This one is for Johnny and Matthew.

The Blue Jackets will remember and honor the brothers before tonight’s home opener vs. Florida, with the Gaudreau family present and a number 13 behind each net frozen in the ice.

It will certainly be a day full of emotions, but above all there was some joy, albeit bittersweet, on Monday as the brothers’ father, Guy, was on the ice with the Blue Jackets for team practice.

Guy had been a coach for many years and was a standout player in his younger years. He has been involved with the game all his life. On Monday, he chatted with players and coaches, collected pucks, took a few photos at the net and then posed for a team photo with the Jackets at the end of the session.

“It looked like he was just having a good time, just having fun skating,” head coach Dean Evason said. “We finished practice, came in and I told him, ‘Any time you want to come out, you’re more than welcome.’ And he said, ‘Do you have morning skating tomorrow?’ I said yes, so he’s coming out tomorrow too.

“He just wants to be there, and it’s great. With everything the family has been through, it was great to have him here. He had such a positive attitude in our room. We were working on the practice plan and he’s jumping Erin It was great fun. I think it’s fantastic that he can be at our hockey club.”

Gaudreau was also involved in Monday’s final drill, known as the Johnny Skate. Since Evason started training camp, a player has the opportunity at the end of practice to shoot a puck the full length of the ice toward an open net to try to save the team from conditioning rounds.

“If he makes the net, it’s one round for the players. If he misses, it’s three rounds. One-three,” Evason said. “So we said (to Guy), ‘Do you want to shoot the net?’ ?’ And he says, ‘Yes, and I’ll miss it on purpose.’ So I went out and said, ‘Full disclosure guys, Guy said this,’ and Guy says, ‘I told him we were going to miss on purpose, so you guys have to skate.’ And he missed on purpose and they skated.

“He just loves the game, loves hockey. It was a pleasure to have him there.”

The Blue Jackets players were happy to have Gaudreau at practice, where he was often no stranger as he watched from the stands during Johnny’s two years with the team. It was the start of a few days that are sure to be filled with emotions, as there may not be many dry eyes in the house before Tuesday’s puck drop.

After a big win in Colorado on Saturday, the Blue Jackets will want to continue playing the solid hockey they showed through the first two games of the season. And when they need inspiration, they say they know where to find it.

“It’s going to be emotional,” Sean Kuraly said. “And then, just like John would do, we turn on the game and play hockey. We’re going to take the things he would do and play him off, and we’re going to do the same thing.”

Sean Monahan, one of Gaudreau’s closest friends, added, “When we step on the ice, I’m going to step on the ice and play for John. If he were here, he would be very happy to have a day like this.”

Know the Enemy: Florida Panthers

Head coach: Paul Maurice (third season)

Team stats (2023-24): Goals per match: 3.23 (11th) | Defense score: 2.41 (1st) | PP: 23.5 percent (8th) | PK: 82.6 percent (12th)

The story: A year after coming close to capturing the Lord Stanley’s Cup, the Panthers ran back and reached the top of the mountain last season, beating Edmonton in seven classic games in June to win the franchise’s first Cup . It was quite an achievement for former CBJ assistant GM Bill Zito’s team, and now the challenge is trying to repeat. Fellow Floridians from Tampa Bay did that in 2020 and ’21, so it’s possible, and the Panthers still have the stars to do it.

Team leaders: Sam Reinhart signed a long-term deal to stay in Florida after scoring 57 goals, third in the league, including 27 power-play markers in the NHL, and a team-high 94 points a season ago. The next two top scorers from a season will not play tonight – Matthew Tkachuk is currently out due to illness, but was second on the team a season ago with a 26-62-88 line, while Aleksander Barkov (lower body) scored 23 goals under 80 points. Carter Verhaeghe was next at 34-38-72, while defenseman Gustav Forsling led the NHL with a plus-56 rating.

Sergei Bobrovsky looked like the “Bob” we know a season ago, going 36-17-4 in 58 appearances with a 2.37 GAA save percentage and .915. This year he will be joined by Spencer Knight, who gave up four goals in his season debut while earning the loss at Buffalo.

What’s new: The core of the team remains largely the same, but there were some changes this offseason. Three key defenders in Brandon Montour, Oliver Ekman-Larsson and Josh Mahura left, as did former CBJ forward Kevin Stenlund, fellow wings Ryan Lomberg and Vladimir Tarasenko, and goalkeeper Anthony Stolarz. The additions are highlighted by the Boqvist brothers – forward Jesper and defenseman Adam – as well as defenseman Nate Schmidt and forward Tomas Nosek. Rookie wing Mackie Samoskevitch – a Michigan product who will be familiar with many of the Blue Jackets – also joins the mix after being a first-round pick in 2021.

Even with Tkachuk and Barkov out, Florida improved to 2-2-0 with a 4-3 win in a Monday matinee in Boston, with two goals apiece from Reinhart and forward Anton Lundell.

Popular: The Panthers won all three games a year ago: a 5-4 overtime win in Sunrise on Nov. 6, a 5-2 final in Columbus on Dec. 10 and a 4-0 shutout win on April 11 in Florida. Columbus has won just three of 17 games over the past four seasons (3-11-3).

Former CBJ: Now, six years into the seven-year contract he signed with Florida at the end of his CBJ stint, Bobrovsky captured his elusive Cup ring in the spring. Adam Boqvist was acquired by the Blue Jackets this summer and joined the Panthers, but took a puck in the face in the opening game against Boston; he returned in Monday’s win over the Bruins.