The community mourns the sudden death of 18-year-old Sooke native Grant Gilbertson, who played for the Peninsula Panthers of the Vancouver Island Junior Hockey League.
Pete Zubersky, owner and general manager of the Panthers, confirmed that Gilbertson died in a collision with a motor vehicle on the way to practice just before 6 p.m. Monday on the way from Sooke.
The collision near the intersection of Sooke and Humpback streets closed the freeway for several hours before reopening early Tuesday morning. West Shore RCMP said icy road conditions contributed to the collision while the investigation is ongoing.
As a former police officer, Zubersky said the news of Gilbertson’s death hit him like a ton of bricks, adding he’s still trying to process what happened. “I only feel for his family,” he said, his voice shaking.
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Gilbertson is a great hockey player and an even better young man, Zubersky said.
Gilbertson’s death marks the second loss of someone closely associated with the team in recent months. Longtime team photographer Gordon Lee died on October 14.
The last Panthers player to die as a member of the team was 20-year-old Steve Simpson, who died on the Pat Bay Highway in the early hours of November 2, 2001. The driver of the vehicle in which Simpson was a passenger was impaired, according to a report published in the Peninsula News Review.
Simpsons then-team captain Jeff Lawson actually stopped by the scene of the accident Monday on his way to coaching, Zubersky said, and actually asked officers if he could see if any of his players were involved.
The Panthers have postponed their Wednesday night game in Colwood against the Westshore Wolves and plan to hold a special ceremony in Gilbertson’s honor ahead of Friday’s (January 7) home game against the Victoria Cougars.
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Zubersky said Gilbertson’s family approved of the team’s decision to continue playing. Zubersky later said that the team would dedicate the remainder of the season to Gilbertson, with the team naming a trophy after him. “(That) he would have wanted and that’s what our players need,” he said. “It will allow them to be together and be able to support each other.”
Gilbertson played 52 regular and exhibition games for the Panthers over two seasons. He had become one of the team’s best attacking players that season, scoring 16 goals and providing 25 assists in 38 games.
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Car AccidentJunior B HockeyWest Shore
