Xavier LaBelle
November 17, 1999
Hometown: Saskatoon, SK
#3
Position: Defence
From a young age, Xavier showed incredible energy and passion. He did his best to keep up with his older brother Isaac. Together they spent hours on the outdoor rink and developed a love for the game of hockey.
Xavier was always competitive and wanted to be the best at whatever he tried. He became an accomplished pianist, often winning at the piano festival. He loved tackle football, and as linebacker with SMF Titans, he was a city and provincial champion. He was always a very bright honor roll student, and graduated from Saskatoon’s École canadienne-française. In 2017, he won two silver medals for Team Saskatchewan in shot put and javelin at the Canadian Francophone Games in Moncton-Dieppe, NB.
Although he enjoyed many sports and activities, hockey was his passion. After playing two years of U18 AAA with the Saskatoon Contacts, including an appearance at the 2016 Telus Cup in Quispamsis New Brunswick, he joined the Humboldt Broncos. He started the season as a 16 year old rookie. He worked very hard, earning the confidence of his coaches, and was given lots of opportunities eventually playing 57 of 58 games. That year he helped the Broncos make it back into the playoffs. For his efforts Xavier, also called “X” by his teammates, was named Rookie-of-the-Year and Most Improved Player of the 2016-17 season. Xavier looked forward to a promising future with the Broncos, and with Darcy at the helm, team success was on the horizon.
Unfortunately, a broken wrist at the start of his second season was a setback. While healing from his injury he used the time to work ahead in his online Grade 12 studies, and helped the Broncos off the ice by learning how to use a digital video system that the team just brought in. Xavier was thrilled to finally get back on the ice in November that year. The hockey was great and his teammates became brothers with deep bonds forming both on and off the ice. The future was bright and optimism was in the air. Xavier felt privileged to be a part of this team of skillful hockey players, and more importantly, a team of incredible people. He fondly remembers their adventures together and every day was a great day to be a Bronco!
Following the tragic crash on April 6, 2018, Xavier spent two months in the hospital recovering from so many significant injuries, including a head injury and facial lacerations so severe that he was misidentified for the first few days. He had a traumatic brain injury, more than 20 broken bones, underwent spine stabilizing surgery, suffered damaged nerves to his left arm and both legs, and other internal injuries - in addition to the grief of losing so many teammates and mentors. A video shared on the day of his discharge from hospital on June 6, 2018, can be viewed at this link:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=FkhnIt8_y1A
The following year was spent rehabilitating from his injuries, including recovering from additional surgery. During this time, the Saskatoon Blades reached out and signed Xavier as a Hockey Operations Assistant for the 2018-19 WHL Hockey season. He was also invited to help out as an assistant coach with the Saskatoon AAA Contacts. Being able to participate in the 2018-19 hockey season, although in a different way than Xavier had expected, was instrumental in his healing. He was so grateful for these opportunities.
The March 2019 Roger’s Hometown Hockey video featuring Xavier’s journey back to hockey can be found at the following link:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=kEw1uu2C3Tk
Thankfully, following a year of incredible hard work, along with a positive outlook, and fierce determination, Xavier was cleared by his medical team to become more active. He started playing ball hockey in the summer of 2019 with the Saskatoon Chiefs, a team of former teammates and friends that have played together for years. Even though it was off the ice, it was great to be playing hockey again, and even better to be back in the dressing room with the boys. That summer the Saskatoon Buffalos invited Xavier to join them on the blue line, representing Saskatchewan at the 2019 Adult National Ball Hockey Championships in St John’s Newfoundland.
In the fall of 2019, Xavier moved out to Vancouver where he started studying Kinesiology at UBC. He is thriving in this new environment and is doing well in his studies. Last season, he volunteered for the UBC Thunderbird Men’s hockey support staff, as associate director of analytics and video. He also started playing non-contact Campus rec sports, including hockey, helping his Fiji Islanders win a UBC Intramural men’s hockey championship.
Xavier is currently in Vancouver, on campus, completing his second year of Kinesiology. He is eternally grateful for the overwhelming support he and his Bronco family have received. Xavier will forever be mindful of the sixteen incredible people lost, and lives forever changed on April 6, 2018.