For more than two years, Vancouver Canucks winger Linden Vey has been dealing with a very serious off-ice family issue.
It’s an issue that hasn’t received much attention until now.
On May 24, Linden’s father, Curtis Vey, is set to go on trial along with his co-accused Angela Nicholson. The two have been charged with conspiring to murder their spouses, including Linden’s mother, Brigitte.
Police allege Curtis and Nicholson were having an affair and the plan was to kill Brigitte in a house fire. They also allege there was a plan to kill Nicholson’s husband, Jim Taylor, via a drug overdose.
The two were charged in August of 2013.
“It changes your life,” Linden Vey told The Province on May 10. “Your life is a certain way for so many years and all of a sudden, you wake up one day and it’s totally different.
“But I’m not going to sit here and say it’s part of the reason I’ve had two of the worst seasons of my career.”
The 24-year-old from Wakaw, Sask., was cut from the Canucks after a poor training camp and later went unclaimed on waivers. He was called up by the NHL club in December and went on to register four goals and 11 assists in 41 games.
“It’s a tough situation for me. Sometimes, when you have something like that weighing on your mind, it’s tough to be super focused,” said Vey. “But I do have a great family and support system.
“I try not to focus on it too much. Any time it’s a family matter, you try to keep it as private as you can,” he continued. “Everybody has something to go through. Life is never easy.”
Vey, who grew up in a “super close family” on a farm in small town Saskatchewan, said he still talks to his father “here and there.”
“My mother and I are super close,” Vey said. “She came on the mothers’ trip with me and she comes out quite a bit.
“My family — my brother and my sister — we’re all tight. This is a time where we need to stick together as much as possible now.”
Canucks president Trevor Linden told The Province he thinks playing hockey has provided a sanctuary for Vey.
“Every player deals with certain distractions in their life, challenges,” said Linden. “I think that’s normal. I don’t think there has ever been a player who has dealt with something like this.
“What was important to us was making sure he got the help he needed.”
According to The Province, the Canucks first learned about the case after trading a second-round draft pick for Vey in 2014.
Read the full story here.
