Ehrlo Outdoor Hockey League (OHL) got a taste of the big time on Feb. 23rd when Elder and former NHL player Fred Sasakamoose came by to officially drop the puck at the league’s two indoor games, held at the Cooperator’s Centre in Regina.

Amanda and Fred

Fred became the NHL’s first Canadian Aboriginal hockey player when he played for the Chicago Blackhawks in 1953-54. He was later honoured as an Aboriginal Achiever and in 2007 was inducted into the Sports Hall of Fame.

Fred has come out to Ranch Ehrlo on several occasions to speak to youth and has dropped the puck at the OHL’s indoor games before as well. But on this occasion, Sport Venture was able to give back in a special way.

“We welcome Fred out any time he’s able to come because he is really able to connect with the youth,” explained Amanda McConnell, manager of Sport Venture. “But in this case, Fred reached out to us to see if we could help some of the youth in his community.”

The youth, explained Fred, had gotten into some trouble. As an Elder, he was helping them to work off the debts, but the youth also wanted to play hockey. Knowing firsthand how sports can be a saviour, Fred reached out to Sport Venture to see if they had any gear for him to bring home.

“We were able to find four full sets of equipment, except for helmets, which are in very short stock this time of year,” Amanda said.

Fred brings with him an inspirational message of hope and the importance of believing in oneself, as well as a simple message for today’s youth.

“Education is number one. Sports are second. I didn’t have a choice (in my education), but sports helped me become respectable,” he explained. “They taught me discipline.”

“It was nice for us to be able to give back to Fred and his community, because he’s provided our youth with invaluable advice and inspiration on more than one occasion,” Amanda said. “This kind of give and take is really what Sport Venture, and Ranch Ehrlo as a whole, are all about.”