The collision last Friday in rural Saskatchewan that killed 15 players and officials with the Humboldt Broncos junior hockey team has hit everyone in the sports community hard, says Valerie Murdocco of the Coquitlam Minor Hockey Association.
“It could have been any one of us,” Murdocco said. “It hits so close to home.”
Thursday evening, the community, including players, parents and officials from the three minor hockey associations — or any other sports group — in the Tri-Cities, along with the Coquitlam Express Junior A hockey team, will be holding a vigil of support at the Poirier Sport and Leisure Complex from 8 to 9 p.m.
Murdocco said the vigil will offer an opportunity for the Tri-Cities to reach out to the people of Humboldt who are grieving their loss.
“The parents and families who’ve been touched by this tragedy, we feel for them,” Murdocco said. “If they see the support, it could help them in some small way.”
Express president Mark Pettie knows all too well the risks of the road trip and the burden of responsibility sports teams have when they head to distant communities for games or tournaments.
“It’s always in the back of your mind,” he said. “You always want to make sure the kids are safe. You’re taking on that responsibility.”
Pettie said as more details about the tragedy became known, it became personal. The Express’ star goalie, Brock Hamm, played 21 games for the Broncos in 2014/’15 prior to joining the Saskatoon Blades of the Western Hockey League for three seasons. One of the players who was killed, Jaxon Joseph, played for the rival Surrey Eagles in the BC Hockey League before he went to Humboldt. Last October, the team traded Christian Bosa to the Nipawin Hawks, the team that was awaiting the arrival of the Broncos for their Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League playoff game the night of the collision.
“You know these guys,” Pettie said.
More significantly, he said, anyone involved with hockey knows the culture of the bus trip, the way it bonds teammates and can help a team gel as players endure hours in the winter darkness, stretched across cramped seats chatting, making friends.
Pettie said the team does everything it can to ensure safety on those trips, including scheduling rest breaks for bus drivers, but he admits there have been some heart-in-your-throat moments like a trip to Merritt in a snowstorm last January that took almost seven hours and delayed the scheduled start of that night’s game against the Centennials.
“You put a lot of faith in people that are maintaining roads,” Pettie said.
Murdocco said while the actual agenda for Thursday’s vigil is still coming together, people are being encouraged to wear their sports jerseys and buckets will be stationed at the door for donations to help the families of those affected by the crash in Saskatchewan.
As of Monday, an online effort to raise money for the team’s players and families was already approaching $6 million. If you would like to contribute to the crowdfunding campaign, go to gofundme.com/funds-for-humboldt-broncos.
