The atmosphere at Columbus Blue Jackets games played a big role in convincing Johnny Gaudreau to make the Ohio capital his new hockey home.
The star winger pointed to the Blue Jackets fans when explaining the decision he made on Wednesday night in an interview with Aaron Portzline of The Athletic.
"I'd never been to Columbus ... until I made it to the NHL so when I started playing there, I didn't know what I was walking into and I was just ... Wow!" The former Calgary Flames star said after surprising many by signing a seven-year, $68.25-million deal with the Blue Jackets.
"They've always had great crowds, really into the game. I said to myself then, 'This looks like a really fun place to play.
"But it was more than that. I played in the World Championships with Zack Werenski. I've known Eric Robinson for like 15-20 years. And some former guys, like Cam Atkinson and Dalton Prout ... those guys were just like 'You're going to absolutely love this place.'"
After Flames GM Brad Treliving said Tuesday night it was a "family decision" for Gaudreau not to return to Calgary on what could have been an eight-year contract with a higher dollar figure, many assumed the forward would sign closer to his New Jersey home than Columbus — which is about an eight-hour drive away.
Gaudreau told Portzline he was unaware that his decision had caused such a big reaction in the hockey world.
"It's all outside noise to me," he said. "I'm super excited about where I'm at. I think it was a great decision for me and my wife and we're just over the moon right now. Super excited."
Blue Jackets GM Jarmo Kekalainen told The Athletic conversations with Gaudreau picked up steam late in the afternoon.
"It kind of came out of the blue," he said. "It was like are you serious about this?"
https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMiZmh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LnNwb3J0c25ldC5jYS9uaGwvYXJ0aWNsZS9qb2hubnktZ2F1ZHJlYXUtZXhwbGFpbnMtd2h5LWhlLXBpY2tlZC10aGUtY29sdW1idXMtYmx1ZS1qYWNrZXRzL9IBZWh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LnNwb3J0c25ldC5jYS9uaGwvam9obm55LWdhdWRyZWF1LWV4cGxhaW5zLXdoeS1oZS1waWNrZWQtdGhlLWNvbHVtYnVzLWJsdWUtamFja2V0cy9zbi1hbXAv?oc=5
2022-07-14 14:50:00Z
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