“SHE HAS ALWAYS BEEN A FIGHTER. THAT IS WHO SHE IS.” - MARIA COLELLA’S BATTLE WITH CANCER, AND A VISIT FIVE YEARS IN THE MAKING

Maurizio Colella had just finished up a practice at The Monument Ice Arena. His team in the middle of a playoff push in March of 2024, there was nothing out of the ordinary when the day began.

On Maurizio’s drive to his Rapid City apartment, he received the call that no one wants to hear. His mother, Maria, had esophageal cancer.

“My dad called me and they were saying, we need to tell you something,” Maurizio recalled. “At first I was a little bit stunned, what could it be? It was weird because my mom has never been a smoker, so it was out of the blue. The first thought that came into my head was, oh my God, my mom is going to pass away.”

Thankfully, they caught it on time. Maria started chemotherapy and immunotherapy treatments last June in Newmarket, Ontario, close to the family home in Tottenham. After the Rush season ended in April, Maurizio was able to head back to Canada in the summer and pitch in wherever possible.

“It was a grueling summer,” Maurizio said. “It was tough because our mom is the backbone of the family. She is an Italian mom, so she takes care of everything. She does all the cleaning, the cooking, all of that. We had tremendous support from our family coming in, whether it was our aunt staying with us throughout the week or family members stopping by while my mom was resting and recovering. I took a little bit of ownership on really helping out and doing all the little things I can to help the family out and let her focus on battling.”

Maria’s battle has progressed well over the past 12 months. From being limited to eating soup and blending food for meals to being able to chew food again, all signs are positive. While the chemotherapy treatments have been understandably difficult, Maria’s cancer has been shrinking, with surgery a possibility down the road.

Maurizio’s first reaction to the news last spring? To put his hockey career on pause and come home. His family told him to keep playing. The Colellas know their matriarch is a fighter. Maurizio kept playing; in fact, he played all 72 games in a Rush uniform last season, one of just five players to do so.

While Rapid City and Tottenham, Ontario are 20 hours apart by car and two flights apart by air, Maurizio admits that the opportunity to stay in North America and be closer to his family was important in his decision to re-sign with the Rush for a second season last summer. Having lived away from home to pursue his dream since 16, Maurizio cherished the chance to fly home and see his family in December.

“She has been a backbone for me playing hockey throughout my career. Both my parents and my whole family, everyone has been there for me. I play for the Rush, but most importantly, I play for the Colella name and everything they have done to help me get there. I could not have gotten anywhere close (to where I am now) without them.”

“(My mom) has been a fighter. That is who she is,” Maurizio continued. “She had family growing up who passed away from cancer, so she has been a trooper ever since she was younger. I have been away since I was 16. It is all about family with us.”

The Colella family received more good news earlier in the month: Maria was cleared to travel. With Maurizio’s birthday on Friday and the Rush Fights Cancer game on Saturday at The Monument Ice Arena, it was a no-brainer for the family to make their first trip to Rapid City on such a special weekend.

“It was very exciting to hear from my oncologist that I was able to come over and be here this weekend,” Maria said. “I was very happy to get the okay from him and see Maurizio. We have not seen him play hockey since his university days. When COVID hit, we were not able to see him play. We watch all his games on TV, but to see him play live at the rink has been great. It worked out perfectly and we are really excited to celebrate his birthday and come down for cancer weekend.”

The last time Maurizio’s mom saw him play a hockey game was his second collegiate season at Acadia University in Nova Scotia. Five years—and 166 professional games—later, it comes as no surprise that Maurizio put forth one of his best games as a pro with his family in the building. Wearing number 10 and playing right wing alongside Luke Mylymok and Parker Bowman, Colella dished out two primary assists in the second period to help lead the charge against the Wichita Thunder.

A cancer diagnosis hit Maurizio’s Rush family when Scott Burt announced his leave of absence to the locker room in early December. After keeping his mom’s battle close to the heart last season, ‘Mo’ and his head coach shared a special moment.

“When Burtie told us his situation, I went in and I said, ‘My mom is fighting. You have to fight. We are all supporting you. It is just another battle in the road and you have to keep pushing forward. Things will always turn out the right way.’,” Maurizio said.

Tonight, Maurizio and his mom will get to share another moment that neither will forget. Maria Colella, alongside Scott Burt and Dr. Thomas Fulbright, will drop the puck before the game on Rush Fights Cancer Night.

“With someone so close to you going through this, you have that extra fight for them,” Maurizio said. “You never know what is going to happen. You have to take every day, be happy, be able to wake up and either go to work or be surrounded by loved ones. Some people do not have them as they were taken by this horrible disease, and those are the folks we are playing for this weekend.”