Rinkside!

Greg Caggiano

Where do I begin? I'm a seventeen year old die-hard fan of the New York Rangers and San Francisco Giants. I was born in Staten Island, New York before moving to New Jersey when I was five years old. I've been watching hockey for as long as I can remember and first remember understanding the sport and rooting for the Rangers when I was seven years old and Wayne Gretzky, my idol was playing at Madison Square Garden. I go to as many games as I can but wish I was a season ticket holder so I could see them all. In all of my sports articles and broadcasts, I try to be as impartial as possible when talking about the sports I love; putting the sport before the team, but sometimes the fan in me comes out. I am also one of, if not the first Ranger fan to own a Brandon Dubinsky jersey.

I don't just watch hockey but I play and coach it as well. During all months, no matter what the weather is like, I enjoy playing street hockey blasting shots away at who ever the poor soul is standing in net. When September rolls around, I put down the stick for a bit and pick up a whistle to coach a floor hockey team for kids in grades two to five hoping to teach them the skills and experience I've learned.

Other then sports I am a huge fan of old movies with my favorite actor and hero being John Wayne. My favorite movies include "2001: A Space Odyssey", "Full Metal Jacket", "The Shining", "The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly" and "There Will Be Blood". On the music side I loves classic rock and am a huge fan of Neil Young and Crazyhorse, The Eagles, and Electric Light Orchestra among many others.

With respect to my hero, I try to go by this saying as much as possible: "I won't be wronged, I won't be insulted, I won't be laid a hand on. I don't do these things to other people and I require the same from them."

Brett Bodner

Brett Bodner is a seventeen year old sports fanatic from New Jersey . He is a die-hard of the New Jersey Devils and has loved hockey for years. He remembers the first Devil game he ever went to in 1998 when the Devils trailed the Florida Panthers 3-2 late in the third period, when Randy McKay tied the game and forced overtime. The game ended in a tie, but he will always remember that game. He loves hockey and puts the sport before his team. In the future he plans to get season tickets for the Devils so he can do something he’s always wanted to do…see every home game for his beloved New Jersey Devils.

In addition to being a hockey fan, Brett also loves football, baseball, college football, college basketball, and wrestling. He knows that professional wrestling is fake, but he finds it entertaining and can’t help but love it. He is a big New York Mets and New York Jets fan and enjoys watching them play.

Besides for being a big sports fan, Brett plays football and does track for his High School team. He finds nothing more fun than buckling it up on a Friday night in the fall and playing football under the lights. He used to play baseball but he lost his love to play the game and would now just rather watch it.

Brett also enjoys listening to music. He enjoys all kinds of rock and even likes some rap and country. He loves going to concerts and seeing his favorite bands tear the house down. In his spare time he likes to write and read. He also enjoys hanging out with his best friends and his girlfriend. His plans on attending college after high school and aspires to be a journalist or maybe even a broadcaster. He has just recently started writing on the Bleacher Report and he loves to do so. He looks forward to co-hosting Rinkside! and he guarantees he will bring his best to the radio show week in and week out.

Eric Kuzmiak

Eric is a 20-year old college junior currently attending the University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown for Environmental Science. He resides in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, which is about 65 miles east of Pittsburgh. He is the Pittsburgh Penguins' Community Leader on Bleacher Report and runs a Penguins' blog called Experiencing the Evolution (located on the links page). He is looking forward to broadening his scope in conjuction with Greg and the rest of the Rinkside Staff.
 
Eric has been an avid Penguins' fan his entire life and finds it difficult to put aside animosity toward fans of an opposing team, but has managed to make a few, actually a very few friends from around the NHL through Bleacher Report. He is one of, if not the only Penguin fan who owns an Erik Christensen jersey and has a deep-rooted, passionate hatred for the city of Philadelphia and the Flyers.
 
Eric truly believes that while Wayne Gretzky basically wrote the NHL record books, Mario Lemieux was, without question, the most physically talented player to ever play the game. His favorite current NHL players include Evgeni Malkin, Sergei Gonchar, Marc-Andre Fleury, Sidney Crosby, Tyler Kennedy, Kris Letang, Brooks Orpik, Rob Scuderi, Petr Sykora, and Matt Cooke, in that order.
 
Eric's biggest pet peeves are bandwagon jumpers and anyone who thinks Mike Emrick is Hall-of-Fame material. If you didn't experience the Milan Kraft, Lyle Odelein, Michal Sivek, Jan Hrdina, Kip Miller, Ian Moran years firsthand, then you don't have the priviledge to call the current group of Sid's, Gino's, Staal's, and Fleury's "your team". Mike Emrick, and VERSUS in general, is a bigger joke than Barry Melrose's coaching career.
 
Happy Hockey everyone, and Let's Go Pens!

Mike Kutniewski

Greetings from the minors!!  As a recent graduate with a Bachelors Degree In Journalism, I hope to use my skills to keep everyone updated on what's happening with the farm teams of the sport we all love. Currently looking for a job in the Public Relations field, I am using my time to start my own independent business and am always seeking those who have interest in the same.

I am a season ticket holder for the Hartford Wolf Pack, but enjoy following all the teams throughout the league.  I have attended games throughout New England and Albany.  This
 year, I will make it to Philly and Hershey in December. Would like to hear back from listeners as to what is thought of what I say.

Joe Alianello

Joe Alianello is a nineteen year old hockey fanatic who attends John Jay College in midtown Manhattan. Joe resides a half an hour outside New York City in Mahwah, NJ. While attending college in Manhattan it has given him the opportunity to watch his beloved New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden. Joe a season ticket holder for the Rangers since 2006 attempts to attend every single home game as well as attend a handful of games away from Madison Square Garden.

Joe considers himself somewhat of an autograph hound. In order to kill time in between class and Ranger games at night he began to collect autographs of his favorite NHL players. His autograph collection includes everything from Wayne Gretzky to Alexander Ovechkin. Being in contact with players around the NHL especially the New York Rangers he has been able to establish contacts throughout the National Hockey League.

While not focusing on hockey, Joe enjoys a wide array of activities. Upon graduation from college Joe would like to fulfill his lifetime goal of becoming a police officer.