five to six beers" before getting behind the wheel. He even told officers he had been drinking while driving, fueled by a frustrating phone call.
The Legal Battle and the "Contributory" Argument
Since the accident, the court case has been a roller coaster of emotions for the Gaudreau family. Higgins was indicted on multiple counts, including first-degree aggravated manslaughter and second-degree reckless vehicular homicide.
There was a moment in early 2025 that made everyone’s skin crawl.
Higgins’ defense team tried to argue that the Gaudreau brothers had alcohol in their systems too—with blood-alcohol levels around 0.129 and 0.134. They actually tried to use this to get the charges dropped or reduced, suggesting the brothers contributed to their own deaths.
The judge, Michael Silvanio, wasn't having it.
He ruled that under New Jersey law, the "contributory negligence" of a cyclist isn't a defense for a driver who is impaired and driving recklessly. There’s no legal limit for alcohol on a bike in Jersey because it’s not a motorized vehicle. More importantly, witnesses testified that the brothers were riding perfectly straight and safe. Higgins was the one who made an illegal pass on the right at high speed.
As of early 2026, the case is still moving toward a resolution, with the judge recently ruling that Higgins’ self-incriminating statements to the police are fully admissible at trial. He faces up to 70 years in prison if convicted on all counts. He rejected a 35-year plea deal, which sort of tells you where his head is at.
A Legacy That Goes Way Beyond the Rink
Johnny "Hockey" Gaudreau was a legend. At 5-foot-9, he was the guy every "small" kid looked up to. He proved you didn't need to be a giant to dominate the NHL, racking up 743 points over 11 seasons. But Matthew was just as beloved in the Philly and Jersey hockey circles. He coached at Gloucester Catholic, the same high school they both attended.
The response from the hockey world was unlike anything I've ever seen.
- The Blue Jackets kept Johnny’s locker exactly as he left it.
- The Calgary Flames donated $34,000 to MADD Canada—a mix of Johnny’s 13 and Matty’s 21.
- The NHL and various teams have poured money into the John and Matthew Gaudreau Foundation.
Meredith and Madeline, the brothers' widows, have been incredible. They launched the foundation to support youth hockey and help other families affected by drunk driving. Meredith actually gave birth to their third child, Carter, seven months after Johnny passed. It’s bittersweet, you know? Seeing those kids grow up and look exactly like their dad.
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The Reality of Prevention
This wasn't an "accident" in the sense that it was unavoidable. It was a crash caused by a series of reckless choices.
If there’s any "actionable" takeaway from this nightmare, it’s about the culture of driving. We talk about "buzzed driving" like it’s a gray area. It isn't. The Gaudreau brothers are gone because someone was impatient and had a few too many beers.
How you can actually make a difference:
- Support the Foundation: The John and Matthew Gaudreau Foundation is doing real work in youth sports and victim advocacy.
- Advocate for the HALT Act: This is a piece of legislation pushing for passive drunk-driving prevention technology in all new cars. It’s the kind of tech that could have stopped that Jeep from even starting.
- The "Pass on the Right" Rule: Never, ever pass a vehicle on the right shoulder. You have no idea why the car in front of you has moved to the center. They might be saving a life you can't see yet.
The hockey season goes on, and the stats will eventually fade into the history books. But the gaudreau brothers accident serves as a permanent reminder that life is fragile. Hug your family. Don't drive impaired. It’s really that simple.
To honor their memory, you can visit the official foundation website to see how they are helping low-income families get kids onto the ice—the place where the Gaudreau brothers were always the happiest.