Fatal bus crash 38 years ago shaped Swift Current Broncos player’s life

People often say time can heal most wounds but Tim Tisdale, a former Swift Current Broncos hockey player, still recalls the tragic bus crash that killed four of his teammates 38 years ago.

Tisdale said talking about the Dec. 30, 1986 tragedy helps.

“You live it every single day, whether you’re talking about it or not, it’s part of your life,” he said.

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“So for me, being able to talk about it has always been a positive. (It is) something that some people struggled with but for myself it was just a way for me to cope with the situation.”

It was the team’s first game back after the Christmas break, and everyone was excited to be reunited.

That excitement was short lived.

The team bus hit the road from Swift Current headed to Regina on a typical winter day in Saskatchewan. However, what couldn’t be accounted for was the black ice blanketing Highway 1.

According to Tisdale, the bus only made it a few miles out of town before it found itself in the ditch. It then hit an embankment, causing the bus to fly into the air and land on its side.

The crash killed four young men: Trent Kresse, Scott Kruger, Chris Mantyka and Brent Ruff.

Tisdale was close with Kruger, who he played hockey with all his life in Swift Current. He also played with Kresse growing up.

Mantyka and Ruff were newer additions to the team at the time. Tisdale said Ruff was going to be a “tremendous hockey player.” As for Mantyka, the team’s enforcer, Tisdale said the team looked up to him, because he took care of everyone.

Tisdale said living at home with his parents helped him a lot after the crash.

“I had to sit down and just talk to some people and try to work my way through it,” he said. “You think you’ve dealt with it, but sometimes you just put it on a back burner and it’s always there.”

He said it can be easy to try to push the negatives away, but Tisdale encourages people to embrace them.

“I’ve really taken the approach that these negative things I can learn from and it can make me a better person,” Tisdale said. “Maybe I can help someone else in these situations.”

Tim Tisdale encourages people to learn from the negative things that happen in your life and to try to help others. (Alex Brown/650 CKOM)

He encourages people to ask for help if they are struggling.

“I think it’s important to to get help and not be afraid to open up to people and say, ‘This is bothering me, this is hurting me.’ Because there are people out there that can help you,” he said.

Tisdale still lives and works in Swift Current, often driving by the crash site and its memorial multiple times a week. He stops when he can.

“Do I slow down when I drive there? I probably do subconsciously. But it’s also a reminder not to forget,” he said.

The memorial was unveiled near the site of the crash on the 30th anniversary of the tragedy in 2026. (Swift Current Broncos/X)

Tisdale helps Humboldt players after 2018 bus crash

After experiencing the Swift Current Broncos bus crash, Tisdale knew what he had to do when he heard the news of a similar crash to the Humboldt Broncos in 2018.

He knew he wanted to help once the dust settled.

On April 6, 2018, the SJHL team’s bus collided with a semi at the intersection of Highway 35 and Highway 335 after the truck driver failed to stop at a stop sign.

As a result, 16 people were killed and 13 others were injured.

Tisdale reached out to the team in September of that year and met with two of the players who were still in hospital.

“I stayed in contact with with the one family,” he said. “I know if he needed anything, he knows that he could text me at any point to reach out.”

He attended the Humboldt Broncos first game back on the ice after the tragedy and said it hit him hard.

“(It was a) reminder of what I went through topped with knowing what these players were going through and just to see the fans response and all the different people that were in the building,” Tisdale said.

“To see people from the NHL there … you see them at a Western league game but you don’t see them at a Junior A game very often. I think it just showed how it impacted everyone.”

Lessons learned from hockey

Tisdale is still involved with hockey, taking a lot of the things he learned from those days to his present job.

He’s been with Nutrien for 10 years and is currently the area manager for Southwest Saskatchewan.

With farming and hockey season being at different times of the year, it’s the perfect gig for Tisdale.

“It’s totally different from hockey but at the same time it’s very similar,” he said.

“There’s about 60 on on my team and I like to hear about their successes. I love to hear some of the issues they have to deal with and and … give them insight on how we can handle things.”

Tisdale’s time as a coach comes in handy at the office and hockey will always be something that shapes his life.

“You give your group some advice, and then it’s up to them to go execute, same as you would on the ice,” he said.

— with files from 650 CKOM’s Alex Brown

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