Kwame Mason's debut film continues to have an impact on the hockey world when it comes to showing the importance of the Black hockey story from the game's past, present, and looking forward to its future with diverse talent.
Ice Queens, Black Ice and the reboot of Youngblood all stem from one film that sparked a desire for deeper storytelling of Black hockey history: Soul on Ice: Past, Present, and Future.
It's a documentary that, a decade ago, set the table for an interest in the story of Black hockey players on film.
It's been 10 years since Kwame Mason's debut film had its full premiere in 2016. Since then, it has been screened across North America, supported by the NHL and educated many about the history of Black hockey players while showcasing the future of Black faces in the sport.
Soul On Ice got into the stories of legends, including the Colored Hockey League, Herb Carnegie, Willie O'Ree, Tony McKegney and players-turned-media personalities in Kevin Weekes and Anson Carter.
It also highlighted players who were active at the time, such as Joel Ward, and followed the journey of Jaden Lindo, a 2014 draft pick of the Pittsburgh Penguins and then a member of the OHL's Owen Sound Attack, who oversees the team's Willie O'Ree Academy.
While the film is full of some of the most prominent Black figures to have ever played in the NHL, as a first-time filmmaker, Mason was concerned that these names wouldn't want to be on board with the project. But any reservations about the project were put to rest once Mason's longtime friend, Georges Laraque, who was his co-host during his time working in radio in Edmonton, said he'd be on board to appear in the film.
"The saving grace was Georges Laraque, because Big Georges is so respected, highly respected, so once he did the interview, it was easier for guys like Kevin Weekes to be a part of this, Anson Carter to be a part of this and so on and so forth," Mason said.
While he didn't play in the NHL, Mason was also able to sit down with Carnegie for the film before his passing in 2012. The film dives deep into his greatness at the senior hockey level, but also never being able to fully live his dream of being an NHLer.
The film gets into the story of former Toronto Maple Leafs owner Conn Smythe, saying he would pay anyone $10,000 if they could turn Carnegie white in 1938, as well as him turning down offers from the New York Rangers to play in their farm system in 1948 for less money than he would have made in Quebec in senior hockey.
To Mason, if Carnegie was able to play at the highest level of the sport in his prime, it would have impacted far more than simply hockey.
"Herb was the guy," Mason said. "If you ever did a Back To The Future type deal and you put Herb Carnegie at that exact time into the National Hockey League, and you came back to the present time, I feel like the world would be different. That's how much of a missed opportunity, in my opinion, that Herb wasn't playing when he should have."
The interest in Soul on Ice wasn't only kept to Canadian audiences; it would soon reach American eyes and get the attention of NHL commissioner Gary Bettman.
The league would partner with Mason to put on a screening in Washington, D.C., in January 2016, and Soul on Ice would soon go on to be screened across various NHL markets across the U.S.
It was a gesture that meant a lot to Mason in trying to make the sport better.
"Gary Bettman could have easily said, 'Great movie, thanks kid, good luck to you in the future,' " Mason said. "But after talking to me and understanding what I went through to make that film, he said, 'I'm going to help you get something from this.' But as a smart man as he is, he knew that by helping me get something out of this, he knew he was going to help the hockey industry get something out of this."
Kim Davis, the NHL's senior executive vice president of social impact, growth initiatives, and legislative affairs, has also been a major player in helping others see the Impact of Soul on Ice and what it has meant for hockey.
"With the storytelling of Soul on Ice… as the central inspiration, we've built a 'movement not a moment' that has engaged and inspired the hockey community to lean into the future with courage and conviction," Davis told NHL.com.
When Soul On Ice's anniversary hits the 20- and 30-year marks, Mason hopes that it's something that can remind kids of color that there's a place for them in hockey.
"I'm hoping the legacy can be that people in this industry will appreciate what storytelling can do if done right and if done with love and passion for something," Mason said.
"It can change things. It can open up doors for people, and it can change the course of how people see a certain group. The last thing I'll say is the legacy I want is to never be in a position where young boys and girls of color can't feel confident about their place in the game."
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