While the whole of Canada is still reeling from the attack on the War Memorial in Ottawa last week, the family of Corporal Nathan Cirillo is dealing with the very personal tragedy of this act of terrorism.
The soldier, from Hamiliton, Ontario, was shot and killed while ceremonially guarding the monument at the country’s parliament, and tributes have been paid to his sacrifice all over the country.
And in typical Canadian fashion, many of those tributes have taken place in hockey arenas.
The Toronto Maple Leafs and the Montreal Canadiens dedicated the national anthem to Cpl Cirillo and Warrant Officer Patrice Vincent, who was killed in another attack by an Islamic extremist in Quebec last week. Emergency service personnel stood on the ice with players in Ottawa in a guard of honour. In the US, the Pittsburgh Penguins and Philadelphia Flyers sang the Canadian national anthem while the ice was lit up in the red and white colours of the country’s flag.
Perhaps the most touching tribute was paid by Marcus Cirillo, the five-year-old son of the slain corporal. On Sunday, accompanied by his aunts to a game in Hamilton, Marcus dropped the puck to start the game, while the players tapped the ice with their sticks in honour of his father. You can see the video below:
