Colin Blackwell consistently has talked about believing in himself. He always has remained confident in his abilities from the day he set his sights on the NHL. Colin also has remained patient and optimistic that good things will occur for him on the ice. He knew that when the opportunity door fully opened, he would be ready to step over the threshold and succeed in the best hockey league in the world.

Colin has done just that this season with the New York Rangers. He had previous NHL experience with the Nashville Predators after playing in the minors with the San Jose and Buffalo organizations. However, the door never completely opened for him during those earlier stops on the circuit. Now, with the Rangers, he plays on all four lines and creates scoring chances from just about anywhere inside the opposition’s blue line. Colin has scored 12 goals in 32 games (as of April 14) this season after scoring only three in 33 previous games in the league.

This kind of open-door opportunity usually does not occur with the Rangers, a team with a heralded history and many big-name big-ticket players. Before this season’s training camp, the Rangers did not sign Colin, a labeled journeyman, to a huge contract or provide him with a bonus. In this league, at age 27, he already is considered a middle-aged player. Yet, the team pursued the free agent. They saw potential in him on the NHL level to blend nicely with the youth and the top line star players.

Colin quickly jumped into the flow, scoring goals and setting up goals for others. He knew the opportunities to produce in the NHL were few and none provided a guarantee that he would be in the league a day later. It just all came together at this time, with this team and with this coach. Colin felt engaged from the first day he joined the Rangers. He felt the support from teammates, the coaching staff and management.

“When the opportunity comes,” said Colin, “you have to make the most of it. I try to do that every single day.”

Joe Tolve always is chasing his next meal. Food is fuel according to this Ossining (Westchester County) police sergeant who is a firearms instructor and SWAT team member.

Joe has been an amateur bodybuilder since his teens. As with all his achievements, bodybuilding has required full-time discipline. Training is five days a week at 90-minute intervals.

As for food, Joe gobbles 2,200-3,200 calories daily. He said the science of bodybuilding is 70 percent diet. That might mean 40 ounces of chicken each day along with whey protein, avocados, peanut butter, oatmeal, walnuts and sweet potatoes. Proper diet is crucial, according to Joe. He said at least 10 friends have tried bodybuilding. The diet not the workout was their downfall.

Joe indicated that a bodybuilder cannot find a shortcut to success. There isn’t any negotiation with the body. Positive results push a person to the next level.

As a teen, Joe competed in local shows in the Hudson Valley. Then, he won the Mr. Teen Long Island competition. From 1991 to 2014, however, a period that included four years in the Air Force, Joe did not step onto a bodybuilding stage. A few years ago, determined to return to competition, he focused on a regimen for seven weeks. When the National Physique Committee (NPC), the largest amateur bodybuilding organization in the United States, introduced its Classic Bodybuilding division, Joe’s dimensions were perfect and he returned to the stage.

Joe won the Men’s Masters Classic Physique overall at the NPC Powerhouse Classic in Connecticut a few years ago. He then rolled right into the Team Universe competition and placed second among the over-40 men, third in the over-35s, and eighth overall in the open class of 26 competitors. His goal is to become a professional bodybuilder.

Joe is a wonderful story about discipline, focus and hard work. What I like most, though, is that the sport that is the foundation for Joe’s success is lacrosse.

In looking back at how he got to this point in his life, Joe said he had been a “scrawny” 15-year-old Ossining High School lacrosse player. His stepfather decided that lifting weights would help Joe bulk up. That led to the competitions mentioned above and many others since, his honorable military service and his success on the Ossining Police Department.

Lacrosse sure does wonders for a young man!