Jason La Rose
Another Olympic Winter Games is coming to a close in Milan, and another chapter of Team Canada hockey history is being written in Italy.
As part of Black History Month, let’s take a look back at the seven Black athletes who have helped – and are helping – write that history.
DARREN LOWE
1984 – 7GP 2G 2A 4P (4th place)
The trailblazer, Lowe became Canada’s first Black Olympian at the 1984 Games in Sarajevo. The Toronto product scored twice—getting the Canadians even early in the third period of an eventual 4-2 win over Finland and counting the game-winner in an 8-1 win over Austria – and added a pair of assists, putting his name on the scoresheet in each of the first four games (all Canadian wins).
CLAUDE VILGRAIN
1988 – 6GP 0G 0A 0P (4th place)
Born in Haiti and raised in Quebec City, Vilgrain was a Team Canada staple in the mid-1980s, playing 145 games with Canada’s National Men’s Team from 1986-88. That run concluded in Calgary, where he went scoreless in six games in the home-ice Games.
JAROME IGINLA
2002 – 6GP 3G 1A 4P (gold medal) 2006 – 6GP 2G 1A 3P (7th place) 2010 – 7GP 5G 2A 7P (gold medal)
The 2021 Hockey Hall of Fame inductee was front and centre in a pair of games that will forever have a place in Olympic hockey lore. In 2002, the St. Albert, Alberta, native scored twice and added an assist in a 5-2 gold medal game win over the U.S. that ended a 50-year drought for Canada. Eight years later, cries of ‘Iggy! Iggy! Iggy!’ rang in the ears of Canadian fans as Iginla set up Sidney Crosby for the Golden Goal in Vancouver.
P.K. SUBBAN
2014 – 1GP 0G 0A 0P (gold medal)
Has there ever been a better seventh defenceman? As part of a deep Canadian blue-line, Subban – the reigning Norris Trophy winner—got into just a single game in Sochi, playing 11:41 in a 6-0 prelim win over Austria.
SARAH NURSE
2018 – 5GP 1G 0A 1P (silver medal) 2022 – 7GP 5G 13A 18P (gold medal) 2026 – 6GP 0G 2A 2P (medal game to be played)
The first Black woman to wear red and white on the biggest stage in sports, Nurse netted just a single goal in PyeongChang, but it was a beauty in a big game – she wired home the game-winner in a 2-1 preliminary-round victory over the U.S. The Hamilton, Ontario, product broke out in a big way in Beijing, setting an Olympic women’s hockey record for points in a single tournament with 18, earning a place on the all-star team and helping Canada regain its gold medal.
JOSH HO-SANG
2022 – 5GP 0G 3A 3P (6th place)
The Thornhill, Ontario, native played a complementary role in Beijing, averaging just over 11 minutes of ice time—only two Canadian forwards had less—and recording three assists in five games. Two of his helpers came in the prelim finale, a win over host China.
SOPHIE JAQUES
2026 – 6GP 0G 3A 3P (medal game to be played)
The first-time Olympian has been one of Canada’s steadiest defenders in Milan; averaging just over 17 minutes a game, Jaques has earned assists in three-consecutive games and is a team-best +5 while directing 13 shots on goal, third best among Canadian blue-liners.