U.S.-born NHL players gather to honor late USA Hockey exec Jim Johannson

PLYMOUTH, Mich. – Auston Matthews and Patrick Kane were among dozens of U.S.-born NHL players who gathered for a charity game won by the Blue over the White 14-9 Sunday.

The event honored longtime USA Hockey executive Jim Johannson, who died at age 53 in January. He was serving as the U.S. men’s Olympic hockey team general manager when he died.

His wife Abby Tompkins and their 2-year-old daughter, Ellie, participated in a ceremonial puck drop along with Johannson’s father, brother and sister.

Tompkins says the support has been incredible, adding it speaks to the kind of man her husband was in the hockey community.

The fundraiser benefited the Jim Johannson Legacy Fund , which supports grassroots hockey programs, and the Ellie Johannson College Fund.