American teen Caden Fine among 3 junior hockey players killed in Canada highway crash
Toronto — Three junior hockey players, including a teenager from Alabama, died in a vehicle crash Monday as they traveled to practice with their teammates on the Southern Alberta Mustangs in Canada, according to police and the team.
A semi-truck pulling gravel crashed into a small passenger vehicle at an intersection, according to Corporal Gina Slaney of the Alberta Royal Canadian Mounted Police.
"There are no words that can adequately express the depth of our grief," the Southern Alberta Mustangs team said in a statement, "These young men were more than hockey players — they were teammates, sons, brothers, friends, and deeply loved members of our Mustangs family and the communities we call home."
Caden Fine, 17, an American from Birmingham, Alabama, and two of his Canadian teammates, Cameron Casorso and JJ Wright, both 18 and from British Columbia, died in the crash, the team said on social media.
"Unfortunately, all three occupants of the passenger vehicle, two 18-year-old male residents of Kamloops, B.C., and a 17-year-old Alabama, U.S.A. resident, were declared deceased at the scene," Slaney said to CBS News in an emailed statement.
The driver of the semi-truck, a 40-year-old male, sustained minor injuries and was treated at the scene. The police said an investigation was underway into the cause of the crash.
Fine's passion for hockey began in 2020, according to a statement issued by the Birmingham Jr. Bulls Hockey team in Alabama, which he played for between 2021-2023. The Bulls said Fine joined the Southern Alberta Mustangs for the 2025-2026 season.
"This is a heartbreaking day for our entire hockey community. We extend our deepest condolences to Caden's family, friends, and teammates during this unimaginable time," said the Bulls said in a statement. "Once a Jr Bull, always a Jr Bull."
A GoFundMe page set up to raise money for Fine's family had garnered more than $10,000 in donations as of Tuesday afternoon.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney expressed his condolences to the families, saying "Canadians are keeping the entire Southern Alberta Mustangs community in our thoughts as they face this unimaginable grief."
In December, several hockey players aged 15 to 19 were injured when a bus transporting a junior team was in a collision in Alberta. Two minors were transported to local hospitals, according to a police.
In 2018, 15 people were killed and more than a dozen others injured when a semi-truck crashed into a bus carrying junior hockey players on their way to a playoff game in Canada's Saskatchewan province. The dead included the son of a former NHL player, the team's captain, assistant coach, and a radio announcer.