Tributes continue to pour in for three teens from the Southern Alberta Mustangs junior hockey team killed in a motor vehicle collision south of Calgary.
The three players — part of a team from Stavely, around an hour south of Calgary — were headed to practice when they were involved in a crash with a semi-truck pulling a gravel trailer on Monday morning.
All three of them died at the scene, Alberta RCMP said.
They have been identified by Global News as JJ Wright, an 18-year-old left-winger whose hometown was Kamloops, B.C., Cameron Casorso, an 18-year-old goalie who was also from Kamloops, and Caden Fine, a 17-year-old centre with the team, whose hometown was listed as Birmingham, Ala., on the team’s website.
The Humboldt Broncos posted condolences for the South Alberta Mustangs hockey team on social media.
“There are no words – only heavy hearts,” the Humboldt Broncos wrote on X.
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“The Humboldt Broncos extend our deepest condolences to the Southern Alberta Mustangs organization and to all those impacted by today’s tragedy. We stand with you. We mourn with you. We are with you.”
A bus carrying the Broncos hockey team was involved in a collision involving a semi-trailer truck that blew through a stop sign in Saskatchewan, killing 16 people and injuring 13 in April 2018.
Humboldt mayor Rob Muench also posted his condolences to the team on social media.
“The City of Humboldt and our residents extend our deepest condolences to the Town of Stavely, Alberta. We stand with your community as you mourn this tragic loss, and our thoughts are with all those affected.
On Monday, the Calgary Flames and Toronto Maple Leafs paid tribute to the three players with a moment of silence before puck drop.
As well, Prime Minister Mark Carney spoke to reporters on Tuesday morning and called the incident “a tragedy.”
“A nightmare of every parent, every teammate, family, friends,” Carney said. “My heart goes out to the families of the victims and the team.”
The Mustangs play in the U.S. Premier Hockey League’s Premier Division, which the league describes as being “known for developing players into college-ready athletes.”
Alberta RCMP said the crash between the players’ vehicle and the truck happened around 11 a.m. Monday at the intersection of Highway 2 and 55 Avenue, at the north entrance to Stavely.
The semi was heading northbound on Highway 2, while the smaller vehicle the players were in was driving east across the intersection.
The driver of the semi, a 40-year-old man from Stavely, received minor injuries and was treated on scene.
— with files from Global News’ Ken MacGillivray and Karen Bartko and The Canadian Press
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