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JOANNE KORTHJordin Tootoo, the first NHL player of Inuit descent, copes with life far away from home.
The sushi restaurants in Nashville satisfy Jordin Tootoo's taste for raw fish, but occasionally, the NHL rookie gets homesick cravings he cannot quench.
Caribou jerky.
Whale.
Seal.
Such delicacies were staples in his boyhood diet and the frequent contents of care packages from his mother after he left home at age 14 to pursue a hockey career. He misses his family. And he misses the land.
Oh, how he misses the land.
Tootoo, who grew up 200 miles south of the Arctic Circle, is the first NHL player of Inuit descent. The boy who harpooned whales and seals for food is a rookie right wing, the pride of a people whose hardy lifestyle is reflected in Tootoo's pesky playing style.
"I'm true to my roots, and I always will be," said Tootoo, 21, whose Predators host the Lightning tonight. "I'm proud of where I come from and I think that's a very important aspect of growing up. Kids shouldn't forget where they come from and who they are."
The Inuit, among the native North Americans, have inhabited the barren, ice-covered lands of the Arctic region for more than 5,000 years. Tootoo's hometown of Rankin Inlet is in Nunavut, Canada's newest territory, carved four years ago out of the Northwest Territories after two decades of activism. When children ask about his home, Tootoo tells them Santa Claus stops first at his house, so close to the North Pole.
Nunavut (pronounced NOO-nuh-voot) means "our land" in the Inuit language. The territory covers about 800,000 square miles - roughly three times the size of Texas - yet its population is barely 28,000. Rankin Inlet, on the western shore of the Hudson Bay, is among the bigger towns with more than 2,000 residents.
Though hockey is popular, few Inuit leave their native land.
"We have very close, tight-knit families and they just can't bear the thought of letting their children go," said Jordin's mother, Rose Tootoo. "Many have tried and many have come back. But a few have opened up and families now are saying, "We are going through what the Tootoo family went through.'
"We always tell the little children not to give up no matter what happens in life, no matter what setbacks you or your family will have. If you want to get somewhere or be an NHL hockey player you have to strive and work hard and dreams will come true."
Tootoo has overcome more than geography and culture to reach the NHL. Eighteen months ago, he lost his older brother and best friend when Terence Tootoo, a minor-league hockey player, committed suicide at 22 after being arrested on drunken driving charges.
Suicide is a staggering problem among young people in Nunavut, where the suicide rate is nearly seven times the Canadian national average, according to the Nunatsiaq News. Last year, 37 people in Nunavut took their own lives, mostly young Inuit men and teenage boys.
Tootoo is a positive and eager role model. Last summer, the beloved member of Canada's silver-medal World Junior Championships team toured schools and communities throughout Nunavut to deliver his message of hope and determination. In life and on the ice, Tootoo keeps churning.
Undersized at 5 feet 9, 195 pounds, Tootoo plays with a fearless physical presence. Labeled a throwback, Tootoo makes it his quest to agitate opponents. Fittingly, his Inuit name, Kudluk, means "thunder." His teammates call him Toots.
"When this kid hits the ice you can hear the buzz in the crowd," said Terry Crisp, the former Lightning coach who serves as the Predators' television analyst.
"Every team has to have what I call a little ball of hate. Jordin Tootoo is our little ball of hate. The other teams hate him but his own fans love him."
Tootoo has mixed it up with the Avalanche's Joe Sakic and the Flames' Jarome Iginla, two of the NHL's biggest stars. Last week, the Blue Jackets' Tyler Wright accused Tootoo of biting his pinky finger during a scrum.
"He's from way up north - that's how they eat up there, I guess," Wright told the Nashville Tennessean.
Tootoo did not back down.
"It all happened so fast," Tootoo told the Tennessean. "I'm pretty positive I didn't, but what am I supposed to do when he has a hand in my face?"
A fast skater with a good shot, Tootoo has three goals and three assists for the Predators, who are Western Conference playoff contenders for the first time in their sixth season. He leads the team with 92 penalty minutes, including 10 majors.
"I'm not the biggest guy out there, but I play with a big heart," Tootoo said.
Tootoo understands people's fascination with his story, but would prefer to blend in with his teammates. He rarely talks about his life on the Canadian tundra, even among his new friends.
"You think, "Let's hear some stories about hunting wolves or chasing whales in a kayak,' but he doesn't say a whole lot about that," Crisp said. "The only thing is when he says, "Oh, you think that's tough?' and then he chuckles."
In Rankin Inlet, all-terrain vehicles take the place of automobiles because roads are covered in snow and ice up to 10 months a year. Supplies are shipped in by plane or barge, so groceries are expensive - a 4-liter jug of milk costs $13 Canadian, $9.75 U.S. dollars - prompting most families to fish and hunt for food.
Then, there's the cold.
Somehow, bitter does not seem harsh enough to describe the winter temperatures in Tootoo's hometown. The forecasted high today in Rankin Inlet is minus-25 degrees, with a wind chill of minus-48. Summer lasts about two months, with the Hudson Bay thawing in late July and freezing again by mid October.
"A lot of young kids have great imaginations and we were always doing something, building tunnels or making snow sculptures, running around when it's minus-40 outside in that warm clothing that our parents made for us," said Tootoo, whose father, Barney, is a plumber for the Nunavut government. "We enjoy the lifestyle up there."
Life in Rankin Inlet includes most modern conveniences. The Tootoos have a satellite dish that allows them to watch most of Jordin's games on television. Rose Tootoo surfs the Internet during the afternoon.
"We don't live in igloos, like some people may still think," Rose Tootoo said. "We have a very normal life."
The love affair between Tootoo and Nunavut is mutual. About 50 people, including the premier of Nunavut and mayor of Rankin Inlet, made the long trip to Nashville in October for the Predators' season opener, Tootoo's NHL debut.
Residents don Team Tootoo sweatshirts, available at www.teamtootoo.com People flooded the Tootoos' home with phone calls Monday to wish Jordin a happy 21st birthday. He will be home during the offseason, but not for long enough.
"At times it is a little tough being away from home, but that's when I call and talk to Mom and Dad," Tootoo said. "The support I have received is just tremendous. I was taught by my parents to never forget where you come from, and it's going to be that way for the rest of my life."