A dream come true doesn’t begin to describe Adam Gaudette’s junior season at Northeastern.

He had already reached major hockey milestones of committing to a Beanpot school, being selected 149th overall by the Vancouver Canucks, and, as a freshman, winning the Hockey East Championship. But with an opportunity to take the next step in his hockey career on the table at the end of a prolific sophomore season, it was his passion for Northeastern that kept Gaudette in a Husky sweater for an unforgettable junior year.

“The way they shape and mold you as a player and as a person at Northeastern just helps so much,” Gaudette said.

As Northeastern has shaped Gaudette, so too has he shaped the university. Hockey’s importance on Northeastern’s campus has always been undeniable, but Gaudette’s historic 2017-18 season means that some new Red and Black threads will hang from the Matthews Arena rafters in 2018-19. Gaudette’s name will reside on Northeastern’s first Hobey Baker Memorial Award banner right next to an updated Beanpot Champions banner with a long-awaited “2018” stitched next to a distant “1988.”

A forward donning the No. 8 sweater and giving his all for Northeastern University is nothing new on Huntington Ave. Former player and current head coach, Jim Madigan, sported the same number as Gaudette when he won consecutive Beanpot titles in 1984 and 1985.

Madigan knew the kind of player he was getting when Gaudette arrived on campus in 2015, but in an early practice with the Huskies, it was clear that he was ready to make his mark. In a team scrimmage, Gaudette laid a clean, heavy check on senior captain and All-American Kevin Roy.

“It just sent me a message that this kid is an ultra competitor,” Madigan said. “He doesn’t see numbers on the back of a jersey, he doesn’t see names on the back of a jersey, he just sees the opposition’s color jersey. They have the puck he wants, he’s going to go get it.”

While Madigan saw the potential of a star college player early on, it took the rest of the college hockey world a bit longer to see what kind of player Gaudette was going to become. Despite recording only five points in his first 18 games at the NCAA level, Gaudette was showing signs of a special player in Madigan’s eyes; he just needed to adjust.

“Hard work was never a problem with Adam, he just needed a blueprint to get there,” Madigan said.

Gaudette learned first-hand in his sophomore year what it takes to become a Hobey Baker finalist. Zach Aston- Reese, who led the nation in scoring during his senior year, was a Hat Trick finalist in 2017 and found his way to the NHL with the Pittsburgh Penguins after an outstanding conclusion to his collegiate career. But it wasn’t Aston-Reese’s numbers that Gaudette looked up to. It was the work that he and his fellow upperclassmen put in before and after practice that made Gaudette realize just what it takes to become the top player in the nation.

“I think it was awesome to have John Stevens on my team for two years because I got to pick up what he did right away,” Gaudette said. “I had Aston-Reese for two years too. Those are two of the best leaders that have been at Northeastern and I got to play on a team with them and become friends with them.”

When he joined Vancouver for the end of the NHL season, Gaudette was once again an eager freshman ready to soak in life at the next level of hockey and learn from players like Henrik and Daniel Sedin, who had been in the league since Gaudette was four years old.

“I had the Sedins in my locker room for a week or two,” he said. “I just tried to sit there and watch as much as possible. It helps so much to learn from the older guys, not be afraid to ask questions, and take in all you can.”

With his first full season with the Canucks waiting at the other end of a long summer, Gaudette will continue working toward his degree from Northeastern. As he works to add his name to a long list of Northeastern University graduates, Gaudette has inspired the next generation of Husky hockey players to pursue the onename- long list that, for now, is his alone.