Meredith Gaudreau Honors Late Husband Johnny with Help from Columbus Blue Jackets and Captain Boone Jenner (Exclusive)

• Meredith Gaudreau led the Columbus Blue Jackets onto the ice in a special tribute for her late husband Johnny Gaudreau at an event on March 1.
• Blue Jackets captain Boone Jenner exclusively tells PEOPLE how Meredith was a "big help" for the team to execute the idea.
• Jenner says he sees Meredith "a lot" and calls her strength "unbelievable."

The Columbus Blue Jackets honored late hockey star Johnny Gaudreau with a special tribute, thanks to his widow, Meredith Gaudreau, and the team's captain, Boone Jenner.

As part of the team's growing tradition for outdoor games, the Blue Jackets wore a special outfit inspired by Johnny — who was killed by an alleged drunk driver alongside his brother, Matthew Gaudreau, in August 2024 — as they arrived at the stadium on Saturday, March 1, before their game against the Detroit Red Wings.

Jenner, 31, tells PEOPLE, "Every team has an outfit going into these outdoor games, and unfortunately, with Johnny not being there, we wanted to honor him in some way."

"We definitely honor [Johnny] throughout the season with his jersey in the stall and different things, and we have a hat after the game and patches on our shirt, but we wanted to do something for this stadium series game to honor him as well," he continues.

"We were going back and forth on what to do, and we just went with his signature fit — the hat, the boots, the sweatpants, and then his sweater from ... the Avalon Surf Club," adds Jenner, explaining that Johnny "had it in every color."

Meredith, who led the team onto the ice at the event, "was on board" right away with the idea, Jenner tells PEOPLE.

"Meredith was a big help in putting it together and finding pictures of John wearing this stuff, and ordering sweaters for us," he continues. "It just really reminds us of him. We can picture him in those clothes."

Jenner also says that it's "unbelievable how strong" Meredith and the Gaudreau family have been since the tragedy last summer.

"Speaking firsthand, Meredith is across the street from us here in Columbus, and we see her a lot. We just want to support her and help her in any way," he continues. "She seems to amaze us every day with her strength."

"Being the best mom to her kids, and everything she has to deal with, it's truly incredible and inspiring the strength she has," Jenner adds.

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Speaking overall of the Gaudreau family, who lost the brothers on the eve of their sister's wedding and amid both their wives' pregnancies, the Blue Jackets captain says it's "tough to put into words what they're going through."

Jenner also praises the Blue Jackets fanbase for their devotion to keeping Johnny's legacy alive following the tragedy.

"They've been incredible, but that's not surprising with the fans here in Columbus," he says. "[They're] truly incredible fans that show up in the best of times, and obviously, in the worst of times that are there."

"And the things that you see around the arena that they've done in memory of John is truly very special," Jenner adds, referencing the "special moment" when fans sang "Happy Birthday" to Johnny Jr. on his first birthday on Feb. 22.

"It just goes to show how many people he touched here in Columbus in two years, and then obviously around the whole hockey world. So it's pretty special, but the fans have done this and been there for the family as well," he continues.

The 2025 NHL Stadium Series outdoor game between the Columbus Blue Jackets and Detroit Red Wings at Ohio Stadium will be broadcast live tonight at 6pm ET on ESPN, ESPN+ and Disney+. Approximately 90,000 fans are expected to attend the game, making it the second biggest crowd in NHL history.