Indigenous Manitoban breaking barriers in the NHL

WINNIPEG -

A Manitoban is making a name for herself in the NHL and breaking barriers in the process.

Brigette Lacquette, who is from Mallard, Man., is currently a scout for the Chicago Blackhawks and is the first Indigenous woman to hold that title in the NHL.

Lacquette, who has played for Team Canada on the women's National Team and represented Canada at the Olympics where she won a silver medal in 2018, said it's an honour to be in the position that she is.

"I know there are a lot of hockey people that could be selected for this job. They picked me. It's an exciting time," said Lacquette.

"It kind of came out of left field, I wasn't really expecting to be a scout. But when I got the call, I feel it was an opportunity I couldn't pass down."

Lacquette is based in Calgary and is scouting kids who have been drafted into the NHL and are currently playing in the WHL.

"My job gets sort of relevant towards the trade deadline, I guess. I'm constantly watching kids, two, three, four games a week, writing reports, talking to my bosses once a week, and just basically telling them what my interest level in each player is."

She said when she first started she was excited to go to games and her experience as a player has helped her develop her scouting ability.

"My bread and butter for hockey was my vision on the ice and being able to see the game, watch it pan out and kind of anticipate plays. I feel like that translates well to scouting because I am watching what the kid's hockey IQ is, what their skating is like, what their passing is like, (their) shooting… I feel like I am doing a pretty good job."

Lacquette said she has really enjoyed her new role so far and noted it is a different experience than playing.

"I'm still playing right now with the PWHPA, which is so nice about this job is that I can make my own schedule, they reassured me, they were like 'This work is not going to get in the way of your playing career, if you still want to play.' I kind of get the best of both worlds."

Lacquette is hoping her success on and off the ice will help inspire others who want to get into hockey.

"For myself, I didn’t really have that person that I could look up to that looked like me in my sport. There was no girl on the national team that was like me, that went through breaking down the same barriers and coming from a remote community. Honestly, I think it is just being genuine to myself and just showing them that it is possible that you can achieve anything that you set your mind to and it doesn't matter where you come from."

- With files from CTV's Joey Slattery.