Miles Morrisseau
ICT
The National Hockey League’s conference final match-ups kick off Thursday, May 18, and Indigenous players are expected to play a significant role in both series.
Brandon Montour, Mohawk, has been a leader for the Florida Panthers on defense and on the scoreboard during the team’s Stanley Cup run. The Cats will face the Carolina Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference Finals after dispatching the Toronto Maple Leafs in five games in the second round.
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Zach Whitecloud, Sioux Valley Dakota Nation, and his Vegas Golden Knights punched their ticket into the Western Conference Finals against the Dallas Stars with a six-game series win over the Edmonton Oilers in the second round. Whitecloud spent critical minutes on the ice in that series against the undisputed top offensive duo in the league.
The strong play on both teams is bringing quiet murmurings of a potential for an Indigenous face-off in the Stanley Cup finals, though it’s anybody’s game at this point since the Stanley Cup favorites, the Boston Bruins, were sent packing in round one by the wild-card Panthers.
As of Sunday, May 21, the Panthers and the Golden Knights had each gone up 2-0 over their opponents after winning the first two games in each conference.
The conference finals come with other big news in Indigenous hockey: Rapper Snoop Dogg revealed on Instagram that his bid to take over the Ottawa Senators with a coalition that includes investor Neko Sparks could also feature an equity stake for a First Nation.
In the NHL conference finals, meanwhile, the Knights remain the odds-on favorite as the top team in the Western Conference, while the Panthers once again are the underdogs, a role they have enjoyed throughout the playoffs.
Two of the most-famous Indigenous NHL players faced off in the Stanley Cup Finals in 1980, when Reggie Leach, Ojibwe, and his Philadelphia Flyers lost to Bryan Trottier, Métis Nation, and the New York Islanders.
The outcome of the conference finals could also determine whether Canada gets a close-up look at the Stanley Cup. There is a tradition that each player on the championship team gets to take the Stanley Cup home for the day. Since the teams with two Indigenous players from Canada coincidentally eliminated the last two Canadian teams in the playoffs, the Stanley Cup could make the rounds at a First Nations community if at least one of the teams pulls off the win.
The NHL Conference Finals could continue until the end of the month if either series goes to game seven. The Stanley Cup finals are scheduled to begin in early June.
On the road
The two Indigenous hockey players, both defensemen, have drawn accolades for their time on the ice during the playoffs.
Montour’s six goals in the playoffs continues to lead all defenseman. Morgan Reilly of the Toronto Maple Leafs had four, the nearest of those that remain in the hunt is Brent Burns of the Hurricanes, who has two goals.
Once again, the Panthers will begin a playoff series on the road in Raleigh, North Carolina, after sneaking into the Eastern Conference playoffs as the final wild card. Travel hasn’t hurt Florida this playoff season, as they won three games in Boston in round one – including a crushing game seven – to beat the Bruins.
In dropping the Maple Leafs in five, the Cats denied Toronto a win on home ice, leaving the tens of thousands of fans inside the arena and thousands watching on big screens outside with nothing to look forward to but a horrible commute.
Montour leads the Panthers in ice time these playoffs and in the decisive game five no one on either team played as much; he was on the ice for nearly 33 minutes.
The Knights will be at home for their opening game on Friday against the Dallas Stars.
Whitecloud and his defensive partner Nicolas Hague have special teams assignments as the second penalty-killing unit. Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl with the Oilers finished first and second, respectively, in scoring this season, but those high-powered weapons could not strike enough to win. Whitecloud finished the series plus 2.
Whitecloud got his first goal of the playoffs when he scored on a beautiful give-and-go with Reilly Smith putting in the top, right-hand corner over Oilers goalie Stuart Skinner. Unfortunately, the goal and win became overshadowed by the online and media storm that erupted over comments considered insensitive at least and racist at most by ESPN broadcaster John Anderson, who mocked Whitecloud’s name.
The broadcaster apologized but it was young Whitecloud who actually reached out. In a short press conference, the Sioux Valley Dakota hockey star talked about his pride in his heritage, his name and the need to learn.
“I’m proud of my culture,” Whitecloud said in an emotional statement. “I’m proud of where I come from, where I was raised, who I was raised by. I carry my grandfather’s last name and nothing makes me more proud to be able to do that. In our culture we are raised to be the first ones to reach out and offer our help, so that’s why I reached out to John this morning. I wanted to make sure that he understood that I understood people make mistakes.”
Action off the ice
In other Indigenous NHL news, Ethan Bear, Cree from Ochapawace First Nation, is suiting up for Team Canada at the International Ice Hockey Championships, which continue through May 28 in Latvia. The 25-year-old plays defense for the Vancouver Canucks, who have two other Indigenous players on their roster, Micheal Ferland and Brady Keeper, who are also Cree.
And rapper Snoop Dogg is getting into the mix, pulling together a bid to take over the Senators with a coalition that includes Sparks. He posted a video to Instagram on Monday, where he alluded to reports that the Sparks-led bid would provide an equity stake for First Nations.
“It’s your boy big Snoop Dogg giving a shout-out to the First Nations of Canada, that’s right, for joining Neko Sparks in the Ottawa Senators bid,” Dogg said, while wearing a Senators jersey. “We trying to do something. We trying to make a difference.”
The investment group has gained the support of the Kitigan Zibi Algonquin chief and council.
“While multiple bidders reached out to us, none have been more proactive than the lead investors behind Neko Sparks Group,” according to a statement from KZA Chief Dylan Whiteduck. “We welcome the sincerity, thoughtfulness, and seriousness with which they intensified their talks with us over the past 72 hours.”
The First Nation has claim over a highly coveted area of downtown Ottawa called Lebreton Flats, which has long been seen as a dream location for a new arena. The current arena is outside the city core, in the township of Nepean.
The Senators franchise has attracted a lot of high-profile celebrity interest that started with Canadian actor Ryan Reynolds of the “Deadpool” movies, who has since dropped his bid, but still includes Snoop Dogg and another group led by pop star The Weeknd.
The nation’s capital has suddenly become a meeting place between big money, big celebrity, hockey and First Nations rights and land claims. More action on and off the ice is expected before the season is over.
*Updated: This story has been updated as of May 22, 2023, to include the first four games of the conference finals.
NHL Conference Finals Schedule
CFlorida Panthers vs. Carolina Hurricanes
Game 1: Thursday, May 18, FLA@CAR, 8 p.m. ET, TNT, CBC, SN, TVAS
Game 2: Saturday, May 20, FLA@CAR, 8 p.m. ET, TNT, CBC, SN, TVAS
Game 3: Monday, May 22, CAR@FLA, 8 p.m. ET, TNT, CBC, SN, TVAS
Game 4: Wednesday, May 24, CAR@FLA, 8 p.m. ET, TNT, CBC, SN, TVAS
Game 5*: Friday, May 26, FLA@CAR, 8 p.m. ET, TNT, CBC, SN, TVAS
Game 6*: Sunday, May 28, 8 p.m. ET, TNT, CBC, SN, TVAS
Game 7*: Tuesday, May 30, FLA@CAR, 8 p.m. ET, TNT, CBC, SN, TVAS
Vegas Golden Knights vs. Dallas Stars
Game 1: Friday, May 19: DAL@VGK, 8:30 PM ET|ESPN, CBC, SN, TVAS
Game 2: Sunday, May 21: DAL@VGK, 3:00 PM ET|ESPN, CBC, SN, TVAS
Game 3: Tuesday, May 23: VGK@DAL, 8:00 PM ET|ESPN, CBC, SN, TVAS
Game 4: Thursday, May 25: VGK@DAL, 8:00 PM ET|ESPN, CBC, SN, TVAS
Game 5*: Saturday, May 27: DAL@VGK, 8:00 PM ET|ESPN, CBC, SN, TVAS
Game 6*: Monday, May 29: VGK@DAL, 8:00 PM ET|ESPN, CBC, SN, TVAS
Game 7*: Wednesday, May 31: DAL@VGK, 9:00 PM ET|ESPN, CBC, SN, TVAS
*If necessary
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