McSweeney’s WHL Community Collective: Regina Pats
Regina, Sask.- How do you encapsulate thousands of years of culture in a jersey?
Metis-Cree designer Rodger Ross and his creative partner Quentin Karmark of Four Claws Inc. immediately thought of the eight-point Morning Star when tasked with designing a new Regina Pats uniform for the team’s third annual Indigenous Celebration Night.
“The morning star, in our culture, is a representation of hope,” Ross explained in a jersey reveal video. “The dawn of a new day for us. That connection to all of creation is really, really important, and it’s relevant in every part of our lives. We now use star blanket designs to honor people, and the star blanket is wrapped around the person that we’re honoring and gifting and it’s, basically, a symbol of protection.”
The end result?
A bright tapestry of the Pats’ traditional red and blue interwoven with yellow, white and vibrant sunrise hues in a star blanket pattern.
“Those four colors are critical for us,” Ross added, “That being yellow, red, blue and white. Those are the four traditional colors that we use in the four directions.”
🌿🎨A look at the inspiration behind our Indigenous Celebration Night jerseys!
🔗Bid now- https://t.co/49bJ9fJnpk#SeeThemRise #IndigenousCelebration #PatsCommunity @TheWHL
Presented by George Gordon Development Ltd. pic.twitter.com/0euJWai1ir— Regina Pats (@WHLPats) February 5, 2025
For Pats forward and Ochapowace Cree Nation member Connor Bear, the uniforms hit the nail on the head.
“Oh, it was awesome,” Bear said of the big reveal. “I’ve never seen anything like that. The design of the Morning Star blanket is just phenomenal.”
The 17-year-old says the motif is actually quite similar to a star blanket he received while playing in a tournament honouring Saskatchewan Sports Hall-of-Famer and one of the first Indigenous NHL players, Fred Sasakamoose.
Ross also had an emotional reaction when he saw Bear wearing the jersey for the first time, and again when he saw the whole team decked out in their new threads on February 7, 2025.
Growing up in the Regina area, Ross loved sports but rarely saw himself or his culture reflected in that space.
“To see it all come together, to see them all wearing something that reflected my people… It’s so hard to describe, because it goes beyond pride, and it goes beyond that, you know, ‘I did that kind of thing’. It’s got nothing to do with ego,” Ross explained. “It has everything to do with my community, it’s finally represented in a place that I’ve admired my whole life, you know, because I have friends who played for the Pats, and I was a hockey player and we all aspired to play with the Pats.
“The response from our people and the pride that they had in Connor, especially, wearing that jersey, but to see the whole team dressed that way was pretty phenomenal.”
What’s more, Bear and the Pats pulled out a 4-2 win over the visiting Wenatchee Wild on Indigenous Celebration Night, which was also one of their highest-attended games of the season.
Postgame, the uniforms were auctioned off with proceeds benefiting the SCEP Centre Society of Regina Early Intervention & Training Services.
But for Bear and the Pats, it was important that the partnership with local Indigenous groups didn’t stop at the game.
Prior to the match, Bear and Pats players and staff hosted a skate with young players from George Gordon First Nation.
Growing up, Bear looked up to his cousin, Hershey Bears blueliner Ethan Bear, who captured a WHL Championship with the Seattle Thunderbirds and was named WHL Defenceman of the Year in 2017, and twins Jordyn and Kyla Bear, who made their Team Canada debut in 2019 at the National Women’s Under-18 Championship and now play in the NCAA.
He’s glad to carry the torch as another role model for the next wave of young Indigenous hockey players.
A huge thank you to George Gordon First Nation for coming out to the Brandt Centre for our practice with the Pats!
Also a huge shoutout to Connor Bear, Kolten Bridgeman, and Tristan and Taylor Frei for running the skate 🏒 pic.twitter.com/LWGfsHzr6Z
— Regina Pats (@WHLPats) January 12, 2025
Pats players also met with Knowledge Keeps to learn some traditional dances and count to five in Cree.
“It took them a while, but I kind of helped them out a bit and it was actually really fun,” Bear added. “Just knowing that they can look and see how we do things and how our culture runs, and just understanding where I come from and what we and my culture have been through, just honoring everyone and each other.”
The Western Hockey League strives to promote and foster a welcoming environment in communities close to our 22 clubs in Western Canada and the Pacific Northwest. Every team has the creative freedom to allow their players and staff to work with the organizations and groups that they are most passionate about. The end goal is to create and maintain long-lasting relationships and ongoing partnerships within their community.
Through the McSweeney’s WHL Community Collective, we aim to highlight these outstanding initiatives done by each club throughout the season.
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