Up My Hockey with Jason Podollan

Send us Fan Mail After 6 seasons in the minors with only 20 NHL games, one wouldn't generally expect for a 28 year old player to make a full time jump to the NHL, but that's what Nathan did.  An 11th Round draft pick of the Toronto Maple Leafs in 1992, Dempsey was never a high-profile prospect, and was just hoping to crack the AHL coming out of junior.   In his rookie pro season, Nathan...

Send us Fan Mail It was great to catch up with my friend and teammate, Steve Kelly. Steve and I grew up in the same neck of the woods, are the same birth year, and both played in the WHL. We ended up playing in Mannheim together in the DEL toward the ends of our careers. We also have something else in common. We never had the NHL career we would have liked. Steve did collect 149 NHL games by the t...

Send us Fan Mail  Nik Antropov has a path to the NHL like I have never heard before. From a small town in Kazakhstan, Antropov had never even heard of the NHL until he was around the age of 13-14! His goal growing up was simply to play on the top team in his local town.. Yet alone being a 10th overall draft pick to the one and only, Toronto Maple Leafs.  Niks career was plagued with injury, so pai...

Send us Fan Mail Today we did something new – I recorded the episode LIVE inside my Facebook Group dedicated to supportive hockey parents! Members were able to listen live AND ask questions. The group is called Up My Hockey – Parent Group and you if you would like direct access to my amazing guests, please join us! Mark Ferner played junior for the Kamloops Blazers before he embarked on his 15-yea...

Send us Fan Mail Peter Worrell was kind enough to join us today on Up My Hockey.  Big Pete was not hard to find on the ice. He towered at 6’7” and weighed in at around 260 pounds. He played physical, using both his size and his fists to his advantage. And in case someone missed him visually, you could usually hear him, as he enjoyed some good trash talk as well.  Pete is a Caribbean-Canadian movin...

Send us Fan Mail Kevin Weekes and I first met back in 1991 in Kamloops BC, at the one of the best Bantam tournaments in the country (Kamloops International Bantam Ice Hockey Tournament), best known by its acronym KIBHIT. At the time I was playing for the stacked Sherwood Park Flyers and more than halfway through the season we had not lost a game, but the Toronto Red Wings and Kevin Weekes were the...

Send us Fan Mail I try to find guests with unique stories and a depth of knowledge and experience. Stacy Roest checks all the boxes. When you have played, coached, been responsible for developing NHL ready prospects, worked as a GM at the pro level, and are raising a son who wants to be an NHL player, you have perspective and experience! Our guest for episode 21 is Stacy Roest and he has done it a...

Send us Fan Mail Bryan and I first crossed paths after the Spokane Chiefs and the Medicine Hat Tigers made a blockbuster trade in 1992. The teams exchanged 5 players each and Caber became a teammate and a friend over the next 2.5 seasons. Caber was drafted 40th overall in 1993 by the New York Islanders and played his first game for the Isles in 1995. He was their captain two years later. McCabe en...

Send us Fan Mail It was 1992 and I had just turned 16 years old. I joined the Spokane Chiefs for the last two games of their regular season in Victoria. I was the youngest on the team, didn't know anyone and I walked nervously into the dressing room. And that was when Jared Bednar walked over and introduced himself. Bedsy was 19 and he made me comfortable. He talked to me on the bus, invited...

Send us Fan Mail Up My Hockey loves the journey of becoming a hockey player and Ryan Strome was willing to share his. As a former 8th overall selection to the Barrie Colts in the OHL draft and a 5th overall selection by the New York Islanders in the 2011 NHL draft, Ryan was on the fast track to NHL fame. Things were expected from him and he was earmarked as a “can’t miss” prospect. Watching Strome...

Send us Fan Mail Ken Holland is one of those names that needs no introduction, but I will give it a try. Recognized as one of the "good guys" in the game, Ken was great to talk with. He knows player development, he knows the value of leadership and he knows how to build a winner. He knows a lot about every aspect of the game! So it was hard for me to decide what to talk with him about. H...

Send us Fan Mail Being an agent or running an agency is a competitive business. After all, there are only about 700 NHL jobs and a lot of agents vying for a piece of that pie.  To make it as an agent most people think they have to be great at contract negotiations and endorsement deals. Sure these things are tools of the trade, but these skills don't do you much good if you don't have an...

Send us Fan Mail Scott Nichol is the underdog - although he would never agree to that term because he never saw himself that way. Scott just went to work, everyday. He got the job done. His story is one to fall in love with. At 5'8 and 175 pounds, Scott never intimidated with his size, but he would outwork anyone and he would never back down. Scott was high scoring junior player that earned h...

Send us Fan Mail With the Bantam draft just a few days behind us, I would like to introduce you to my latest guest Ryan Guenter. For the last decade, Ryan has been heavily involved in the scouting process for various Western Hockey League teams.  He broke into the scouting industry as a foot soldier with the Chiliwack Bruins, and made his way to being a head scout a few years later. Ryan is curren...

Send us Fan Mail Wade Redden was one of the top Defenseman in the best league on earth for the better part of the 2000's. He was drafted 2nd overall to the New York Islanders before getting traded to the Ottawa Senators where he spent the majority of his career. Wade was the assistant captain on a team that made it to the Stanley Cup finals and had one of the most decorated careers out of any...

Send us Fan Mail David Michaud is the President and Part Owner of the Port Alberni Bulldogs. He had a very interesting Journey through the hockey world and makes for an incredible perspective on different avenues through the hockey ranks. David began as the color commentator for the Kelowna Rockets, worked in one of the largest agencies in the sports world, and then made his way to the Junior rank...

Send us Fan Mail Dave is the current assistant coach of the New York Rangers in the National Hockey League. Dave has an incredible story about his journey to the NHL and what led him to becoming a coach, as he takes us on his journey where he decided to go the Junior A to College Hockey route, one that may not get enough credit.  We dive into the challenges Dave faced throughout his career, as wel...

Send us Fan Mail What an amazing conversation from the other side of the game! Unfortunately referees are generally overlooked, underappreciated, or completely disrespected.   Retention rates of young officials are down because the environment our arenas create for them are less than hospitable. Tom Kowal tells his story on this episode: his journey from minor hockey to the WHL, the AHL and then t...

Send us Fan Mail Tom Laidlaw is an ex-NHL player, agent, broadcaster, and most recently a contestant on the show," Survivor"! Tom played 10 seasons in the National Hockey League, split between the New York Rangers and the Los Angeles Kings, including being the assistant captain on the Kings while Wayne Gretzky played there. Tom now has created his own brand called True Grit, where he mot...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode I speak with Dusty Imoo, an goaltending acclaimed goalie coach referred to by some as a "guru". If you are a goalie, a goalie parent, or a coach, this is a must listen! And for everyone else, don't be fooled, there is much to gain from this interview! Dusty Imoo is the current goaltending coach for the Kunlun Redstar of the KHL, Russia's top lea...

Send us Fan Mail When you are leading the NHL in defensemen scoring one season, and playing in the AHL the next, how do you handle something like that? Or maybe a better question is, how could that ever happen???    As a player, you think you have finally established yourself in NHL as a scoring defenseman, only to have it shatter before your eyes.   As a player you NEVER know when adversity may s...

Send us Fan Mail We have had coaches from the National Hockey League and the top Junior leagues in North America on the Up My Hockey podcast. In this episode of Up My Hockey, we go across the pond, to get the inside story on what it is like to be a head coach in what is said to be the second best hockey league in the world, the KHL. The KHL is Russia's top pro hockey league, and today we talk...

Send us Fan Mail Trevor Letowski played over 600 NHL games. He then went on to coaching at numerous levels, but primarily in the Ontario Hockey League, where he has found incredible success. He is currently the head coach of the legendary, Windsor Spitfires and his team is currently ranked top 10 in the CHL. Trevor dives into what it takes to be successful in today's hockey world, and how it...

Send us Fan Mail Brad Larsen is the Assistant coach of the Columbus Blue Jackets. I played PeeWee with Brad back when we were kids, and we carried on to be teammates and friends. Brad is one of the hardest workers I have ever played with, one of the best leaders, teammates and defines work ethic. He was not always the most talented, but he knew the game and how to get the very most out of his skil...

Send us Fan Mail This is an incredible discussion with the NHL legend, Daniel Briere. Briere found success at every level of his hockey career, but this did not come without its fair share of challenges. At his peek, he clocked in at 5'8 3/4", and weighed less than 190 pounds. Scouts, coaches, GM's and practically everyone else always doubted his ability to compete at the next level...