CTV News Ottawa

Updated: Mon Jan. 05 2009 6:25:38 PM
CTV.ca News Staff

Friends and family members, hockey players attired in both suits and jerseys, and even Don Cherry himself, were among the hundreds of mourners who gathered to say goodbye to a young hockey player at a church in Port Perry, Ont., on Monday.

Don Sanderson, a 21-year-old senior AAA hockey player, lapsed into a coma after hitting his head on the ice and later died from his injuries.

The coma had lasted through Christmas, the young man's fondest time of year. At the service, Rev. Peter Lackmanec led mourners in a rendition of "Silent Night," Sanderson's favourite, and his mother broke down in tears.

"We loved him with all our hearts, and I don't know how we're going to move on without him, but he'll be there to support us," Dahna Sanderson later said outside the Immaculate Conception Catholic Church.

"All I ask is each and every one of you love each and every one of your family members every day. Tell them how much you love them.

"All I know is my heart is breaking because I will never hear my baby say: `Love you, mom.'"

The young man's father, Michael Sanderson, said his son was his best friend.

"He'll always be in our hearts and he'll always remain with us forever."

Some 500 mourners remembered the York University student as a talented person both on and off the ice.

"He had a great future ahead of him in hockey and whatever he chose to do, you know, beyond the game," said one mourner who spoke to CTV outside the funeral.

"He was a bright student and just a great all-around person."

Another said Sanderson's death marked "a terrible day for hockey, for everyone."

Famed NHL commentator Don Cherry said all hockey players were mourning the loss of one of their own.

"We all feel that we've lost a member of our family almost," said Cherry, quoting Toronto Maple Leafs centre Matt Stajan.

"I don't know what else to say, except, you know, God love him and we're all here for him," he added.

The loss of a 'hero'

Following his death last Friday, his father Mike Sanderson told CTV News that his son was his "hero," and someone who could never be replaced.

"I told him that he was my hero, that I loved him, that he was my best friend," he said in an interview hours after his son's death at an arena in Belleville, Ont.

Sanderson died after spending nearly three weeks in a coma that resulted from hitting his head on the ice during an Ontario Hockey Association game.

Sanderson had been playing for the Whitby Dunlops when he got into a fight with Brantford Blast forward Corey Fulton in the third period of a game on Dec. 12.

During the fight, Sanderson's helmet came off and he fell onto the ice, suffering a severe head injury as a result. While he briefly regained consciousness following the incident, he remained in a coma in a Hamilton hospital until his death.

Hockey helmet debate

His tragic death has renewed debate on the rules surrounding the use of hockey helmets.

Sanderson's teammate Kyle Jones said he'd like to see helmet rules reviewed.

"Is it going to take someone else to pass away for a change to be made?" he said. "Something has to be done."

However, Cherry said the funeral wasn't the time or place to have the debate.

"I can't believe that some people in the anti-fighting group would take advantage of something like this to make their point," he said.

Whitby Dunlops captain Peter MacKellar recently told The Canadian Press that the rules around tightening helmets should be revisited.

"I got into a fight one or two games later and my helmet came off and all of a sudden you're thinking about Don and you're thinking, 'Jeez, this could happen right now,'" he said. "But I've seen so many helmets come off and I've seen people hit their heads on the ice before and you know, (there were) not real complications."

Steve Cardwell, the president of the Dunlops, said recently that the fight between Sanderson and Fulton was not particularly vicious. He said there needs to be a good look at what could have been done to prevent the incident from becoming deadly.

"Any time a tragedy like this happens -- and it could have been prevented by a number of rule changes, or the way helmets are made, or the way that they work -- that debate needs to happen," he said. "Because if you lose just one life and you don't learn from it, then we're all making a big mistake."

With files from The Canadian Press