Growing up in a suburb of Toronto as the youngest of 6 children and having a love for all sports, Joanne Noble truly has represented the city she was raised in on so many levels. She currently still lives in Etobicoke and also holds the position as President of the Etobicoke Sports Hall of Fame.

What do you get when Arizona and British Columbia meet in Minnesota? You get Project Hockey!

What an honor for me today to be able to record a podcast and interview with the OG Hockey Insider, Bob McKenzie. What a great individual and classy gentleman who took the time to share his story with me here. Bob was born in Toronto in August of 1956. he was always into sports and hockey in-particular. He shares his journey and his passion for the game of hockey which, like most, was a humble beginning. Writing for the The Sault Star up in Sault Saint Marie, Bob always had a dream of being a hockey beat reporter. He was anxiously trying to get hired on by one of the major papers in Toronto but that never came to fruition. But he was offered the opportunity to interview for the editor-in-chief job with the Hockey News...Bob was only 25 at the time. He went on to spend 9 years building up the Hockey News and learning about the printing and publishing and business side of running a magazine.

This is an episode of firsts for me...first time I'm not interviewing a hockey player, a football player or a male....Today I get the privilege to introduce you to Natalie Allport. The first female guest on my show. Natalie is a very interesting young lady with incredible passion and drive. She was a former Canadian National Team Snowboard member who turned her competitive side to Crossfit most recently. She is also the founder of 93/Agency which helps athletes, brands and business achieve online success. She personally had to find ways to learn and grow and monetize her own NIL (name, image, likeness) in order to make ends meet during her professional snowboarding pursuit, so this makes her the perfect subject matter expert in this space. She has her own podcast called ALL IN (love it) and can be found all over social media just by searching her name, Natalie Allport.

What a great story and journey talking about battling high expectations and potential career uncertainty. Mark Visentin experienced the highs and lows of being on a world stage as a promising young junior player to missing 30 months in a row with back to back ankle injuries in his first few years as a pro.

Chris Heid was born in Langely, BC but calls Kamloops home. Growing up a Kamloops Blazer fan Chris wound up playing in the Western Hockey League for the Spokane Chiefs from 1998-2003. he was on a trajectory to lay in the National Hockey League. Having been drafted in 2001 in the 3rd round, 74th overall it seemed that Chris' plan was all falling into place. Signing his first NHL contract but being assigned to the Houston Aeros of the American Hockey League, Chris felt this was just a stop to learn and adjust to the speed of the pro game. Then the injury bug bit, two broken ankles and broken back in the same year. Chris had fallen down to the ECHL and although he was playing well he didn't see his opportunities to get called up improving. Being of german descent he headed overseas to try his hand in the DEL.

If you look up a guy who doesn't take "No" for an answer you'll probably see Kevin Porter's picture. At 45 years old, Kevin juggles his job as a firefighter AND as a paramedic with his pursuit of playing pro hockey!! Is he busy, umm yeah, you could say that!! Kevin is a work horse and in better shape than most 25 year olds. He has a no quit attitude and he backs it up with resilience, hard work and commitment.

Nathan Rourke was not your typical young Canadian boy chasing a hockey dream...from a young age all he thought about was football. His hero growing up was Brett Favre. Nathan was born in Vancouver but grew in Oakville and now finds himself back in Vancouver preparing for the opportunity when the CFL returns to play to make his professional debut as a BC Lion. Nathan was recently drafter 15th overall and was the highest drafter Canadian quarterback since Jesse Palmer in 2001. Nate shares his journey which has taken him from Oakville to Alabama to Kansas and eventually Ohio University where he played his college career before being drafted. Nate will be the first o tell you that his journey hasn't always gone the way he thought it would so he has learned to be patient and evaluate the options available at the time that would allow him to earn himself a an chance to get to the next level. Covid has again put up a few obstacles but Nate continues to persevere, work hard and ask himself what he can learn from these challenges to make himself better.  That type of growth mindset and his tried-less hard work will pay dividends in his career when he gets to line up behind center and call his first cadence for a snap!

Have you ever wondered what the road travelled looks like for someone who sits in front of the cameras and brings the Sports News into your living room? Well today's guest opens his kimono to share some stories about just such a journey. Sam Cosentino from SportsNet drops by to shed a little light on the past NHL draft, some of the stories leading up to it, what it's like working with Brian Burke and a few funny, but true stories about Sam's humble beginnings as he pursued his passion of becoming a sports broadcaster/analyst.

I'm joined today by an up and coming young prospect who was drafted in 2016, 75th overall in the 3rd round by the Carolina Hurricanes. Jack LaFontaine is a goaltender who grew up in Mississauga, Ontario. He has currently found himself a home in Minneapolis, MN as the starting goaltender for the University of Minnesota Golden Gophers, who are currently 10-0, with Jack starting 9 of those games and boasting a 1 GAA to lead the NCAA.