On October 18th, the Chief Old Sun Hockey program had the great pleasure of having Ted Nolan, Brandan Nolan, and Jordan Nolan, come out and visit during one of their practices. It was very exciting as they were there to sign autographs and give some short motivational talks to the participants in the program.
Ted Nolan is a world-renowned coach and hockey player. He is from Northern Ontario, being from the Garden River First Nation. He played for the Detroit Red Wings and the Pittsburgh Penguins; he also has coached, starting with the Soo Greyhounds and then for the Buffalo Sabres.
Both of Nolan’s sons, Brandon Nolan and Jordan Nolan, were very well versed in the sport of hockey and have a lot of achievements. Brandon Nolan and Jordan Nolan, like their father, are from the Garden River First Nation, with Brandon playing in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL), being a two-time OHL All-Star and a consistent top scorer in his 3 years of being with the Generals. Brandon also played with many other teams in his professional hockey career and also played in various other leagues, including the Manitoba Moose (AHL), Columbia Inferno (ECHL), Vaxjo Lakers (Swedish League), Bridgeport Sound Tigers (AHL), Albany River Rats (AHL), and the Carolina Hurricanes (NHL).
Jordan Nolan won the Stanley Cup 3 times, twice with the Los Angeles Kings in 2012 and 2014, and then in 2019 with the St. Louis Blues (2019). Jordan was drafted into the NHL in the 7th round in the 2009 draft.
All three have founded the 3NOLANS, an organization where they offer hockey skill development camps for First Nations youth throughout Canada. They aim to help youth live a healthy lifestyle and put them on the path to success in the future.
This is very good for our community, as there were many youth from the Chief Old Sun Hockey program who were very excited to meet the hockey stars and got very motivated from hearing their success stories. This could bring a lot of opportunities for the youth of Siksika.
