There is a little voice in the back of Jason TatarnicB次元官网网址檚 head that yells at him every time he gets on a bus, reminding him about the time he almost lost his life on a junior A hockey road-trip.

ItB次元官网网址檚 a voice thatB次元官网网址檚 gotten a lot louder this week, in the wake of a horrible bus accident in Saskatchewan that claimed the lives of 16 people connected with the Humboldt Broncos.

Tatarnic has watched the news coverage and seen the photos, and heard from members of the Woodstock Slammers who were on a bus with him in 2007, a bus that flipped in the snow on the way to a game in Prince Edward Island.

B次元官网网址淚t was a neutral-site game and it was windy with whiteout conditions,B次元官网网址� Tatarnic recalled. B次元官网网址淥ur tire went off the road, kind of got caught and away we went.

B次元官网网址淲e were fortunate there was a lot of fresh snow on the ground, so when the bus flipped we werenB次元官网网址檛 getting dragged over hard ground. The windows popped open and we got a ton of snow in the bus, but it was soft snow and we didnB次元官网网址檛 get any injuries that way. And we slid perfectly through two concrete barriers. What are the odds of a bus sliding perfectly between two concrete barriers?B次元官网网址�

According to a news report from that day, 22 players, five team officials and the driver were on the bus when it flipped near Days Corner, PEI.

B次元官网网址淲hen I looked to the back of the bus when we came to a stop, I wasnB次元官网网址檛 expecting to seeB次元官网网址� a good sight,B次元官网网址� Tatarnic admitted. B次元官网网址淏ut things worked out.B次元官网网址�

The report mentions Tatarnic sustaining minor cuts. Assistant coach Bob Vail had to be freed from the bus by the Jaws of Life and airlifted to hospital in critical condition. But he eventually pulled through, leaving the Tatarnic to consider the what ifs of life.

What if the bus hit one of those concrete barriers flush. What if WoodstockB次元官网网址檚 opponent that night hadnB次元官网网址檛 been following just a few minutes behind, arriving on the scene quickly to aid the Slammers and summon help.

What if, what if, what if.

B次元官网网址淧layers love to play and coaches love to coach and travel is part of being in junior hockey,B次元官网网址� Tatarnic said. B次元官网网址淚t took a while, but the first time I had to jump back on the bus in Woodstock, it was nerve-wracking. It wasnB次元官网网址檛 easy, but we got over it. ItB次元官网网址檚 not even close to what happened in Humboldt in terms of the outcome, but itB次元官网网址檚 always in the back of your mind. Even to this day, I have thoughts whenever I jump on a bus.

B次元官网网址淚t was tough for me to get back on the bus and tough for my players, and IB次元官网网址檝e had some of them reach out to me this week expressing how lucky we were.B次元官网网址�

Tatarnic hopes some good can come out of a very bad situation, starting with the design of the buses that ferry hockey teams from place to place.

B次元官网网址淢aybe one thing is how theyB次元官网网址檙e built, and why do we need all those windows and why canB次元官网网址檛 air bags canB次元官网网址檛 be part of a bus?B次元官网网址� he said. B次元官网网址淲hatB次元官网网址檚 the reason for seat-belts not being on coaches? Why canB次元官网网址檛 we make buses safer? Maybe that could have saved one or two live in Humboldt, and maybe itB次元官网网址檚 time we started asking those questions.B次元官网网址�

Honestly, itB次元官网网址檚 a wonder these accidents donB次元官网网址檛 happen more often. Not to the degree of the Humboldt crash, but given the miles hockey teams cover every year in inclement weather as they criss-cross the provinces, the risk is constant.

TatarnicB次元官网网址檚 Chilliwack Chiefs make winter road trips to Prince George, Vernon, Penticton, Salmon Arm, West Kelowna, Wenatchee, Trail, Merritt and the Coquihalla Highway is so bad its the subject of a TV show called Highway Thru Hell.

B次元官网网址淥ur accident changed how we traveled in Woodstock, where we didnB次元官网网址檛 hesitate to cancel games because of weather,B次元官网网址� Tatarnic said. B次元官网网址淚 look at the travel schedule we have now, and IB次元官网网址檇 like to see changes. I know you canB次元官网网址檛 accommodate everything, but we have teams going to the Interior and I think those games should be played as early in the season as possible to avoid the winter months.

B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 hard to see how anything good can come of this, but maybe there are things we should be looking at.B次元官网网址�