They tell me its a 12 step process...

I want to say right from the start that I am an addict. I admit it. I've been told I have all the signs: willingness to do anything for a quick fix, constant cravings, I cant go a day without it. I really didnt mean to chuck work to watch hockey games, or repeatedly hit refresh on the Washington Post website at the tradeline deadline. Or write my senior thesis on hockey. Really. You can check this addict out at Capital Addiction. Thanks for having me HLOG ladies!

1. Where you're from, what you do - basic things.

I am relatively new to Washington DC, having just moved here a year ago to continue working in politics. I moved here from Vermont, the icy cold state that taught this native New Jerseyan to love hockey!

2. Your team and why you like them.

My team is the Capitals. When I first moved here from VT, I was just excited to be in a place with a pro team (Vermont's closest pro team is the Montreal Canadians and getting tickets to a VT college game is as likely as Elvis showing up in the Poconos). I figured that I would get a ticket plan to the Caps and catch a few games. I had the Center Ice package, so I was going to get my hockey fix that way. But after going to a few games, I was drawn in by them. They are a young team in a rebuilding stage yet every night they leave everything on the ice, often against deeper, more experienced teams. The Caps don't let their age, injuries, or anything else become an excuse for them. They play a scrappy game and I know that as their experience builds, so will our chances to hoist the Cup. Sorry for how long winded I am about the Caps:)

3. Your least favourite team and why?

Toronto Maple Leafs. Darcy Tucker. If his on–ice antics aren't enough, owning a bar called Philthy McNasty's is definitely a reason to dislike him.

4. Your favourite player of all time & now?

Tough question…of all time, I would have to Wayne Gretzky. He is a great ambassador of the game. Favorite player now would have to be Milan Jurcina. He is a young and talented D-man, who I think is following in the footsteps of his fellow country man Zdeno Chara.

5. If you had to punch one hockey player or member of the NHL organisation, who and why?

Jaromir Jagr, with a right hook, on behalf of all the Caps fans who had to suffer through his era in DC.

6 What you'll be looking forward in this group blog.

I am really looking forward to having a place to blog/chat with other female hockey fans who understand that we are not puck bunnies! I know that my "voice" on my blog is a different from a lot of the other bloggers, who are mostly male.

7. What you don't like in general?

Goat cheese, warm Diet Coke, having to wrap my own sari (really, I need my Mom's help for that), girls at hockey games with signs that say something like "Alex Ovechkin, I will polish your stick anytime!" or "Ride me like a Zamboni, Sidney!", and really slippery hand lotion.

8. What role do female fans play in keeping the game alive?

First, I know I would not have played any sports in my youth if my Mother had not been around to drive me back and forth to practices & games, to buy uniforms, and most importantly to tell me I was great at a sport even after I dropped a ball or struck out. Its also important to note that we are part of a new generation of hockey fans that are female and blogging about the game, writing about it in papers, and playing professionally. I think that as the blogosphere grows, so will our influence.

9. What role do female fans play in picking heroes for the community?

I think that female fans pick more well rounded heroes – its not just the guy who scores the most points, but a player who is involved with the community, a player who will have a great legacy, etc. I have found that we are more likely to look at the bigger picture and that we are more open to hockey heroes that aren't players, but people who support the sport (like bloggers!)

10. Hockey just isn't the same without...

NHL on ESPN. Sucks for us on this side of the border who end up chucking that weekend trip away to pay for Center Ice:)

11. If you were on a deserted island, which player would you pick to
stay with you?

Zdeno Chara. He is tall, and I am going to need someone to pluck those coconuts off the trees for my vegetarian self.

12. Crosby, Ovechkin or Phaneuf (hey he tried!)?

Ovechkin!

13. The player you'd like to take for a grand night out/a movie/a boring event?

Grand night out: Mike Green, just to see a guy with a Mohawk in a tuxedo.

A movie: Donald Brashear. I'd like to see him at a screening for Sleepless in Seattle.

A boring event: Ovechkin, because he seems like he is always ready to liven things up.

14. If you could make your own team, regardless of whatever players, what would it be called and where will it be/how would it be like?

I think Seattle would be a great place for a team. I would call them the Seattle Pikers and it would be a mixed gender team. If Daniel Briere (5-9, 177lbs) can excel at this level, so can elite female players.