A sporting life can be rewarding and cruel. Extreme ups and downs result from thrilling victories and gut-wrenching defeats. Athletes chase one scenario and try to avoid the other, while doing everything they can to pursue their dreams.
Regardless of the outcome of a game or competition, players, coaches and team personnel always expect to play another day, to claim victory once again or bounce back from a loss. Win or lose, thoughts eventually move to planning for the next opponent, what can be improved on and sharing the latest results with those waiting at home.
For 15 members of the Humboldt Broncos of the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League involved in a fatal crash on Friday, April 6, those expectations will not be met.
The accident hits home for athletes and parents involved in any sport that requires travelling. Riding the bus is as much a part of sports as lacing up skates or boots.
Many hockey players from Powell River have chased the dream, before and since Powell River Kings came to town in 1988. From the 1960s to present, players rode buses in junior hockey leagues throughout BC and across Western Canada, through snow and rain storms and over coastal and interior mountain ranges.
Buses are like a second dressing room. They serve as a means of travel and as a place to bond as a team, rest up for the next game or contemplate the future. Players celebrate wins, console each other after tough losses, play cards, sing songs and do homework. It is all part of a team-building process that strengthens the group.
Our Kings spent 16 hours on their bus the same day as the Broncos’ fateful trip, one of many lengthy road trips over a long and gruelling season. The club returned after one of those aforementioned gut-wrenching defeats: a season-ending overtime loss in Prince George. But, as with every other road trip this season, they returned home, safe and sound.
Opportunity awaits all Kings’ players, whether in hockey or another field. While the on-ice defeat signalled the end of an era for players graduating from the league or leaving to pursue university or professional careers, they still have a dream to chase. Returning players will have a chance to bounce back next year.
Our Kings lost a series but they have a tomorrow, a next season, and a life to live. There is no tomorrow, next season or life for the Broncos who died.
