There have been few days in the history of Canadian hockey darker than April 6, 2018.

On that day, a bus carrying the Humboldt Broncos collided with a semi-trailer en route to a Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League (SJHL) playoff game.

The accident claimed the lives of 16 Broncos players and staff and injured 13 more.

But out of the darkness of the tragedy came glimmers of light. Just days later, SJHL commissioner Bill Chow announced the creation of the SJHL Assistance Program, designed to provide access to mental health resources in the aftermath of the accident.

“We raised money with the thought that down the road, there was going to be some need for mental health support, whether it was people that were involved in the crash, families, whoever,” Chow says. “But then also just ongoing support for hockey players in the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League.”

The program quickly received more than $2 million in donations, including $768,000 from key corporate sponsor Federation Co-op.

A few years into its existence, with an eye towards expanding its reach across the country, the program was rechristened the Fifth Line Foundation.

“In hockey, you have four lines,” explains Chow, who retired as SJHL commissioner in 2022 but still serves as president of the foundation. “So, the idea of the Fifth Line came along with a focus on showing some support for the other four lines.”

The big move came in November 2020, when the Fifth Line partnered with the NHL Foundation and pledged a combined $1.2 million to make the Talk Today program from the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) available to teams across the Canadian Junior Hockey League (CJHL).

Talk Today, which was launched by the CMHA in 2014 and was first presented to select CJHL teams during the 2019-20 season, involves three core mental health components: support, education and awareness.

“The Canadian Mental Health Association, they take the ball and run with it,” Chow says. “The closest CMHA branch to a Junior A team makes the presentation. It's really just to support and provide a mechanism for the young hockey players.

“A lot of them are away from home, some of them for the first time, but it’s about providing them that mechanism that they can recognize somebody may not be 100% on one given day and not be afraid to discuss things. And if somebody needs more, a higher level of help, then they can reach out to the local CMHA branch and seek some in-depth help.”

According to an impact report published by the Fifth Line, 85 teams across eight CJHL leagues were part of the Talk Today program during the 2024-25 season. Participation totalled just shy of 2,000 players, with 97% surveyed satisfied with the program.

For Chow, who has spent most of life involved in the game in a variety of roles, it’s that acceptance and openness that has impressed him the most as the program has grown.

“We didn't discuss mental health back in the day,” Chow says. “You figured it out on your own and did what you had to do. But I think [talking about it has] become more and more prevalent in today's society. When you talk about mental health, and you’re not afraid to talk about mental health, you can discuss things with people. It's been well received by owners, managers, coaches and, of course, the players.”

For more information on the Fifth Line Foundation, and to donate, visit FifthLineFoundation.ca.