Late Edmonton Oilers player Colby Cave honoured with mural

A mural dedicated to a late Edmonton Oilers player has been unveiled at a local mental health facility.

A new mural at CASA Mental Health pays tribute to Colby Cave, a former Oilers forward and mental health champion. The 25-year-old died suddenly in April 2020 after suffering a brain bleed.

“I feel a lot of emotions, mostly super proud,” Cave’s wife, Emily, said as the mural was unveiled Tuesday morning.

“I always say I was very proud of Colby when he was still alive but the legacy he’s left behind makes me a trillion times more proud if that’s possible.”

1:42 Celebration of life to be held for late Edmonton Oiler Colby Cave

The mural was painted by Edmonton artist Rahmaan Hameed. The artwork references the Edmonton Oilers, Boston Bruins, Colby’s Kids and memories shared by the Cave family.

Colby’s Kids is a program funded by the Colby Cave Memorial Fund and the Edmonton Oilers Community Foundation. It honours Cave’s memory by providing youth the opportunity to participate in hockey.

“The whole idea was to showcase him as a player and as a person and to kind of have symbols and references that best showcase who he was,” said Hameed, who is also an Oilers fan.

Using acrylic and spray paint, it took Hameed about 30 hours to complete the mural over the course of five to six days. He hopes the artwork inspires the kids who receive care from CASA.

“Anytime they look at this mural, they come into this facility, they see all the amazing work that CASA does, that they just feel inspired that today, tomorrow and the days to come can be better and will be better. And hopefully this mural and the legacy that Colby left behind can help them reach that potential,” Hameed said.

The mural includes a puck with the #18 on it, which references Cave’s friendship with Bruins player Danton Heinen. The pair played in the AHL together and had been best friends ever since, even after playing on rival teams.

Heinen donated $1,000 to Colby’s Kids for every goal he scored following Cave’s death, totalling $18,000.

“Although Danton no longer played on the same team as Colby, they still loved and supported each other,” Emily Cave said.

“When I think about this mural and friendship, I think about CASA and the amazing work that they are doing here for so many children. Friendship and giving back is about establishing support, love and encouragement during a difficult time so that no one feels alone — that is why it is an honour to have this mural and story of friendship here at CASA.”

Emily said her favourite part of the mural is the three small hearts that sit near the “agape,” which means the highest form of love.

“Colby and I, before we went to bed every night, he would squeeze my hand three times to say that he loved me,” Emily said. “He would do it in the grocery store, in the car, anywhere. And when Colby passed away it was during COVID so I couldn’t be there with him, so his ICU nurse was actually squeezing his hand three times as he was dying so he felt like I was there with him.

“The three hearts for the three hand squeezes is probably my favourite. And the red hair, because we both have red hair,” she added with a laugh.

The eight-foot-by-six-foot mural greets children and youth receiving treatment at CASA every time they enter the facility’s gym.

CASA Mental Health and Cave’s wife commissioned the mural in November 2023 through the Colby Cave Memorial Fund.

“The funding we receive from the Colby’s Kids initiative supports CASA’s vision of a community where all children, youth and their families are provided with timely mental health care and empowered to thrive,” CASA CEO Bonnie Blakley said.

“Colby was a strong mental health advocate and the mural is a beautiful tribute to his legacy.”

Emily also hopes the artwork can be a piece of inspiration for the kids at CASA.

“We had the daily motto: ‘Be somebody that makes everybody feel like a somebody.’ So I hope kids can be inspired to be like that as well and also just be reminded that they’re not alone in their struggles. Mental health was extremely important to me and Colby.”

&© 2024 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.