Meredith Gaudreau, the wife of Columbus Blue Jackets forward Johnny Gaudreau, paid tribute to the NHL star in a pair of social media posts on Saturday, calling him her "forever" and praising him as the "best dad" to their young children.

She also shared family photos of her late husband celebrating his 31st birthday earlier this month with her, daughter Noa and son Johnny.

"Thank you for the best years of my life," she wrote in an Instagram post. "Despite losing you, I am still the luckiest girl in the world to have been yours,. I love you so so much. You were perfect. Some days it felt too good to be true. I love every single thing about you. You are my forever and I can't wait to be with you again. I love you so much forever and ever."