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‘Indian Horse’ Canadian hockey movie finally makes it to the U.S. big screen

03 Monday Dec 2018

Posted by William Douglas in Uncategorized

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Anaheim Ducks, Brandon Montour, Devin Buffalo, Edmonton Oilers, Ethan Bear, Fred Sasakamoose, Greenville Swamp Rabbits, Harvard University, Indian Horse, Maryann Macdonald

“Nobody wants to see an Indian movie.”

That was the general response director Stephen Campanelli and the makers of “Indian Horse” initially received from the Canadian and Hollywood movie industry when they pitched the idea of bringing the fictional story of a First Nations boy – a survivor of Canada’s notorious Catholic residential schools – and his difficult path to adulthood and hockey fame to the big screen.

“‘Does the general public really want to see this?’ That was the attitude. ‘Why bring up the bad past,’ which really wasn’t that long ago.” Campanelli told me recently. “But it’s a great story that people connect with. And if you don’t connect with the part about the racism and horrible things that happened to the indigenous people, you connect with the hockey – you see the resilience and the power of a sport like hockey to change people’s lives.”

AJ Kapasheist is one of three actors who portrays Saul Indian Horse, a hockey-playing survivor of Canada’s residential schools, at various stages in his life (Photo/Elevation Pictures).

American audiences now have the chance to see “Indian Horse” as the Canadian-made film executive produced by Academy Award-winning actor/director Clint Eastwood has finally crossed the border.

It took five years before the film was finally made and released in Canada in April. And it took months to get distribution interest in the United States. But for a product that folks allegedly wouldn’t see, “Indian Horse” has done alright, collecting 16 film awards.

“We work in an industry where indigenous stories and characters on the screen do not reach mainstream audiences,” said  Christine Haebler, one of the film’s producers. “An all-Native or indigenous acted movie is not what distributors or theaters are used to seeing and selling on their screens even in 2018.”

But the timing seems right for “Indian Horse” – for positive and negative reasons.

The film comes at a time when a growing number Native American/First Nations players are achieving success at all levels of hockey – from Montreal Canadiens goaltender Carey Price giving a nod to his heritage in accepting the Vezina Trophy in 2015 to the Ditidaht First Nation’s Maryna Macdonald playing defense for Harvard University this season.

It also comes at a time when indigenous hockey players are still experiencing a disturbing number of racist incidents and continue to endure hateful taunts about their heritage.

Last Friday, a pee wee hockey game near Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, ended before the third period after players and parents allegedly hurled racially and culturally insensitive remarks toward the opposing team, the Waywayseecappo Wolverines.

“We heard many parents saying ‘Those boys are just going to get drunk, maybe they’re drunk now. They’re probably hung over…,”  Tanis Brandon, the mother of a Wolverines player and the team’s assistant manager, told CBC. “I felt like crying…As an adult, I didn’t even know how to handle it if someone called me a dirty Indian or a savage.”

In May, members of the First Nation Elite Bantam AAA team endured racist slurs and taunts at the Coupe Challenge Quebec in Quebec City, Canada.

“Indian Horse,” based on the late author Richard Wagamese’s best-selling novel of the same name, will be screened in Tempe, Arizona, on Friday and will be shown in other theaters nationwide later this month.

Actor Forrest Goodluck plays a young Saul Indian Horse, who hones his hockey skill at a Canadian residential school (Photo/Elevation Pictures).

It was shown at the Yakama Nation Heritage Theater in Toppenish, Washington, and at the 23rd annual Red Nation International Film Festival in Los Angeles last month.

The movie doesn’t pull punches. Through the eyes of protagonist Saul Indian Horse, the film gives an unvarnished portrayal of life for Indigenous youth who were plucked from their families and shipped to residential schools, which were established under the premise of helping the children assimilate to white Canadian culture.

Between the 1880s and 1996, more than 150,000 indigenous children attended  residential schools. Many of them reported being sexually, physically and psychologically abused by priests, nuns, and other teachers.

The Canadian government formally apologized for the schools in 2008 and a Truth and Reconciliation Commission was established out of a negotiated settlement that included monetary compensation for survivors.

Fred Sasakamoose, a residential school survivor, became the NHL’s first indigenous player with treaty status when he skated for the Chicago Black Hawks in 1953-54(Photo/Courtesy Hockey Hall of Fame) and Getty Embed.

Fred Sasakamoose cried as he watched “Indian Horse” at a screening in April. Sasakamoose, who is Ahtahkakoop Cree, became the first indigenous player with treaty status to play in the National Hockey League, accomplishing the feat when he skated for the Chicago Black Hawks against the Toronto Maple Leafs on February 27, 1954.

Like Saul Indian Horse, Sasakamoose found an escape from the horrors of the residential schools in hockey.

Harvard University defenseman Maryna Macdonald.

“It hit back the pain,” Sasakamoose said of the film. “The impact of that movie – it was my life. It is a good movie, but it is also painful.”

While there are some similarities between Sasakamoose and the movie’s lead character, Haebler notes that “Saul Indian Horse took a divergent path of Fred Sasakamoose’s life.”

“Without spoiling the movie, Saul Indian Horses experience differs greatly,” said said.

Harvard’s Macdonald, whose grandmother attended a residential school, said “Indian Horse” is “a great movie that, obviously touches on a heavy topic.”

“The depiction they have in the movie is pretty powerful,” she told me. “It kind of gives light for a lot of people who might not understand a lot about residential schools.”

And it gives light to how hard it was for players like Sasakamoose to make their way in a mostly-white hockey world. Sasakamoose’s NHL career spanned only 11 games in the 1953-54 season in which the talented center failed to score.

Harvard University defenseman Maryna Macdonald in action (Photo/Gil Talbot).

But his brief presence blazed the trail for other indigenous players like Reggie Leach, the high-scoring Philadelphia Flyers right wing who won the Conn Smythe Trophy as the best Stanley Cup Playoffs performer in 1976, and center Bryan Trottier, a seven-time Stanley Cup champion on three different teams and the NHL’s Most Valuable Player in 1979.

Now, a new generation of Native American/First Nations players, like Macdonald, are at the dawn of their careers, helping to further break down barriers and debunk myths.

Brandon Montour, patrols the blue line for the Anaheim Ducks; Edmonton Oilers defensive prospect Ethan Bear skates for the Bakersfield Condors of the American Hockey League; and Devin Buffalo has gone from being a standout netminder at Ivy League Dartmouth College to a rookie for the Greenville Swamp Rabbits of the ECHL.

Greenville Swamp Rabbits goaltender Devin Buffalo hopes his play will help shatter stereotypes against Native American/First Nations hockey players (Photo/Greenville Swamp Rabbits).

Buffalo told CBC in October that his dream “to show people where a Native hockey player could go and overcome these obstacles and stereotypes.”

Follow the Color of Hockey on Facebook and Twitter @ColorOfHockey. And download the Color of Hockey podcast from iTunes, Stitcher, SoundCloud and Google Play.

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Calgary Flames-Edmonton Oilers game showcases hockey’s diversity

01 Sunday Apr 2018

Posted by William Douglas in Uncategorized

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Al Montoya, Calgary Flames, Darnell Nurse, Edmonton Oilers, Ethan Bear, Jujhar Khaira, Paul Jerrard, Spencer Foo

The Calgary Flames‘ 3-2 win Saturday over the Edmonton Oilers had little impact on the standings – neither National Hockey League Western Conference team is within Stanley CupPlayoffs range.

However, the game at Calgary’s Saddledome was meaningful in terms of the diversity that was on display, further showing that the face of hockey is steadily changing.

The game featured the NHL debut of Flames forward Spencer Foo, a high-scoring former star at NCAA Division I Union College. An Edmonton native, Foo played 12:45 minutes, including 1:20 minutes on the power play, and registered a shot on goal.

Embed from Getty Images

Giving instructions to Foo and other Flames players was assistant coach Paul Jerrard, currently the only black NHL coach who stands the bench during games. He traded a stick for a clipboard after a minor league hockey career that spanned from 1987-88 to 1996-97. He did appear in five games for the Minnesota North Stars in 1988-89.

“There isn’t anybody of color I emulated in coaching, I just wanted to push hard and work and see where it would take me,” Jerrard told Canada’s Sportsnet in February. “It would be interesting to see what would happen if there was a black coach in the league. There might be one someday, I don’t know.”

Embed from Getty Images

Trying to keep Foo and the youthful Flames at bay on the Oilers back end Saturday night were defensemen Darnell Nurse and Ethan Bear and goaltender Al Montoya.

Nurse was the seventh overall pick in the 2014 NHL draft, one of two black blue-liners chosen in the first round. The other was Columbus Blue Jackets defender Seth Jones (chosen fourth overall by the Nashville Predators). Nurse has 6 goals and 19 assists in 79 games for the Oilers.

Embed from Getty Images

Bear, who is from the Ochapowace First Nation in southeastern Saskatchewan, Canada, was an Edmonton 2015 fifth-round draft pick. The NHL rookie has a goal and 3 assists in 15 games with the Oilers.

Embed from Getty Images

Montoya, who was traded to the Oilers by the Montreal Canadiens, became the NHL’s first Cuban-American player when the New York Rangers chose him with the sixth overall pick in the 2004 NHL Draft.

Embed from Getty Images

Oilers left wing Jujhar Khaira, a Canadian of South Asian heritage, logged 11:02 minutes of ice time Saturday night, including 59 seconds on the power play and 1:15 minutes killing penalties.

Khaira, an Oilers 2013 third-round pick, has 11 goals and 10 assists in 66 games for Edmonton.

Embed from Getty Images

Diversity in Saturday’s game wasn’t limited to players and coaches. Shandor Alphonso, a black Canadian, was one of the two linesmen working the game.

Embed from Getty Images

And, of course,  David Amber manned the broadcast studio as host of Hockey Night in Canada’s late game.

Hockey Night in Canada hosts David Amber (L) and Ron MacLean (Photo/CNW Group/Sportsnet).

Follow the Color of Hockey on Facebook and Twitter @ColorOfHockey. And download the Color of Hockey podcast from iTunes, Stitcher, SoundCloud and Google Play

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Players of color power their teams to Mastercard Memorial Cup tournament

18 Thursday May 2017

Posted by William Douglas in Uncategorized

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Bokondji Imama, Columbus Blue Jackets, Edmonton Oilers, Ethan Bear, Keegan Kolesar, Mathieu Joseph, Saint John Sea Dogs, Seattle Thunderbirds, Tampa Bay Lightning

The 2017 Mastercard Memorial Cup begins Friday and players of color are poised to play starring roles at the major junior hockey championship.

The Saint John Sea Dogs, champs of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, Seattle Thunderbirds, winners of the Western Hockey League crown, Erie Otters, kings of the Ontario Hockey League, and the Windsor Spitfires, the tournament’s host, vie for the coveted Cup.

Saint John Sea Dogs forward Mathieu Joseph was second on his team in scoring in 2016-17 (Photo/David Connell/Saint John Sea Dogs).

The offensively-potent Sea Dogs are powered by right wing Mathieu Joseph and left wing Bokondji Imama.

Joseph, 20, a 2015 Tampa Bay Lightning fourth-round draft pick and a member of the Silver Medal-winning 2017 Canadian World Juniors team, was the Sea Dogs second-leading scorer in 2016-17 with 36 goals and 44 assists in 54 games.

Saint John Sea Dogs’ Bokondji Imama showed he’s more than a fighter by scoring 41 goals in 2016-17 (Photo/David Connell/Saint John Sea Dogs).

Imama, a Tampa Bay sixth-round selection in 2015, accepted the Lightning organization’s challenge to prove that he’s more than the feared fighter that he’s been throughout his QMJHL career.

The 20-year old showed that his shot is as hard as his fists by being the Sea Dogs’ fourth-leading scorer with 41 goals and 14 assists, all while accumulating 105 penalty minutes in 66 games.

Seattle Thunderbirds defenseman Ethan Bear was a scoring threat from the blue line in 2016-17 (Photo/Brian Liesse/Seattle Thunderbirds).

The Thunderbirds also reached the Memorial Cup tournament because of their impressive offense – from the blue line by defenseman Ethan Bear and up front by right wing Keegan Kolesar.

This was the view a lot of Western Hockey League goaltenders got of Seattle Thunderbirds forward Keegan Kolesar during the regular season (Photo/Brian Liesse/Seattle Thunderbirds).

Bear, 19, who is Ochapowace First Nation, was the definition of an offensive defenseman. He  finished third on the Thunderbirds in scoring with 28 goals and 42 assists in 67 regular season games. The Edmonton Oilers 2015 fifth-round draft pick also tallied 6 goals and 20 assists in 17 WHL playoff games.

Kolesar, 20, a third-round draft pick by the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2015, was the Thunderbirds fourth-leading scorer in 2016-17 with 26 goals and 34 assists in 54 games. He had 12 goals and 19 assists in 19 WHL playoff contests.

Jeremiah Addison of the Windsor Spitfires. (Photo/Aaron Bell/OHL Images).

When it comes to leadership on the Windsor Spitfires, there’s “Addy” and “Chatty.” Left wing Jeremiah Addison, 20, and defenseman Jalen Chatfield are such integral parts of their team that they both were voted captain toward the end of the regular season and alternated wearing the “C’ on their jerseys every other game.

“Our players selected these guys equally. They’re two great people,” Spitfires Head Coach Rocky Thompson said in March. “They are both deserving and both represent what it takes to be a leader.”

Windsor Spitfires defenseman Jalen Chatfield provided offensive pop from the blue line (Photo/Aaron Bell/OHL Images).

Addison was the team’s third-leading scorer with 24 goals and 19 assists in 51 games. Addison, a seventh-round draft pick of the Montreal Canadiens in 2015, pitched in 5 goals in five OHL playoff games.

Though not as prolific as Seattle’s Bear, defenseman Chatfield, 21, provided some offensive pop from the Windsor blue line. He had 8 goals and 20 assists in 61 regular season games and 2 assists in seven playoff games.

The Vancouver Canucks were impressed enough with Chatfield’s game to sign him to a three-year entry level contract in March.

Windsor’s Cole Purboo, left, is ranked as the 189th-best North American skater eligible for the 2017 NHL Draft (Photo/Terry Wilson/OHL Images)

Windsor right wing Cole Purboo contributed 11 goals and 6 assists in 68 regular season games. The National Hockey League’s Central Scouting ranks Purboo, 17, as the 189th-best North American prospect eligible for the 2017 NHL Draft June 23-24 at Chicago’s United Center.

There are no minority players on the Erie Otters roster.

The 2017 Mastercard Memorial Cup games will be televised live in Canada on Rogers Sportsnet and on tape delay on the NHL Network in the United States. However, the network will carry the championship game live on Sunday, May 28.

Follow the Color of Hockey on Facebook and Twitter @ColorOfHockey.

 

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What a difference a year makes for diverse 2015 NHL draft class: Part 2

28 Thursday Apr 2016

Posted by William Douglas in Uncategorized

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Andong Song, Bokondji Imama, Buffalo Sabres, Ethan Bear, Evander Kane, Rochester Americans, Tampa Bay Lightning, Washington Capitals

The brain trust of the Buffalo Sabres has lots of talent down on the farm with the AHL Rochester Americans who’ll soon join  Jack Eichel and sniper Evander Kane in terrorizing NHL goaltenders.

Forwards Justin Bailey, Nick Baptiste, and Evan Rodrigues are biding their time and getting better with the Americans. If they don’t make the Sabres roster in 2016-17, they’ll have company in Rochester: WHL Kelowna Rockets defenseman Devante Stephens.

Kelowna builds defensemen – Nashville Predators’ Shea Weber, Chicago Blackhawks’ Duncan Keith and Washington Capitals 2013 second round draft pick Madison Bowey.

Kelowna Rockets defenseman Devante Stephens hopes to be part of the Buffalo Sabres rebuilding process after the team drafted him in 2015 (Photo by Marissa Baecker/Kelowna Rockets).

Kelowna Rockets defenseman Devante Stephens hopes to be part of the Buffalo Sabres rebuilding process after the team drafted him in 2015 (Photo by Marissa Baecker/Kelowna Rockets).

The Sabres think they have another Kelowna defensive stud in Stephens, who was chosen in the fifth round with the 122nd overall pick. He scored 2 goals and 9 assists in 72 regular season games for the Rockets in 2015-16.

Edmonton feels it got a steal of the 2015 draft when the team selected Seattle Thunderbirds  defenseman Ethan Bear in the fifth round with the 124th pick. The 19-year-old high-scoring  Ochapowace First Nation member tallied 19 goals and 46 assists in 69 regular season games.

He’s maintained his scoring touch in the WHL playoffs with 3 goals and 8 assists in 11 games. In March, he was named a WHL Western Conference first-team all-star. If all goes well, the Oilers in the not-too-distant-future will have a defensive lineup that includes Bear, Caleb Jones and 2013 first-round pick Darnell Nurse.

Seattle Thunderbirds' D-man Ethan Bear hopes to patrol the Edmonton Oilers blue line someday (Photo/Brian Liesse/Seattle Thunderbirds).

Seattle Thunderbirds’ D-man Ethan Bear hopes to patrol the Edmonton Oilers blue line someday (Photo/Brian Liesse/Seattle Thunderbirds).

If all goes as defenseman Andong “Misha” Song and about a billion other folks in China hope, he’ll be patrolling the blue line for his country in the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing.

Song became the NHL’s first draft pick born in China when the New York Islanders chose him in the 172nd over pick in the sixth round in 2015.

New York Islanders draftee Andong Song wants to play in the NHL - and in the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing (Photo/David Fricke/Phillips Academy).

New York Islanders draftee Andong Song wants to play in the NHL – and in the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing (Photo/David Fricke/Phillips Academy).

He skated for Phillips Academy in Andover, Mass., where he had 1 goal and 7 assists in 27 games in 2015-16. Song is doing for hockey in China what Yao Ming did for basketball – helping trigger interest in a sport that many in the country previously hadn’t watched or played.

“When Misha Song got drafted, it just blew up,” Wei Zhong, a friend of Song’s who plays hockey for Hinsdale Central High School in Illinois told The New York Times in January. “He inspired all these kids to start playing , and some of my friends who were with hockey before to dust off their skates and start playing again.”

The Tampa Bay Lightning went for toughness when it drafted Bokondji Imama in 2015.

The Tampa Bay Lightning went for toughness when it drafted Bokondji Imama in 2015.

Bokondji Imama, who was chosen by the Tampa Bay Lightning in the sixth round with the 180th overall pick in 2015, is poised to punch and hit his way to the NHL.

The Montreal-born son of immigrants from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Imama, 19, is one of the most-feared enforcers in the QMJHL and hardest body checkers. He had 7 goals, 12 assists and 86 penalty minutes in 48 games for the Saint John Sea Dogs.

He would have had more PIMs but he was suspended 15 games by the QMJHL in December for leaving the bench to defend a 15-year-old teammate who was being roughed up by a 20-year-old  member of the Halifax Mooseheads.

Though the league punished Imama, Sea Dogs management praiseed him for his actions.

“As an organization, we fully support Boko through this difficult situation,” Sea Dogs General Manager Darrell Young said in a statement in December. “He sacrificed himself to come to the aid of a young teammate. Once again, he proved to be the ultimate teammate and team comes first with us. Boko will be a big loss for our hockey club. He is a valuable member of our team both on and off the ice.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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