Robin Leslie Big Snake (born April 10, 1984) is a former professional hockey player.

Early life

Big Snake's mother Lisa is Cree, and his father Carlon is Blackfoot. These tribes are mainly part of the

Siksika The Siksika Nation ( bla, Siksiká) is a First Nations in Canada, First Nation in southern Alberta, Canada. The name ''Siksiká'' comes from the Blackfoot language, Blackfoot words ''sik'' (black) and ''iká'' (foot), with a connector ''s'' bet ...

nation that reside in Alberta.

Career

Big Snake first entered the hockey world at age 16 when he played for the Airdrie Bantam AAA team in 1999-2000. He then moved up in the hockey world in 2000-2001 when he split his time between the Calgary Royals, Alberta Junior A, 20 games, and the Regina Pats, 23 game Big Snake started his junior hockey career with the

Vancouver Giants The Vancouver Giants are a major junior ice hockey team playing in the Western Hockey League (WHL). Inaugurated in 2001–02, the Giants have won one President's Cup (now known as the Ed Chynoweth Cup) in 2006 and one Memorial Cup in 2007 in t ...

in 2001 and 2002. In his second season with the Giants he played 19 games before being traded to the

Moose Jaw Warriors The Moose Jaw Warriors are a major junior ice hockey team in the Western Hockey League based in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan. The Warriors play in the East Division of the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home games at Moose Jaw Events Centre ...

during the 2002-03 season. At the start of the 2003-04 season, Big Snake was traded from Moose Jaw to the

Portland Winter Hawks The Portland Winterhawks are a junior ice hockey team based in Portland, Oregon, playing in the Western Hockey League (WHL), one of three leagues making up the Canadian Hockey League (CHL). Prior to the 2021-22 season, the Winterhawks split thei ...

for Portland's 10th, 11th, and 12th round choices in the 2003 WHL Bantam Draft. Big Snake skated the 2003-04 season with WHL's

, and reported back to the Winter Hawks after a brief appearance in the training camp of the

Hartford Wolfpack The Hartford Wolf Pack are a professional ice hockey team based in Hartford, Connecticut. A member of the American Hockey League (AHL), they play their home games at the XL Center. The team was established in 1926 as the Providence Reds. After ...

of the AHL. While in Hartford's training camp, Big Snake opened the eyes of fans and scouts with a fight against veteran enforcer

Trevor Gillies Trevor Gillies (born January 30, 1979) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player. He has played in the National Hockey League (NHL) with both the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim and New York Islanders. Gillies was known for being an enforcer, ...

. Upon being returned to Portland, Big Snake was released from the team after two games on October 12, 2004. Head coach Mike Williamson would not discuss why he was released, but did say that it was a matter that could not be resolved and that it involved something "that went back a while". Williamson also did say that, when focused as a member of the team, Big Snake could be an asset to any team. Several days later, Big Snake signed with the OHL's

Owen Sound Attack The Owen Sound Attack are a junior ice hockey team in the Ontario Hockey League based in Owen Sound, Ontario, Canada. Based in Owen Sound since 1989, and operating under the current name since 2000, the Attack play their home games at the J.D. ...

. Big Snake made a brief appearance in Detroit Red Wings training camp at the start of the 2005-06 season and eventually joined the

Rockford Icehogs The Rockford IceHogs are a professional ice hockey team based in Rockford, Illinois. They are members of the American Hockey League (AHL), having begun play in the League starting in the 2007–08 season. The team plays their home games at the ...

. Aside from two brief recalls to the

Milwaukee Admirals The Milwaukee Admirals are a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League (AHL). They play in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States, at the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee Panther Arena. They are affiliated with the NHL's Nashvil ...

, Big Snake showed his ability to score as well as fight, posting career highs in goals (27), assists (19), points (46), and penalty minutes (423). He remained with the Icehogs during the 2006-07 UHL season, putting up 42 pts in 67 games and accumulating 330 penalty minutes. Big Snake left the Icehogs as the franchise's all-time penalty minutes leader. In 2007-08, Big Snake started the season with the

Texas Brahmas The Fort Worth Brahmas were a professional ice hockey team in the Central Hockey League, and previously the Western Professional Hockey League. The team originally played at the Fort Worth Convention Center but played their final six seasons, inc ...

of the

Central Hockey League The Central Hockey League (CHL) was a North American mid-level minor professional ice hockey league which operated from 1992 until 2014. It was founded by Ray Miron and Bill Levins and later sold to Global Entertainment Corporation, which opera ...

. He scored eight points in twenty-five games before being traded to the Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees for the rights to forward David Masse on January 8, 2008. At the time of the trade, Masse had been suspended by the Killer Bees. Big Snake finished the season by scoring fifteen points as a member of the Killer Bees, giving him twenty-three points in fifty games played. Big Snake signed with the

Elmira Jackals The Elmira Jackals were a professional minor league ice hockey team based in Elmira, New York. They were members of the United Hockey League from 2000 to 2007 and the ECHL from 2007 to 2017. The Jackals played their home games at First Arena. On ...

of the

ECHL The ECHL (formerly the East Coast Hockey League) is a mid-level professional ice hockey league based in Shrewsbury, New Jersey, with teams scattered across the United States and Canada. It is a tier below the American Hockey League (AHL). The ...

in August 2008 but the team did not announce the signing until January 2, 2009. Big Snake was signed by the Muskegon Lumberjacks for the 2009-10 IHL season. He scored one goal and four points in eighteen games. During his time with the Lumberjacks, he was suspended for twelve games for leaving the penalty box to fight Fort Wayne Komets forward Brad MacMillan. MacMillan received a fifteen-game suspension, the longest in the Komets' 58-year history, and Big Snake received 12 games, also the longest in Muskegon Lumberjacks history, and an undisclosed fine. Big Snake was eligible to return from his suspension on December 3, 2009, almost a full month after he started his suspension. In "early January", Big Snake announced he was leaving the team. Big Snake had full intentions on continuing on with his career but a fatal mistake caused his early retirement. In 2010, he was driving along highway 901, near Ranged Rd 245, hit a young woman that was walking alongside the highway. RCMP declared in November that it was in fact Robin Big Snake who had hit and killed the 24-year-old woman and was charged with impaired driving causing death. He was set to appear in court on November 25, 2010. No further information has been released on the matter. Big Snake's career lasted 411 games; he scored 88 goals, had 110 assists, and a total of 173 fights.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Big Snake, Robin 1984 births Living people First Nations sportspeople Fort Worth Brahmas players Ice hockey people from Alberta Milwaukee Admirals players Moose Jaw Warriors players Muskegon Lumberjacks players Owen Sound Attack players Portland Winterhawks players Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees players Rockford IceHogs (UHL) players Vancouver Giants players Canadian ice hockey left wingers