Dylan Larkin snatches Johnny Jr. from the crowd for Team USA photo.

On Sunday, Team USA pulled off an incredible victory when they defeated Team Canada in the Gold Medal game of the Men's Hockey Tournament at the 2026 Winter Olympic Games.

Following that victory the American players showed incredible grace when they raced to the bench to grab a jersey, one that would have belonged to the late Johnny Gaudreau. A trio of players, Toronto Maple Leafs captain Auston Matthews, Columbus Blue Jackets star defenseman Zach Werenski, and Florida Panthers star forward Matthew Tkachuk then skated around the ice holding the jersey up high so that everyone could see that Johnny Gaudreau remained a big part of this Team USA roster.

Johnny Gaudreau and his brother Matthew were tragically killed in late August of 2024 when they were struck by a drunk driver while riding their bikes home. Their deaths had a profound impact on the hockey community and Team USA did an excellent job on Sunday of showing just how much the lives of those two young men meant to all of them.

The most touching tribute however would come when Detroit Red Wings captain Dylan Larkin would go flying into the crowd ahead of the team photo, only to emerge from the crowd with a baby in his arms. That baby was of course Johnny Gaudreau's son, Johnny Gaudreau Jr., who will now forever be a fixture of the Gold Medal photo. Right behind Larkin was the aforementioned Werenski, Gaudreau's former teammate on the Blue Jackets, who grabbed Johnny Gaudreau's first born child, 3 year daughter Noa, who will also now forever be a part of that final photo.

You can see the moment the players grabbed the young children right from the crowd just below:

And here is how it looked as the players and 2 kids all huddled in for the team photo:

Truly an incredible Olympic moment.