“I was like, ‘You know what, I’ll name this one after Johnny,'” Conanan told the Associated Press. “Because Johnny as a kid, he wasn’t the biggest player, but he had the biggest heart. So, I was, like, ‘This horse, I think he’s going to be the one.'”
In the same race on Saturday, Devon Bradley entered his horse, Johnny Hockey, from Bradley Thoroughbreds out of Columbus, Ohio, where Gaudreau spent two seasons.
“We needed a strong name. We needed a name that has some meaning, something to kind of give your horse just an extra oomph,” Bradley told the Associated Press. “We just felt like it fit, and I guess the rest is history.”
The two horses were born just about a month apart when both men decided to honor one of the best American hockey players of all time. They were running 1-2 into the final turn before Johnny Hockey faded out of the pack and Gaudreau was overtaken for first place.