Kadri bringing Cup to London mosque will leave lasting legacy

Growing up in Edmonton as a hockey-crazed Oilers fan in the late 1990s and early 2000s, one of my favourite players was, ironically, Jarome Iginla – then starring for the rival Calgary Flames.

My other favourite player as a kid was Paul Kariya. I had their posters, followed their stats, and would always create characters named after them in video games.

Both had eye-popping stats that ultimately led to countless accomplishments and enshrinement in the Hockey Hall of Fame. But that’s not the biggest reason I identified with them. I remember distinctly thinking back then that Iginla and Kariya just looked…different. They didn’t look like most NHL players.

Of course, they were a bit different. Iginla’s father is from Nigeria, while Kariya has Japanese roots. I saw something in myself in those two – even if I couldn’t quite articulate it as a 10 year old.

While I never seriously pursued athletics outside of recreational leagues, at that age I had my heart set on becoming a sports journalist. Back then, approaching my teenage years, I had a similar distant kinship with TSN’s Farhan Lalji while watching him on TV. He was someone who, like me, looked a bit different and was succeeding.

Seeing those three examples ingrained in me that being different did not have to be a deterrent, and that I could ultimately will myself to be whatever I wanted – even if I stood out because of my name, culture, or the colour of my skin. They showed that kid in Edmonton what was possible – and perhaps more importantly, that nothing was impossible.

On Saturday, thousands of Muslims across the continent will have a similar moment when Nazem Kadri brings the Stanley Cup to the London Muslim Mosque. It is believed to be the first time Lord Stanley’s Mug will have ever entered a mosque in its 124-year history. 

At a time when the sport’s very fabric is being re-examined in the wake of multiple scandals involving allegations of sexual assault and racism, and amid very real concerns about the sport’s accessibility, a Muslim who was a key contributor to the league’s top team will bring hockey’s Holy Grail to a prayer hall of the London Muslim Mosque in his Ontario hometown. The significance of that cannot be understated.

Muslims in Canada have been through a lot in recent years.

On June 8, 2021, mere minutes from where Saturday’s celebration is set to take place on Saturday, four members of the Afzaal family were murdered in a vehicle attack police described as a crime motivated by Islamophobia.

A year earlier, in September 2020, Mohamed-Aslim Zafis was stabbed and killed outside a Toronto mosque. In January 2017, a gunman stormed the Islamic Cultural Centre in Quebec City, killing six worshippers.

Beyond the many other physical assaults are the thousands of undocumented incidents of verbal abuse and online threats – many of which Kadri himself was subjected to during the postseason and throughout his entire career. It takes a toll on a person when you constantly see that hatred towards your community in the news, on the internet, and, often, in your social media mentions.

Kadri has been open about the challenges he’s faced as a Muslim man playing hockey and is a member of the Hockey Diversity Alliance, whose mission is to eradicate racism and discrimination in the sport. His foundation is currently raising funds for the people of Beirut, Lebanon and supports various local causes. Before the playoffs, Kadri wrote about wanting to explain to his young daughter “what it means to be Muslim in North America.”

While Saturday will not cure Islamophobia, it will provide hope, optimism, and inspiration to so many. It will not just be another player having his day with the Stanley Cup.

The Muslim community will witness one of its own bring Canada’s most revered trophy to the mosque. Children who look just a bit different because of their name or colour of their skin or culture will see Kadri hoist the Stanley Cup – a trophy with his name engraved on it – outside the prayer hall. They will be inspired to dream big and know they can chase any dream they want. Kadri has proven it and embraced his role as a leader in his community.

There is something incredibly powerful about seeing someone who looks like you accomplish extraordinary things. When Kadri makes his entrance to the London Muslim Mosque, the possibilities for the community and sport will truly be endless.