Calgary Flames forward Johnny Gaudreau has officially been inducted into the Salem County Sports Hall of Fame. Congratulations Johnny Hockey!
A fun induction ceremony happened last night! Calgary Flames star Johnny Gaudreau has officially been inducted into the Salem County Sports Hall of Fame! Just another accomplishment to add to his already successful resume, only at the age of 24.
Johnny, who just turned 24 a couple weeks ago, has just three NHL seasons under his belt. But they’ve been successful ones. The Flames have made the playoffs twice (they didn’t make it for six years before), he’s been to three All-Star Games, he was runner up for the Calder Trophy in his rookie year, and most recently, he won the Lady Byng this year.
In 232 games, he has 73 goals and 204 points. After not being drafted until the fourth round in 2011, he now leads every player in his draft class in points-per-game. NHL.com did a redraft of the 2011 draft and put him at first overall. An 103-pick jump is quite the big jump.
Related Story: Flashback Friday - Gaudreau Drafted at 104th Overall
And of course, this induction ceremony humbled Johnny Hockey.
Via Philly.com:
"I’m definitely surprised [on being one of the NHL’s top wingers]. Being a smaller guy, I always heard, ‘This guy will never make it, he’s too small.’ Growing up, I never thought I’d play in the NHL, but as the years went on, I kept improving and I’ve kind of just rode with it. I’ve tried to take everything in, whether it was college or the NHL… It’s been a whirlwind of a journey, but I’ve been very fortunate to play with some great players and great teammates and had good coaches."
Just a couple of weeks ago, the NHL ranked the top 20 wingers in the NHL and Johnny Gaudreau was put as the tenth best winger. He’s also played internationally on several occasions. He played for Team USA at the WJC in 2013 (they won Gold), he played at the World Championship in 2014 and this year as well, and he also played at the World Cup of Hockey back in September for Team North America.
At the World Championship this past May, he had six goals and 11 points in eight games. Unfortunately they didn’t medal, but he was named one of USA’s best three players. He would have most likely added a trip to the Olympics on his resume if NHL players were able to go, but sadly, we won’t be seeing NHL players at the 2018 Olympics in February.
Next: Johnny Gaudreau's Case for the Non-Olympics
Congratulations on the induction, Johnny! There’s a reason they call him Johnny Hockey.