Canadians at Milano-Cortina Games offer support to community of Tumbler Ridge after mass shooting

Doug Armstrong says real life "trumps anything we're doing here" as he joined other Canadians at the Milan Cortina Olympics who offered condolences to those impacted by the mass shooting in Tumbler Ridge, B.C.

Ten people are dead after the shootings on Tuesday in the tiny community in B.C.'s Peace region, including the lone suspect who police said died at Tumbler Ridge Secondary School by suicide.

"First, before we start, just wanted to send our thoughts and prayers from the men's hockey team out to the Tumbler Ridge community," the general manager of Canada's men's hockey team said in a press conference before his team's tournament opening game against Czechia. "We're with you, and you're in our prayers."

Armstrong added that news of the shooting "affects everybody."

"This is sport, and we understand there's real life, and that trumps anything we're doing here," he said. "But all we can do is send our love, send our support, and then go out and do our jobs."

Head coach Jon Cooper grew up in Prince George, B.C., the closest major city to Tumbler Ridge, and remembers the growth of the community. Tumbler Ridge was developed in the early 1980s as a purpose-built coal-mining town in northeastern British Columbia.

"That's a tough one. I stayed in the hotel there growing up, had friends, and that town kind of became an instant town," Cooper said. "I had friends go over there and work there.

"Obviously, I haven't been back in a long time. But you think about tragedies that happen ... usually they happen somewhere else, so you never really feel the effect of it touching close to home. But this one's close to home, and my heart goes out to all the families."

Forward Sam Reinhart, from West Vancouver, called the news