A young franchise typically doesn’t have the opportunity to honor one of its former players post-retirement. That is not the case tonight as the Nashville Predators honored an all-time fan favorite, forward Jordin Tootoo, before their game against the Dallas Stars.
The former Brandon Wheat King was drafted by the Preds in fourth round of the 2001 NHL Draft. Come 2003-04, he became a full-time NHL roster player fresh out of junior before playing the entirety of 2004-05 with the Milwaukee Admirals, Nashville’s top minor league affiliate. When it was all said and done, Tootoo played 486 games over eight seasons in Music City and remains a fan favorite.
With his daughter Sienna by his side, Tootoo dropped the ceremonial first puck with the captains of both clubs, Roman Josi and Jamie Benn. He also recorded a “Let’s go Preds!” chant video before the game and received a great video tribute at the end of the first period featuring current players and New York Islanders Head Coach Barry Trotz.
His 725 career penalty minutes still rank tops on Nashville’s all-time list while his 79 assists rank 27th.
Prior to the festivities, I sat down with the Preds legend and talked about everything from how the city has changed to his first game to being the first player of Inuit descent to play in the National Hockey League to his unique perspective on Nashville’s run to the Stanley Cup Final in 2017.
Also, to hear him reflect on how the organization stood by him during a very difficult time in his life forces one to think about Austin Watson right now. Here’s somebody who’s been through something similar and how he pieced his life — and career — back together thanks in large part to the way the team treated him during that time. It’s a great reminder that these guys may be hockey players but they’re human beings first.
That audio is below.
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HEADLINE PHOTO: Jeremy K. Gover
INSET PHOTO: Bob Kohl
