NHL star Johnny Gaudreau was killed on Thursday night when he was hit by a car while riding a bicycle in his home state of New Jersey. The Columbus Blue Jackets player was 31.

Gaudreau and his brother Matthew, 29, were both killed when a car in Salem County, New Jersey, struck them whilst on their bikes.

The brothers were in the area for their sister Katie’s wedding, which was scheduled for Friday in Philadelphia.

According to New Jersey State Police, a man driving in the same direction as the pair attempted to pass two other vehicles and struck the bikes from behind. Both men were pronounced dead at the scene.

The driver, Sean M. Higgins, was suspected of being under the influence of alcohol and charged with two counts of “death by auto”. He was detained in custody at the Salem County Correctional Facility.

Fans’ favourite renowned for his speed and skill

Johnny Gaudreau, known as “Johnny Hockey,” had played 11 professional seasons in the league and was going into his third with the Blue Jackets. The left wing played his first nine with the Calgary Flames, becoming one of the sport’s top players and a fan favorite across North America.

At 5ft 9in and 12st 12lb, Gaudreau was part of a generation of ice hockey players who thrived through their speed and skill, with physical strength having become less of an advantage. He scored more than 20 goals in six seasons and was a 115-point player in 2021-22 as a first-time NHL All-Star, when he produced a career-best 40 goals and 75 assists. He was picked for the All-Star game on seven occasions.

A fourth-round pick of Calgary’s in 2011, Gaudreau helped Boston College win the NCAA championship in 2012 and, in 2014, took home the Hobey Baker Award as the top college player in the country.

As a professional, Gaudreau was part of the NHL all-rookie team during his first season in the league and was third in the voting for rookie of the year in 2014-15.

Gaudreau scored 642 points in 644 regular-season and play-off games. He signed a seven-year contract with the Blue Jackets in 2022, which was worth nearly $69 million (£53 million). It enabled him and his young family to move closer to his roots in New Jersey.

He holds men’s world-championship records for a United States player with 30 assists and 43 points, having broken Patrick Kane’s marks earlier this year.

Gaudreau’s death is the latest off-ice tragedy to strike the sport in the past few years. Goaltender Matiss Kivlenieks died in July 2021 when he was struck in the chest by a firework at the Michigan wedding of Manny Legace’s daughter. Legace was then the Blue Jackets goaltending coach.