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Before he was Johnny Hockey, he was ‘Johnny Ham-And-Cheese.’

At least that’s what buddies from Boston College used to call Johnny Gaudreau, a notoriously picky eater who rarely steps out of his comfort zone especially when it comes to his own personal cuisine.

And while he’s admittedly gotten more adventurous as he’s been living on his own in Calgary — he did turn 25 this summer — the Flames winger explained the nickname’s origins which started, likely, how one would expect.

“When I was in college I’d just get ham and cheese on, like, wheat bread,” Gaudreau admitted sheepishly with a chuckle. “I’d take it to the locker room and eat it. I’d eat it seven days a week, every day. Before practice, I’d come in with my ham-and-cheese sandwich.

“I guess that’s one that is going to stick with me.”

So much so that word got around to the Spittin’ Chiclets podcast during a summertime episode between former NHLers Ryan Whitney, Paul Bissonnette and Gaudreau’s former NCAA Boston College Eagles teammate Kevin Hayes, who revealed one particular instance when Gaudreau, during a sushi dinner in Milton, Mass., opted to go across the street, purchase a plain ham-and-cheese sandwich from a questionable sub shop and brought it into the restaurant to eat.