MeganHenderson's Blog

Have you ever cheered for the wrong team? If not, I highly recommend it.

Last weekend I took my family to a Dallas Stars game. Only, we were in Anaheim. I went back to Southern California for the weekend.. and couldn't think of a better way to spend a Friday night.

For those of you who don't follow hockey.. this was a big game. It was a packed arena and the hostile energy was flowing both on and off the ice. Our tickets were in the Stars section -- which meant about a dozen of us in the middle of enemy territory.

I've never been heckled at a sporting event.. until now. And as twisted as it sounds -- I kind of enjoyed it. I just couldn't stop laughing!

While the Stars and Ducks were battling it out below us... we had our own game going on up in the stands. It was us.. versus them. And we, the underdogs ... were winning big time.

The more they booed ... the louder we cheered. The louder we cheered.. the more annoyed they got. The worst was when two VERY frustrated teenagers in front of us were so upset at Anaheim's performance... that they kept threatening to throw things at us if we didn't stop cheering. By this time, I was in hysterics!

By the way, we never stopped.

And we never will.

I love a good surprise.

A few weeks ago, the Dallas Mavericks organization was kind enough to let me tag along as the players taped the new jumbotron music video for the home games. I had planned to follow the always dynamic ... slam-dunk GREAT interview subject, Jason Terry. But I was also secretly hoping to get a quick little something from the face of the franchise, Dirk Nowitzki. Not because I thought I'd get something dynamic or great -- but simply because ... well, he's Dirk.

Truth be told, Dirk isn't the type of guy the media normally considers "good TV" (Mark Cuban.. T.O... Dennis Rodman -- those guys are "good TV" for obvious reasons). Don't get me wrong, Dirk is known to be a really nice guy and very accommodating when it comes to giving interviews. But when the lights come on and the cameras start to roll, something inside him shuts down. Like many professional athletes, he goes into what I call, "work mode."

Don't let the sound bites fool you. If you saw my interview on Good Day last week, you know exactly what I'm talking about. (I'm STILL laughing at those Mick Jagger dance moves!)

Rarely does the public get the chance to see the guy I met that day. The "real" Dirk is extremely quick-witted, energetic, goofy, gentle... AND remarkably outgoing. He has a great rapport with his teammates (there's obviously a lot of respect on both ends) -- and when he's comfortable and out of his "work mode" ... this subtle, dry sense of humor comes out that you can't help but get a kick out of. Bottom line: I loved the guy!

A couple of other observations:

-Don't call him Dirk. His close friends and teammates know him as, "Dirty." When I asked Jason Terry why -- he answered, "I don't know. Steve Nash was known as, 'Nasty' so it's only natural that Dirk would be Dirty." Makes sense to me.

-He plays guitar (and he's pretty good at it!). While we were waiting for the crew to set up, he picked up a guitar and entertained us all with an impressive rendition of Eric Clapton's "Tears in Heaven." He took lessons for a couple of years, but says he got bored and now just plays for fun.

-We also saw a very different side of Dirk's good friend Jason Terry that day... a SHY side! His friends won't believe it -- but Jet actually turned into an introvert when he was asked to channel rapper MC Hammer for the music video. I'll show you what i'm talking about in the weeks to come on Good Day.. so keep an eye out. Good stuff!

I don't want to ruin any reputations or anything ... but I am going to let you in on a little secret:

Hockey players are known to be THE nicest guys in professional sports.

I had heard it from my sports reporter friends before -- but I must admit, I never really bought into it. I mean, have you ever SEEN a hockey game? Hockey is not a "nice" sport.

On the ice these guys are ruthless. Fighting... (lose a tooth here) ... checking... (break a nose there). They're rough, tough and enjoying every painful moment.

But believe it or not -- if you take many of the Dallas Stars off the ice, it's a much different story. I've covered the team quite a few times now .. and I always walk away surprised at what softies they really are.

Most recently, Tim and I met up with goalie Marty Turco and Brenden Morrow at their practice facility in Frisco for an upcoming Good Day segment. Let me just tell you -- these two guys could not have been more ... well ... well... NICE!

I won't reveal too many details of what went on (you'll have to watch to find out!). But I will say (and this will come as no surprise) -- that dealing with two yay-hoos like us was no easy task.

Marty and Brenden handled us with patience, thoughtfulness, and best of all -- a great sense of humor. You just get the sense that they genuinely LOVE what they do.. and most importantly, they APPRECIATE the fact that they get paid to do it.

There are a few new faces on the team this year and the guys are promising another exciting season. The first preseason game is set for Monday, 9/18 at the American Airlines Center.

Who knows? This could be the year they prove nice guys really DO finish first.