A young man who played multiple seasons in the Kootenay International Junior Hockey League (KIJHL) in the mid 2010s has passed away.
The Kelowna Chiefs shared the news this afternoon that Austin Braid lost his lengthy battle with brain cancer at the young age of 29.
“While he was only a member of our team for a short time, he is remembered as a solid competitor and a fine young man,” the post read.
Braid only played a handful of games with the Chiefs during the 2014-15 season before he moved to Fort St. John and continued his playing career there.
He played the bulk of his KIJHL career with the Kamloops Storm, suiting up for the blue, red and white in 142 regular season and playoff games over the course of four seasons.
After wrapping up his junior career with the Fort St. John Huskies of the North West Junior Hockey League, Braid played two years of senior men’s hockey with the Fort St. John Flyers.
“He was a very solid, dependable individual who played an important role in our North Peace Hockey League (NPHL) Campbell Cup Championship in March of 2018,” read a post on the Flyers’ Facebook page.
The Flyers will observe a moment of silence in honour of Braid during their NPHL game on Saturday.
Before embarking on his junior hockey career, Braid was born and raised in Terrace and he moved back there after the 2017-18 season with the Flyers.
