“We grieve together.” That’s how Jennifer Handley, a billet mom for the Southern Alberta Mustangs hockey team described the the team’s, the families and the community’s response to the death of three players in a crash Monday morning as the players were en route to a team practice in the small community of Stavely, Alta., just over an hour south of Calgary.
Handley is also the mayor of the nearby town of Nanton, where many of the team’s players live with billet families.
Speaking on behalf of the team, outside the Stavely arena on Tuesday afternoon, she said the players loss is being deeply felt.
“Hockey runs deep in communities like ours. It’s not just a sport, it’s generations of early mornings, long drives, cold drinks, and proud parents in the stands,” said Handley.
“These young men were part of that story, and we will honour them. This loss is felt not only in Stavely and Nanton, but across our surrounding communities and our country.”
The three teens died when the vehicle they were in was involved in a crash with a semi-truck pulling a gravel trailer at the intersection of Highway 2 and 55 Avenue, a the north end of Stavely, around 11 a.m. on Monday.
RCMP said the semi was heading northbound on Highway 2, while the smaller vehicle carrying the players was driving east across the intersection when the crash happened.
The victims 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, who is from Alabama.
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RCMP said the driver of the semi, a 40-year-old man from Stavely, suffered minor injuries and was treated on scene.
Tributes for the players have been pouring in from across the country and a memorial, with photos of the teens, has been set up outside the Stavely arena where a steady stream of people have been stopping to leave flowers, candles and other forms of condolences.
Karen Dubois explained how she was compelled to stop to pay her respects, because of a similar tragedy suffered by her family.
“We lost our nephew at 17, the age of the hockey players, and also because our son used to play hockey as well,” said Dubois. “Something was pulling me here today that I needed to come and just pay my respects.”
“We’ve seen the outpouring of support for these three boys, for this team, for this community from across the country, from across North America,” said Dale Ohler of the Stavely Agricultural Society, which owns and operates the arena where the team plays.
“(It’s) hitting everybody so hard. They just can’t believe this has happened. It’s such a huge, huge loss to the hockey community — to the town, to this community,” Ohler added.
The Humboldt Broncos also posted their condolences to the team on social media.
“There are no words – only heavy hearts. We stand with you. We mourn with you. We are with you,” the Humboldt Broncos wrote on X.
Sixteen members of the Broncos hockey team were killed and 13 others injured in April of 2018, when a semi-truck blew through a stop sign and plowed into the team’s bus near Tisdale, Sask.
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.”
People who live in the area, near where the crash happened, told Global News this isn’t the first time there’s been a fatal crash at the intersection.
“It’s such a terrible intersection out there and we’ve lost other people to it,” said Ohler.
“It’s known as Stavely corner and people do a special turn there because of how scary it is going across that road.”
“When you get to the corner, you have to watch and turn a certain way so you can see the highway better. So you almost look like you’re going to go down the highway the wrong way and then you make sure you get across, make sure you’re quick but you make sure you’re safe first,” Ohler added.
In a statement to Global News, Alberta’s Ministry of Transportation extended condolences to everyone affected by the crash and said it is working with the RCMP and local officials who are investigating and will be conducting a review “in an effort to determine if any improvements are neccessary.”
As the team, families and hockey community continue to grieve, a benefit game, in support of the families and team, is being planned for Sunday, Feb. 8 at the Stavely arena.
The team said a GoFundMe account has also been set up “to help lift the financial burden of travel, funeral costs and the day-to-day expenses of the players families from Canada and the United States.”
— with files from The Canadian Press
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