The sports community is grieving in the aftermath of a tragic bus crash that claimed the lives of 15 people from the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League’s Humboldt Broncos. Around the NHL and in other sports leagues, teams are paying their respects with moments of silence before game action on Saturday night:
This includes the Winnipeg Jets, lined up in solidarity with the visiting Chicago Blackhawks:
As of the time of writing (precluding games with start times at or later than 10:00 PM ET), every NHL game from Saturday night has opened with a moment of silence. As the night continues, expect the other teams playing in late games to follow suit.
Beyond the NHL, teams from other leagues, even those of other sports or those outside of Canada, are honouring the Humboldt victims as well.
This includes the MLB’s Texas Rangers, who held a moment of silence before first pitch against the Toronto Blue Jays, as well as the NCAA men’s hockey championship game between Notre Dame and Minnesota Duluth:
Individually, players are finding their own ways to offer additional tribute by marking their gear, including Blue Jays pitcher Marcus Stroman penning the team's name on his hat:
Again, as teams playing later on Saturday night approach game time -- or even those in other sports that may not play until Sunday or later -- expect them to join in on the chorus of thoughts and prayers being offered for the Humboldt Broncos.
However, for so many teams of all levels, sports and even locations to embrace the victims of the tragedy is a heartwarming display of unity in the sports community, and hopefully, the friends, family and survivors from Humboldt can find solace in the sheer amount of others keeping them in mind.
