Reilly: Memories of Humboldt

MONTREAL - Like the rest of the hockey world, Mike Reilly was absolutely devastated to learn about the tragic events in Saskatchewan on April 6.

Late Monday night, the 24-year-old defenseman took to his Twitter account (

) to express his condolences to the families who lost loved ones in last Friday afternoon's bus crash that claimed 16 lives and left 13 injured.
Reilly also revealed that he actually closed out his Junior hockey career in Humboldt, winning the 2012 RBC Cup at the Broncos' home rink - Elgar Petersen Arena - as a member of the British Columbia Hockey League's (BCHL) Penticton Vees.

While six years have passed since the American rearguard last visited the quaint Canadian prairie city, memories of his two-week stay in the area came flooding back after hearing the devastating news.
"It was my first time in Saskatchewan, so I didn't know too much. But the first day you get to the rink and meet some locals, you could tell just how big hockey was there and kind of how close everyone was. That was my first reaction to being there," recalled Reilly, on his arrival in Humboldt to compete for Canada's Junior A crown. "You could see how close the community was, how everyone seemed to know each other when we'd go to the rink and the restaurants."

That incredible closeness has been on full display over the last seven days as the community has been trying to come to grips with such profound loss - difficult as it may be.
When the news broke while the Canadiens were in Toronto for their season finale against the Maple Leafs, Reilly's phone was flooded with messages from former Vees teammates and members of his family who were on-site in Humboldt that May to cheer the squad on.
"I'm in a group chat with my closest buddies from Minnesota [who were on the Vees that year]. They put something in like, 'That's where we were for a couple of weeks. That's where we played,'" shared Reilly. "My parents, my sisters and two brothers [Connor and Ryan, who also played for the Vees that season], they kind of sent me the same thing. One of them even sent me a photo of us hoisting the RBC Cup together. Seeing all the pictures on the Internet and on TSN, I thought, 'Oh wow. We were there just a couple of years ago playing.'"

Admittedly, the now three-year NHL veteran struggled to comprehend the extent of the accident at first after coming across the initial posts on Twitter.
"I started to do some research and it kind of hit me a little bit later that I played against a lot of Humboldt guys and met a lot of people in the community and at the hotel and the rink," mentioned Reilly, who went up against the Broncos in the second game of the tournament's round robin, which the Vees lost 3-2 in overtime. "They were such nice people, easy people to connect with and talk to."
And, they absolutely loved their Broncos. Reilly can attest to that.
"It was pretty cool being able to play against the team hosting the event," remembered Reilly, who led all Vees defensemen that year with 24 goals, 59 assists and 83 points in 51 regular-season games. "I don't know how many people it sits, but it was a really cool rink. The crowd was loud."
That was the last time the Vees came out on the wrong side of the scoresheet in Humboldt, as they rattled off four straight victories to ultimately win the national title. A come-from-behind win over the Maritime Junior Hockey League's (MJHL) Woodstock Slammers in the championship game capped a remarkable year in which the Vees also claimed BCHL and Doyle Cup titles, and established league records for the longest win streak (42), most wins (54) and most points (110) in a single BCHL campaign.
"That was our last memory of Junior hockey. Whenever us Minnesota guys talk about our experience there, it's always our last game in Humboldt," mentioned Reilly, who went on to play for the University of Minnesota the following season, before eventually making his NHL debut in 2015-16 with his hometown Wild. "It was definitely pretty cool to cap it off there in that city that's so huge into hockey and where everybody knows each other."

And, it goes without saying that Reilly was eager to chip in when the Canadiens banded together to donate to the
GoFundMe page
set up on behalf of the Broncos' victims and their families, which has raised over $11 million dollars to date.
"I think we're just trying to be there for the families and the whole city. It really hits home for every single hockey player out there. It's pretty special that the whole hockey community can rally around them and let them know that they have all of our support," concluded Reilly. "Everyone in Humboldt is going through a tough time and we're definitely there for them for whatever they need."