Communities feeling ‘immense loss’ of three junior players killed in Alberta crash

As news of the death of three members of the Southern Alberta Mustangs junior hockey team in a vehicle crash near Stavely, Alta., on Monday begins to sink in, Jen Handley is thinking about the final weekend the team shared together. 

“They didn’t have any games this weekend, and so they were hanging out, playing games, doing karaoke,” said Handley, who is a billet parent for two members of the team.

She said watching videos from that weekend with other parents has reminded her of how close-knit the team is, and how deeply the loss of the players will be felt. 

“This morning you wake up with the real reality of what has happened and the immense loss that this team is going through and that these boys are experiencing,” Handley told CBC Radio’s Calgary Eyeopener on Tuesday.

Cameron Casorso and JJ Wright, both 18, and 17-year-old Caden Fine were on their way to practice when their vehicle collided with a semi truck north of the entrance to Stavely, a town about 155 kilometres south of Calgary.

RCMP declared the occupants of the passenger vehicle dead at the scene.

Casorso and Wright were from Kamloops, B.C., and Fine was from Birmingham, Alabama. A memorial has been set up outside the Stavely Arena, with Nanton lighting up its famous grain elevators in red and blue in honour of the players.

Reaction has been pouring in from across Canada and the hockey world, triggering memories of the 2018 bus crash in Humboldt, Sask., that killed 16 people and injured 13.

While the team is based in Stavely, Handley said several of its players — including those killed in the crash — live in Nanton and regularly travel outside the community for practices and games.

“These highways are our lifeline,” she said. “Every parent in this community holds their breath when our kids are driving to practice … and that ‘What if?’ is always in the back of your head.”

Karen Dubois brought a candle to a memorial for the players outside the Stavely Arena on Tuesday. She lives in Nanton, and said the crash hits close to home for her as her son has played hockey in the same arena.

“I was pulled to come here today, and I think it was just because we’re all community,” Dubois said. “Even though it’s 20 minutes away, I was just very sad to find out three young hockey players with great futures ahead were taken so young.”

She added hockey is an important part of the identities of Stavely and Nanton, making a loss like this one even more difficult.

“Hockey in these small towns is everything,” she said. “Every weekend you’re out playing games in different communities, you’re meeting different people, you’re cheering on your players, the kids are having fun out there, it’s just an all around great experience.” 

Stavely resident Dale Ohler said news of the crash left him speechless.

He says it was made all the more devastating as the town’s relationship with the newly formed team was starting to blossom.

Ohler says the team never shies away from lending a hand around town and their presence has been a big boost for the local agricultural society, which runs the rink the team calls home.

In a social media statement Tuesday, the Town of Stavely said the “devastating loss has profoundly impacted our community and surrounding area, the hockey community, and all who knew these remarkable individuals.”

“These young men were not just hockey players, but an important part of the fabric of our community, contributing through their character, their friendships, and the promise they carried into the future,” continued the statement.

Humboldt mayor on Alberta crash: ‘We know what they’re going through’

RCMP Cpl. Gina Slaney said a collision reconstructionist attended the scene Monday night, and work to determine the cause of the accident is underway. No criminal charges are expected, she said.

“We know hockey families are so close, so tight, and this affects them in their own ways,” Slaney said. “Our thoughts and prayers and condolences go out to everybody involved.”

Jen Handley said the community is leaning on one another to provide support and process the news. A GoFundMe has been set up for the families of the players involved in the crash to cover their travel and other related expenses, she said.

“Everybody feels it,” she said. “We’re Canadians. We all know hockey players, it’s just who we are, and so every parent, every community, just knows that this could happen.”