Article content

Both Vancouver’s sports community and the hockey world are stunned by the news that Jason Botchford, who worked as a Vancouver Canucks beat writer for The Province from 2005 until 2018, has died.

He was 48.

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or Jason Botchford, popular Vancouver sportswriter, dead at 48 Back to video

Botchford died at home on the weekend of apparent heart failure, his family said Wednesday morning.

Originally from Ontario, Botchford joined The Province as a news reporter in 2005 but quickly moved into sports and covered the Vancouver Canucks until leaving for The Athletic website last summer. He also worked in radio for TSN 1040 and made regular appearances on TSN’s That’s Hockey.

His death was first reported Wednesday morning and reaction was swift, with tributes pouring forth from not just Vancouver but across the Canadian hockey spectrum.

“Jason Botchford’s family is sad to announce that Jason has died of apparent heart failure. Jason was a highly respected hockey journalist, prominent in the Vancouver area and across Canada for his coverage of the Vancouver Canucks and the National Hockey League for The Athletic Vancouver and for TSN radio and television,” his family said in a statement.