Itiqtitsijut: Hockey Night in Canada in Inuktitut to debut on APTN this spring

Robert Kabvitok, shown in a handout photo, is part of the crew that will be calling some NHL games in Inuktitut. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO-APTN

Hockey was a regular part of life for Robert Kabvitok growing up in Rankin Inlet, Nunavut.

In his youth, he’d travel by all-terrain snow vehicle to tournaments and watch televised games at home with his father. As an adult, he’d referee the hamlet’s senior men’s league.

With a vast knowledge of Canada’s favourite pastime, Kabvitok is to be one of the first Inuit to provide live game coverage in Inuktitut as part of a partnership between APTN and Sportsnet’s “Hockey Night in Canada.”

“The excitement is already around,” Kabvitok said.

“(Inuit) love hockey in Nunavut. Us helping understand the game in Inuktitut and colour commentating is really going to help elders from here or even the youth who want to learn our language.”

“Hockey Night in Canada in Inuktitut” builds on APTN’s efforts to provide programming in Indigenous languages. The national broadcaster debuted “Hockey Night in Canada in Cree” in 2019. Inuktitut will be the second Indigenous language to get the full play-by-play treatment.

Kabvitok is to provide colour commentary for three games along with host Pujjuut Kusugak and play-by-play announcer David Ningeongan beginning in March.

The two other men, who are also from Rankin Inlet, recruited Kabvitok last year.

“Without asking my wife or family, I said, ‘Yeah, I’d love to be on your team,’” Kabvitok said with a laugh.

Having little experience with calling games, the first thing Kabvitok did when he found out he would be part of APTN’s broadcast was look up previous games in Plains Cree. He couldn’t understand what the panel was saying, but he admired the energy and love for their language that panellists Earl Wood, Clarence Iron and Jason Chamakese brought to their coverage.

“I hope that people will enjoy listening to Inuktitut. I look forward to telling the story of hockey to elders that have been watching for many years,” Kabvitok said.

This will include using phrases such as sikuqsijut, which translates to icing, or itiqtitsijut, meaning goal.

Kusugak and Ningeongan, whom Kabvitok calls the territory’s version of legendary sportscaster Bob Cole, previously worked to translate some of the English hockey terms into Inuktitut. The two provided play-by-play coverage in Inuktitut for CBC during the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics.

APTN is producing six games in Cree and Inuktitut this season.

“Sport is a perfect vehicle for us to try and deepen our commitment to language reclamation because it’s not political … sport unites people. It brings people together and it’s exciting,” said Mike Omelus, executive director of content and strategy for the broadcaster.

There are more than 70 distinct Indigenous languages spoken across Canada, with some at risk of being endangered.

In 2021, more than 237,000 Indigenous people reported they could speak their mother tongue well enough to conduct a conversation, data from Statistics Canada suggests — a decrease of four per cent from 2016.

Part of APTN’s goal with the “Hockey Night in Canada” series is to get young people re-engaged and excited about learning their language, said Omelus.

“What we’re doing is sending signals to speakers, learners and everyone that languages are cool and it’s OK to learn your language,” he said.

“We want to help you embrace that.”

Kabvitok hopes to see that as well. He grew up speaking Inuktitut, but English took over when he started going to school. He picked it up again and now incorporates it into his day job as co-host of CBC’s Tusaajaksat radio program.

“If I can do it, start speaking my language and able to talk to my parents fully in Inuktitut, then somebody else can as well.”

“Hockey Night in Canada in Inuktitut” will kick off with the March 8 game featuring the Edmonton Oilers and Dallas Stars. The crew will be back for the March 22 game that sees the Ottawa Senators take on the New Jersey Devils and the April 12 matchup between the Montreal Canadiens and the Toronto Maple Leafs.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 16, 2025.

Brittany Hobson, The Canadian Press