The wrongful death civil suit trial against former St. Louis Blues hockey player Rob Ramage –involving a car accident in Canada that took the life of ex-hockey player Keith Magnuson—began in St. Louis County Circuit Court this week, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

Dan Kotin, one of the Magnuson family’s attorneys, alleged that Ramage was drunk and his rental car had crossed the center line of a highway on Dec. 15, 2003, causing a head-on collision. Magnuson, a former Blackhawk player and coach, was a passenger in Ramage's rental car.

Ramage was driving a car owned by National Car Rental. The rental company by law is automatically a defendant in such cases, Kotin noted.

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that last month Ramage was found guilty of impaired driving that caused a death and four other criminal charges. The wife, son and daughter of Magnuson, who was 56 when he was killed in the car crash in Toronto, are seeking damages in seven figures.