Fighting Walleye to host Orange Wave Night hockey game to honour Indigenous teammates

Hockey is meant to be inclusive for all. But it's no secret it hasn't always been that way for some athletes both on and off the ice.

The sport is no stranger to racism and discrimination, and that's why the Kam River Fighting Walleye team is doing it's part to forge an inclusive environment for current and future players.

On Saturday, the Junior A hockey team will hold its Orange Wave Night to honour their Indigenous players. 

The team, whose home arena is based just outside Thunder Bay, Ont., has created jerseys specifically for the event. They'll be auctioned off to create scholarships for graduating Indigenous player to help further their post-secondary education.

"We came up with the idea of having a specialty jersey for the night and to auction those jerseys off before the game, or a week, and to see what sort of money we can bring in. And 100 percent of those proceeds will go through this to the scholarship," said Derek Geddes, president of the Fighting Walleye.

The first 500 fans to enter the arena Saturday will also receive Orange Wave towels, and the pre-game ceremony will feature drummers and the national anthem sung in Ojibway. 

The jerseys themselves include the colours of the medicine wheel — red, white, black, and yellow — with the Fighting Walleye logo in the centre. 

Sharing culture 'means a lot' to athlete

Trenton Morrisseau plays on the team and said its sponsor, Warrior Supplies, did a great job representing the medicine wheel, adding it's an important part of his culture.

He said he couldn't be prouder to not only wear the jersey, but show off his culture. Morrisseau said he's never really had the chance to do that, and is proud of growing up and coming from his community of Fort William First Nation.

"If I can share some of my culture and some of my background with the rest of our community, it just means a lot to me. And that's creating awareness [of] the great game of hockey," said Morrisseau.

"I think… it'll give the people from our community more insight on … some of the things we've kind of gone through and still continue to go through [to] this day," he added.

Fighting Walleye coach Matt Valley said the rest of the team is excited about the event and at its core, it's about awareness, education, inclusivity and reconciliation.

"It doesn't seem very often that we take the time to boil things down to what really matters. And I think events like this do."

Valley is not only proud of his team and

who they're shaping up to be, but is also proud of Morrisseau, who has made an impression on him.

"He makes me a better coach and, you know, I'm very proud of him. And I hope that whether this scholarship amount is a million dollars or five thousand,  that he uses it because he's one heck of a player that's going to have a lot of options next year," Valley said.

Geddes hopes to raise $10,000 for the scholarships. As of Wednesday, the fundraiser had reached  $7,000.

Bidding on the jerseys will end on March 16.