Bruins captain Patrice Bergeron issues a statement on the passing of Jimmy Hayes

In case you missed the tragic news yesterday, former NHLer Jimmy Hayes passed away suddenly at just 31 years old. Details of his death have not yet been released, but police have indicated that the Hayes' death is not suspicious and there's no foul play suspected.

As you might imagine, the hockey world has come together on social media sites to share been messages of grief, compassion and every emotion in between in the hours since Hayes' passing was announced. Hayes, a Dorchester, MA native, is probably most remembered for his time with the Boston Bruins organization, having played two seasons with his hometown team from 2015-2017. Bruins captain Patrice Bergeron, a former teammate of Hayes', issued his own statement on the tragic death yesterday.

Hayes leaves behind his wife Kristen and sons Beau (two years old) and Mac (newborn). The real tragedy is that these boys will grow up having never really known their father and by all accounts Jimmy was the kind of father that any child would be lucky to call "Daddy". A cursory scroll of Jimmy or Kristen's social media pages show Jimmy as a devoted and caring father and husband. The word tragedy gets thrown around a lot today but when a stand up guy like Jimmy Hayes is taken from this world seemingly out of nowhere at just 31 years old, it's a genuine tragedy.

I mean... just look at this proud Papa:

Sometimes it takes a true tragedy like this for us all to take a moment to look around and express gratitude for the things that we have. Personally, the news of Hayes' passing hit me hard. 

My heart goes out to Kristen, Beau, Mac and the entire Hayes family during this awful time. If there's any silver lining to this it's that the hockey community has shown that it can move mountains when forced together through tragedy. If the outpouring of support for Kristen and the boys on social media is any indication, I personally believe that Hayes can now rest easy knowing that his family will be looked after and cared for even if he can't be there to do it himself.