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Number: 12
Position: Forward
Height: 6' 1"
Weight: 180
Birthday: 7.22.83
Hometown: Orillia, Ontario, Canada
Last team: Couchiching Jr. (OPJHL)
Player Biography
Joel, from Orillia, Ontario, played last season for the Couchiching Terriers, where he tallied 12 goals and 26 assists and Couchiching’s 2002 Playoff MVP. Joel’s admires his favorite NHL player, Wayne Gretzky (retired), for “his talent, determination, and love for the game”. |
Kevin Kasel: Tell me about your family life, do you have any brothers or sisters?
Joel Kitchen: I have two sisters. One, Amy she's 22 and the other one is Andrea she is 17.
Kevin: How old where you when you started playing hockey?
Joel: I first skated at age two, but I first started playing hockey at age three.
Kevin: Why did you start?
Joel: Cause I watched my Dad play hockey. And I found it so amazing, so I just had to try it.
Kevin: Why did you decide to play for the Bucs?
Joel: It gives me the best opportunity for me to get a scholarship. I have heard lots of great things about them. So I got a try-out.
Kevin: Have you always been a forward?
Joel: Yes, I always been a forward.
Kevin: Tell me about the past teams you've played for.
Joel: I played in my home town of Orillia, Ontario for about seven years, before moving south and playing in a league down there called the USHL. I played for a couple teams down there. I made the jump to Junior "A" hockey at age of 15 with the Markham Waxers for a couple years. Then I moved back to my hometown to play Junior "A" with the Couchiching Terriers and I am on my way down here this year.
Kevin: Do you have a favorite pro or college team?
Joel: My favorite pro team would have to be the New York Rangers. My favorite college team, Michigan State Spartan.
Kevin: What about a favorite player?
Joel: My favorite NHL hockey player is Wayne Gretzky.
Kevin: Do you have a nickname?
Joel: Yeah, Kitch.
Kevin: What is your favorite hockey memory?
Joel: I guess it is not necessarily a favorite ... my first year playing hockey, I was on a break away and I stopped in the middle of my break away to wave at my parents. I guess the best memory I have, the funniest one, I guess.
Kevin: My first job was ...
Joel: Working as a basketball instructor for one of my best friend's father. He ran a basketball camp.
Kevin: What are your hobbies?
Joel: My hobbies, I love all sports. I love to fish and to hunt. I like to workout.
Kevin: When did you first hear about the Bucs?
Joel: I guess it was last year, around May time. I got a letter from Coach Bob (Ferguson) and ever since then I have been really, really interested and have been following them on the Internet and so forth.
Kevin: What do you like to do besides hockey?
Joel: I like to golf. Golf is my favorite past time other then hockey. I mostly do that in the summer time though. I like to jog and run and keep fit.
Kevin: Do you have a favorite movie?
Joel: My favorite movie would have to be Hot Shots Part Deux.
Kevin: What is your favorite non-hockey sport?
Joel: It's got to be golf.
Kevin: If you could have lunch with one person, past or present, who would it be?
Joel: I think it would be Wayne Gretzky. Just because I find him so interesting and full of knowledge about the game of hockey.
Kevin: If you were a head coach of a team what would you do?
Joel: The first thing I would look for in players is their character. I seen too many teams look for high-priced talent. I don't think that works. I go for character and the will to play hockey, the heart, mostly heart.
Kevin: What is your favorite food?
Joel: Have to be Caesar Salad.
Kevin: Who is your favorite band?
Joel: My favorite band would have to be Journey.
Kevin: Who has been the biggest influence on your life?
Joel: Would probably have to be my Dad.
Kevin: What is your favorite TV show/book?
Joel: My TV show is Seinfeld.
Kevin: If you started your own NHL franchise, and you could pick any player, who would you start with and why?
Joel: I would pick Joe Sakic, because not only of his amazing talent, but his leadership on and off the ice.
Kevin: Who would you have on your hockey "Dream Team"?
Joel: Probably have in their prime, Mario Lemieux, Wayne Gretzky, Joe Sakic. On defense I would have Bobby Orr and Paul Coffey.
Kevin: Net-minder?
Joel: Goalie, I have to go with, Curtis Joseph.
Kevin: What are your superstitions?
Joel: I got to listen to same song right before a game. It's by Loverboy. I always have to put my hockey equipment on the exact way every single time, in order from my skates all the way up to helmet.
Kevin: If you were stranded on a desert island, whom would you want to be stranded with … Brittany Spears, Cameron Diaz, Sarah Michelle Gellar or Tara Reid?
Joel: It have to be Cameron Diaz.
Kevin: What is your favorite restaurant?
Joel: A place called Theo's up in my hometown of Orillia.
Kevin: What is something you've always wanted to do, but haven't yet?
Joel: Play in the NHL.
Kevin: Who would you rather be, Bugs Bunny or Road Runner?
Joel: Bugs Bunny, because he out-smarts all his enemies and opponents.
Kevin: Who would you rather be, Superman or Batman?
Joel: Definitely Batman.
Kevin: If I could change one thing about me, it would be ...
Joel: I guess, my shyness.
Kevin: Any advice for younger hockey players?
Joel: Never give up, no matter what people tell you. Always be positive. And don't ever let your dreams ever slip away.
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