American teenager Caden Fine among three junior hockey players killed in road accident in Canada

toronto — Three junior hockey players, including an Alabama teenager, died in a car crash Monday while traveling to practice with their teammates on the Southern Alberta Mustangs in Canada, according to police and the team.

A truck hauling gravel crashed into a small passenger vehicle at an intersection, according to Corporal Gina Slaney of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police in Alberta.

“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 beloved 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, the three occupants of the passenger vehicle, two 18-year-old male residents of Kamloops, BC, and a 17-year-old resident of Alabama, USA, were pronounced deceased at the scene,” Slaney told News themezone in an emailed statement.

The truck driver, a 40-year-old man, suffered minor injuries and was treated at the scene. Police said an investigation into the cause of the accident was underway.

Fine’s passion for hockey began in 2020, according to a statement released by the Alabama Birmingham Jr. Bulls hockey team, for which he played from 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,” the Bulls said in a statement. “Once a Toro Jr, always a Toro Jr.”

A GoFundMe page set up to raise money for Fine’s family had raised more than $10,000 in donations as of Tuesday afternoon.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney expressed his condolences to the families, saying, “Canadians keep the entire Mustang community of southern Alberta in our thoughts as they face this unimaginable grief.”

In December, several hockey players between the ages of 15 and 19 were injured when a bus carrying a youth team crashed in Alberta. According to police, two minors were taken to local hospitals.

In 2018, 15 people were killed and more than a dozen others were injured when a truck crashed into a bus carrying youth hockey players heading to a playoff game in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. Among the dead were the son of a former NHL player, the team captain, assistant coach and a radio announcer.