Broadcasters rallying around Broncos, Bieber
Rockets’ play-by-play man among those offering to call games next season
When Les Lazaruk looked up at the broadcast booth at Elgar Petersen Arena during Tyler Bieber’s funeral service, he thought of an idea to honour the memory of the Humboldt Broncos’ play-by-play announcer.
Lazaruk offered to call a Broncos game next season for free and he put out a call on Twitter for fellow broadcasters to do the same.
It wasn’t long before several prominent on-air personalities volunteered their services.
Sportsnet’s Rob Faulds and TSN’s Chris Cuthbert and Gord Miller all tweeted offers to participate in the initiative.
That list also includes Regan Bartel, the play-by-play voice of the Kelowna Rockets on AM 1150.
Other broadcasters from a variety of leagues and sports are also wanting to get involved and support the effort.
“Tyler loved sports and he was involved in sports in all kinds of ways because it was his passion,” Miller said Friday from Chicago. “He loved to do it. I think a great way to honour him is to show our passion for it too.”
Bieber, who was 29, also coached high school basketball and football teams. He was one of 16 people who died after the Broncos’ bus and a transport truck collided last week near Tisdale, Sask.
Hundreds of mourners attended Bieber’s funeral service on Thursday.
Lazaruk, the play-by-play voice of the WHL’s Saskatoon Blades, said with the Broncos set to play 58 games next season, he’s hoping 57 other broadcasters can enter the booth for a game apiece.
“We’re going to have an all-star lineup of people doing Humboldt Broncos games, so long as we can put this together and that’s the next thing that has to happen,” he said from Saskatoon, adding the response to his initiative has been overwhelming.
Lazaruk said he would try to make arrangements with the local radio station, team and the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League in the near future.
Sarah Miller, the program director at 107.5 Bolt FM in Humboldt, tweeted she sincerely appreciates the idea, adding it’s an amazing way to honour Tyler.
Cuthbert, who got his start in the business with the SJHL’s Yorkton Terriers in 1979-80, has been moved by the many initiatives to support those affected by the tragedy. “The hockey community is tight and I think we’ve all had that reinforced in the last week,” Cuthbert said from Las Vegas. “You’ve seen the response right across the hockey world.”
The Broncos’ bus was headed to Nipawin for a playoff game when it collided with a semi truck at an intersection. The cause of the crash is under investigation.
SJHL named Broncos ‘Player of the Week’
The Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League has named the entire Humboldt Broncos hockey team as player of the week.
The league lauded each member, starting with defenceman Logan Boulet.
The 21-year-old from Lethbridge, Alta., was on life support after the crash until his organs could be donated. Boulet’s organs will go to six patients in need.
“Logan Boulet led his club with six assists despite not playing a single on-ice game this past week as the Broncos sparked an entire country to unify in the aftermath of the tragic accident on April 6, 2018,” the SJHL said in a release on Friday.