Roddy Ross is extremely excited to begin his tenure with the Western Hockey League’s Regina Pats.
This past season, Ross played in net for the Western Hockey League’s Seattle Thunderbirds where he earned team MVP after posting a 20-21-7 record with a 3.17 G.A.A.
Following the season, this 20-year-old goalie from Canoe Lake Cree First Nation was traded in April to Regina which is closer to his home.
“It was kind of surprising and quite shocking to be traded,” Ross said right after the trade. “But obviously, that’s just the way it goes with hockey. Anything can happen and where your career takes you is not always in your hands.”
Ross, who was selected by the Philadelphia Flyers, sixth round, 169th overall in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft, played one and a half seasons with Seattle before being traded on Wednesday, April 22 to Regina along with an eighth round draft pick. In this blockbuster trade, Seattle received a second-round pick in the 2020 draft, a fourth round selection in the 2022 draft and a conditional second round pick in 2024.
“I am really excited to join the Regina Pats organization,” Ross said. “It’s closer to home and will be a lot easier for my family and for my friends to come see me play.”
During his WHL career, Ross competed in 74 games where he has together a 36-26-5-5 record.
“Roddy was a great Thunderbird,” Thunderbirds GM Bill La Forge said. “We appreciated everything he did for us, but it’s time to go with the guys who match our windows. To be able to move Roddy and acquire a goalie for the future was something that was exciting for us… it was something we felt we had to jump on. It just made too much sense for us… We were able to get Roddy closer to home and to a good spot for him.”
When Ross came to Seattle in January 2019, he shortly afterwards painted his white mask with the Thunderbirds logo, his name, and feathers on the left side of the mask. The same kind of feathers that would adorn an indigenous head dress.
“It’s a way I can show my culture and it’s something that I’m very proud of,” Ross said. “I try to show it as much as I can. I know there’s a lot of people back home who like it and they see that I’m not one of those guys who tries to shy away from my culture.”
Meanwhile, Ross, who grew up cheering for Montreal Canadiens goalie Carey Price, had nothing but great things to say about his time with the Thunderbirds organization.
“I have nothing but good things to say about the team,” Ross said. “I will miss my teammates and the atmosphere of playing in that barn. I’m still excited to play for Regina, but I will miss the Seattle fan base and the support they always showed for us. At the same time, I can’t wait to start with Regina, to meet the team and to, hopefully, make it all the way to a playoff run with them next year as well.”
One thing is for sure, there will now be a lot of proud fans in Canoe Lake First Nation sporting the Regina Pats jersey with Roddy Ross number and name proudly stitched on the back.