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Canku Ota |
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(Many Paths) |
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An Online Newsletter Celebrating Native America |
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June 14, 2003 - Issue 89 |
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Tootoo Signs with the Predators |
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credits: Photo: Jordin
Tootoo receiving his award from the National Aboriginal Achievement Foundation
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IQALUIT, Nunavut - Jordin Tootoo is the first Inuk to sign a contract with a National Hockey League. Tootoo signed a three-year contract with the Nashville Predators on Thursday. The 20-year old hockey player from Rankin Inlet says it's a day he'll never forget. Jordin Tootoo got the call from
the Nashville Predators on Thursday. Tootoo says its the fulfillment of a lifelong ambition. "You know this is one of the goals that I had growing up," he says. "To sign an NHL contract is a huge honour and there's bigger things to happen yet." Tootoo was drafted into the NHL in 2001, but until now hasn't been put under contract. Tootoo won a silver medal with Team Canada at the 2003 World Junior Championships in Halifax in January. This past season he tied for top scorer of the Brandon Wheat Kings of the Western Hockey League. Tootoo has also been named Brandon's most popular player four years in a row. Tootoo says he can't release further details of his NHL contract with the Predators. He'll head to Nashville at the end of June for a conditioning camp. Jordin
Tootoo has signed a three-year contract with the Nashville Predators,
becoming the first Inuit hockey player to have earned the right to wear
an NHL jersey. A native of Rankin Inlet, Nunavut, Tootoo finalized the
details of his contract while conducting a student focused motivational
speaking tour of schools in Canada's arctic. "I've
been encouraging young people to work hard in following their dreams and
today I am able to tell them that with hard work dreams really can come
true," said Tootoo. "It is especially sweet to be able to close
my contract while in Nunavut, surrounded by the family and friends who
have been my support and inspiration." Tootoo
was a fourth-round pick in the 2001 draft and has spent the past two years
honing his skills with the Brandon Wheat Kings in the Junior A, Western
Hockey League. As a strong all-round player Tootoo was a leading point
scorer who earned a reputation as an aggressive, hard-hitting and level
headed forward. The 2003 World Junior Championship showcased Tootoo's
ability to play at the international level, where as a member of Team
Canada he brought home a silver medal. "With
the Wheat Kings, my role was to be the go-to guy and to be a goal scorer.
At the World Junior Championship my job was to stop the other team's top
player from scoring," said Tootoo. Tootoo
will begin skating with the Nashville Predators at a conditioning camp
beginning in late June. The NorTerra Group of Companies is providing the support for "Toots" on his northern speaking tour. NorTerra is an aboriginal owned company comprised of the Inuvialuit Development Corporation, representing the Inuvialuit of the western arctic and by the Nunasi Corporation, representing the Inuit of Nunavut. As an Inuk from Rankin Inlet, Tootoo is a birthright shareholder in the Nunasi Corporation.
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