The 36-year-old said Warroad made a major impact in his hockey career and connecting to his Native American heritage.
With Minnesota state lawmakers proposing legislation to change American Indian school nicknames at public schools, Washington Capitals forward T.J. Oshie is doing what he can to defend his alma mater Warroad Warriors and save their nickname and logo.
A new proposed bill would prohibit Minnesota school districts from using "names, symbols or images that depict or refer to an American Indian tribe, individual, custom or tradition to be used as a mascot, nickname, logo, letterhead or team name of the district or the school within the district."
In turn, Oshie penned a letter to lawmakers on behalf of Warroad Public Schools, speaking out and defending the logo in a lengthy letter that expresses his pride in the Warriors name and logo, which is that of a Native American warrior.
It would restrict school districts from using “names, symbols, or images that depicts or refers to an American Indian Tribe, individual, custom, or tradition to be used as a mascot, nickname, logo, letterhead, or team name of the district or school within the district.”
"I currently play for the Washington Capitals and have just finished my 15th year in the NHL. As an American Indian, I have proudly represented the University of North Dakota Fighting Sioux, making it to the Frozen Four in all 3 years," Oshie wrote. "Lastly, I have proudly represented the Warroad Warriors for three years. Making it to the State Tournament all three years winning two state titles, I wore my Warrior jersey with exact same amount of pride that I wore my United States Olympic jersey.
"The fact that people are trying to take away the Warrior logo, in my opinion, is a travesty. I grew up having my grandfather and great-uncle telling me stories what it meant to play for the Warriors. My dream as a kid was to play for the Warroad Warriors, not to play in the NHL," Oshie added. "To take away the Warrior name and logo is to further remove the Native American culture from our country. If there are areas in this country where the Indigenous people of that area would like the name and logos removed, I would support that. Warroad is not one of those places. Let us keep our name and logo. Let the Tribal Nation on whose ceded territory school district resides decide when the logo should be changed. Let us continue celebrating the American Indian culture in Warroad."
Oshie was born in Everett, Washington, but experienced he was encouraged by his cousin and former NHLer, Henry Boucha, to move to Warroad to live with his father and coach, Tim, in order to build his hockey career.
Oshie then made his way to the small town in Minnesota and suited up for the Warriors while also embracing his Native American heritage. He is a descendant of the Ojibwe Nation and also learned his Anishinaabemowin name, "Keeway Gaaboo," which translates to "coming home."
"I learned a lot of my manners and how to treat people and talk to people," Oshie said in an exclusive interview back in February. "My family is very good at that. But especially in Warroad, Minnesota, everyone's like that."
"[Warroad's] known for hockey. Everyone loves hockey up there. Hockey's the culture, essentially. I remember T.J. playing the state tournament," fellow Minnesota native and teammate Charlie Lindgren said.
His experience in the small town with a population of 1,810 people led him to a monumental NHL career and also served as the namesake of his activewear and hockey clothing brand, "Warroad."
Per Warroad Public Schools, the Warroad Warriors logo originated from the story of Ay-Ash-A-Wash, the Chief of Warroad and Buffalo Point during the War of the Lake of the Woods. After being badly wounded and playing dead in the battle between the Sioux and Ojibwa tribes at Two Rivers, he made it back to Warroad, which was 40 miles away, alive.
His son, Na-May-Poke, sold part of his land on the Warroad River for the first Warroad School and requested that the mascot be the "Warriors" in order to honor and pay tribute to those sacrificed themselves and fought hard in battle.
The logo was designed by Indigenous members of the community, including the Local Indian Education Committee and the Indian Education Department. School merchandise with the logo also raises funds for Indigenous youth programs. The National Coalition Against Racism in Sports and Media also voiced support for the name and logo based on its history and meaning.