High River Flyers mourn loss of captain after crash kills 2
The High River Flyers hockey team is mourning the loss of its captain after a crash Saturday morning killed two southern Alberta men.
Police say a Chrysler Sebring left the road around 8:10 a.m. MT, flipped and ended up on its roof in a backyard north of High RIver.
Eli Eggli-Gosselin, 20, and Carter Corrigan, 19, both of Blackie, Alta., were pronounced dead at the scene. Police say both men had been wearing seatbelts.
Eggli-Gosselin was the captain of the High River Flyers, a team that plays in the Heritage Junior Hockey League.
Kari Eggli, Eggli-Gosselin's mother, took to Twitter to thank the team for their condolences.
"Our lives changed dramatically with the loss of our son Eli today," she wrote.
"We were the lucky ones as we got to live with and love that smile and laughter and wackiness everyday! It is going to be hard not to have that anymore."
His sister Anna Gosselin said her brother was "friends with everyone and liked everyone he met."
Eli was the type of guy who could "change the mood in a room to fun as soon as he walked in," she wrote in a statement.
"He was outgoing, polite and above all a kind and sensitive person. He enjoyed team roping, and playing hockey. He will be greatly missed by all who knew him."
Funds being raised for families
Team president Bill Holmes says the captain was a natural leader on and off the ice.
"Our condolences go out to all the families involved and friends involved and, you know, buddies on the teams," he said. "It's a big hole and (we're) just heartsick for the families in this situation."
Holmes says Corrigan was a childhood friend of Eggli-Gosselin. He was a student at the University of Alberta.
The Flyers released a statement saying their hockey family is mourning the devastating loss. The team has cancelled two games this weekend so the team can process the tragedy.
Crystal Surina, a neighbour and friend of the Corrigan family says she found out about the accident yesterday when she stopped by their home to drop off Christmas gifts.
"I couldn't have asked for better neighbours and they're a wonderful family so this just breaks my heart," she said.
"I was stunned. I'm a mom. I'm a parent and it's Christmas time and no parent needs to go through this at this time of year."
Surina started a fundraising page for the families as her way of giving back to her neighbours. She says she is overwhelmed by the support the page has already received.
“It doesn’t matter how well you know somebody," she said. "It touches home when you’re a small community.”
Police say they are still investigating the crash and are unable to say if speed or alcohol were factors in the accident.
