A documentary on St. Dominic Academy’s storied hockey team gets its premier Friday as a fundraiser for the family of a Winthrop father and son killed in a crash last year.
Zack Roy, an alumnus of the Auburn private school and its hockey program, began filming the documentary, “Behind the Black and White,” last fall to offer a behind-the-scenes look at the school’s boys varsity hockey program. The project took a tragic turn on Dec. 30 when Casey Cloutier, a member of the school’s junior varsity hockey team, and his father, Ghislain “Gus” Cloutier, were killed in a head-on crash on U.S. Route 202 in Leeds.
Roy, who originally made the video for a college class project, opted to use the premiere of “Behind the Black and White” as a fundraiser for Gus and Casey’s family — Susan Cloutier and her son, Chase, said Peter Servidio, dean of students at St. Dominic. All proceeds from the public event will go to the family.
“This whole thing is on Zack,” Servidio said. “He’s done a great job with it.”
Casey Cloutier, 14, and Gus Cloutier, 49, were on their way to St. Dominic for a hockey tournament when a sport utility vehicle driven by Ralph D. Ryder, 59, of Livermore Falls, crossed the center line on U.S. 202 in Leeds and slammed head-on into the Cloutiers’ Honda Accord. The Cloutiers died at the scene. Ryder was taken to Central Maine Medical Center in Lewiston with injuries that were not life-threatening.
Lt. Glenn Holt, of the Androscoggin County Sheriff’s Office, said Thursday that the crash investigation is ongoing. Holt said the primary investigator has been out for several weeks because of illness.
“Unfortunately, it’s taken a long process and kind of stalled it a little bit,” Holt said.
Holt is unsure when the investigation will be finished. When it is, the information will be forwarded to the district attorney’s office, which will determine whether charges are warranted.
“In a lot of cases, there aren’t charges,” Holt said. “What you have to prove to bring vehicular manslaughter charges is pretty stringent. You have to prove negligence.”
Servidio said Roy, who is pursuing a videography career, was making a documentary about the hockey team at the time of the crash. Roy followed the hockey team for a season, filming games and practices as well as in the locker room. Roy has since decided to use the video as an ongoing fundraiser for the family.
Servidio, who has previewed the 45-minute documentary, said those who attend the premier will not be disappointed. He said the video gives an honest look at what happens inside hockey locker rooms at St. Dominic and hockey schools across the state.
“It’s very well done,” he said. “I was impressed both by Zack’s ability to capture the team and to capture the emotion.”
The premier is scheduled for 7 p.m. Friday at St. Dominic, 121 Gracelawn Road, Auburn. Admission costs $5 per person. Documentary DVDs will be for sale.
Craig Crosby — 621-5642
Twitter: @CraigCrosby4
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