- EA added Johnny Gaudreau’s No. 13 banner to the Nationwide Arena rafters in NHL 27
- The detail came out of an overhaul that rebuilt all 32 arenas for authenticity
- Read below for a look at the banner and what Columbus raised back in 2024
EA didn’t skip the hardest detail in Columbus.
Johnny Gaudreau’s No. 13 banner hangs in the Nationwide Arena rafters in NHL 27, sitting next to the Ohio and Canadian flags exactly where it hangs in real life. Fans caught it in the reveal materials EA rolled out Thursday.
Here’s the banner in-game:
That banner isn’t a one-off nod. EA rebuilt all 32 arenas for NHL 27, down to real pre-game entrances, goal songs and reworked crowds, and Nationwide came with the rafters intact.
Take a look at the full reveal trailer:
Columbus raised the real one on Oct. 15, 2024, before its first home game since Gaudreau’s death. The white banner reads “JOHNNY GAUDREAU 1993-2024” with his number inside a blue circle.
Both teams warmed up in No. 13 sweaters that night. Florida’s players lined the blue carpet as Meredith Gaudreau and her kids walked out, then 13 seconds ran off the clock and the building chanted “JOHN-NY HOCK-EY.”
The Blue Jackets never formally retired the number. They didn’t need to. A team official said afterward that nobody is expected to wear 13 in Columbus again.
Gaudreau died in August 2024, killed alongside his brother Matthew by a driver while the two were biking in New Jersey. He was 31.
He only got two seasons in a Blue Jackets sweater, and he led the team in scoring in both of them, piling up 134 points in 161 games.
NHL 27 drops Sept. 11 with Macklin Celebrini on the cover and Connected Franchise headlining the feature list.
Columbus fans will see that banner every time they load into Nationwide.
