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Hockey Hall of Famer Bryan Trottier will be featured on a Canada Post stamp to celebrate Indigenous leaders in sport.
Stamps featuring Trottier, a six-time Stanley Cup champion as a player, Chief Wilton Littlechild and Edward Lennie were unveiled Wednesday at the Calgary Public Library.
Canada Post launched the first of its Indigenous leaders stamp series in 2022 to highlight the contributions of First Nations, Inuit and Métis people who have helped preserve their culture and improve the quality of life for Indigenous Peoples of Canada.
Trottier, of Val Marie, Sask., is the all-time leader in points and assists for the New York Islanders. The 69-year-old co-founded the Aboriginal Alumni Hockey Team, which has played games, offered clinics and provided mentorship to young people across Canada.
Littlechild, from Maskwacis, Alta., is a former member of Parliament and commissioner of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada. He helped found the National Indian Athletic Association, the North American Indigenous Games and the World Indigenous Nations Games.
Inuvik’s Lennie, who died in 2020 at age 86, helped found the Northern Games and preserve Arctic sports. He coached athletes in traditional events such as the kneel jump, the high kick and the arm pull.
The stamps will be available at select Canada Post outlets starting Friday.
Trottier, who is Cree, Métis, Chippewa and Irish, played 18 NHL seasons. He won four Stanley Cups with the Islanders and two with the Pittsburgh Penguins before earning a seventh Cup as an assistant coach of the Colorado Avalanche in 2001.
Trottier hopes kids are inspired to dream big
“You can dream about playing the NHL, scoring goals, winning the Stanley Cup. You don’t dream about getting your face on a Canadian stamp,” Trottier said in a phone interview.
“The fact that they’re recognizing the Indigenous aspect of my heritage, I think, is really awesome. Hopefully it inspires generations of Indigenous kids out there that have dreams of achieving something fun, whether it’s in sport or art or music or whatever their dreams are.”
Bryan Trottier and New York Islanders teammates Mike Bossy and Clark Gillies were known as the Trio Grande, one of the greatest lines in NHL history. He explains what it was like playing with Bossy and Gillies — and how the line got its name.
Trottier knows the 82-year-old Littlechild well, as their paths have often crossed during their work in Indigenous sport.
“I’ve known him 35, 40 years now. It seems like every time we go to an event, he’s there, and he’s got such a great sense of humour,” Trottier said.
“He’s quite the inspirational talker. I really enjoy our friendship, and he’s someone we all look up to.”
Each man’s portrait and their contribution are depicted in each of the three stamp designs.
Lennie’s portrait is paired with an image of the high kick set against an Arctic landscape.
Littlechild appears in his signature cowboy hat beside young athletes running over Alberta’s rolling hills.
Trottier’s portrait of a focused NHL player is matched with a triumphant image of him hoisting the Stanley Cup.
“It’s an amazing piece of artwork,” Trottier said.
