Black Bears to Honour Indigenous Heritage of Lacrosse During Creator's Game Night
Published on January 5, 2026 under National Lacrosse League (NLL)
Ottawa Black Bears News Release
Lacrosse is synonymous with the Indigenous peoples of North America. The sport's origins date back almost a thousand years, when the Haudenosaunee people competed in games with hundreds of players stretching through boundaryless field in the regions surrounding the Great Lakes.
One version of a Haudenosaunee tale tell of the first games of lacrosse being competed for between a team of mammals, captained by the Bear, the Deer, and the Great Turtle, against a team of birds, captained by the Owl, the Hawk, and the Eagle.
As more animals joined the teams, each was slotted in a role according to their strengths and weaknesses. The tale underscores how lacrosse is a game for everyone, with different roles and positions suited for different skillsets still defining the sport a millennium later.
Above all else, and throughout many stories and nations, who have names for the game like baggataway (Algonquian), kabocha-toli (Choctaw) and tewaarathon (Mohawk), the role of the Creator is emphasized.
The game is played to please the Creator, but also as a "Medicine Game." It is said that playing lacrosse helps heal the mind, the body, and the spirit. It is undeniable that the game strengthens community ties.
"We play lacrosse for various reasons, but... for me and my family, it was a way of life. We were playing, I would say 365 days a year, or close to year-round," Black Bears forward Larson Sundown told NLL.com's Anna Taylor before the season started.
"I always try to give thanks before I play a game just to let the Creator know that we're thankful for the ability to play this game, the talent that he gives us and the game itself; I can't reiterate that enough. It's certainly to play for him and play for the joy of him and for the joy of the community. Whatever community we're in, try to play for them and uplift them in any way that we can."
Sundown grew up in Basom, NY, on the Tonawanda Reservation just east of Buffalo. In the summers, he plays for the Six Nations Chiefs, the three-time defending Mann Cup champions (Canada's national Sr. A championship).
At nearly every game Sundown has played in his career, his parents, Gary and Tara, have been in attendance - with personalized beaded medallions hanging around their necks. This year, you can catch the players and coaching staff sporting them around their necks.
Gary made the medallions - which are the Black Bears' secondary paw logo with a players' number in the middle - while Kendrick Powless of the Oneida Nation of Wisconsin crafted the necklace portion. Gary said more than 2000 hours across almost a full calendar year went into outfitting the entire team and coaching staff.
The Creator's Game Night
The Ottawa Black Bears will welcome the Halifax Thunderbirds on Friday night for the Creator's Game Night, their first of two meetings with the Thunderbirds this year.
For pre-game ceremonies, the Black Bears have invited elders from local Indigenous communities (Pikwàkanagàn First Nation and Kitigan Zibi) performing ceremonial songs and bearing flags. Tasheena Sarazin will perform a land acknowledgement, Kevin Lamarr will MC a powwow, and youth from both communities will take part in a variety of on-field activities.
You can purchase your tickets here to attend the game. Post-secondary students from any university or college in Canada can attend for as little as $22.65 in the 200 level and $25.65 in the 100 level by enrolling in the Student Den program.
Friday's game also marks the rollout of Den Deal Pricing at Canadian Tire Centre. The $10-and-under menu will be available at the TSN Concession by Section 113, and Capital Eats by Section 203. Portable bars near those concessions - as well at Bert's Restaurant and Bar - will also offer select 355ml cans of beer for just $6.00.
National Lacrosse League Stories from January 5, 2026
- Black Bears to Honour Indigenous Heritage of Lacrosse During Creator's Game Night - Ottawa Black Bears
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