NETFLIX PHENOMENON: A.J. GALANTE OF THE DANBURY TRASHERS

It would be a dream for any young hockey fan to have their own team, but for AJ Galante, it became his reality when his dad named him the head of the Danbury Trashers at the age of 17. The defunct hockey team only played from 2004-2006 but the events that transpired regarding this team will never be forgotten. 

AJ Galante not only became the General Manager and President of a United Hockey League team at such a young age, the team was also known for shocking fights and bizarre pranks. The most unbelievable part—AJ’s father Jimmy Galante had ties to the mob and Genovese crime family. The best way to describe the Galante’s and the Danbury Trashers is The Sopranos meets Slapshot. A new documentary series on Netflix called Untold: Crime and Penalties was released to share the unbelievable tale, and has given the Trashers life once again.

“You don’t have to be a hockey fan to like it, it is just about two guys that took a chance,” said AJ Galante on Monday’s show. 

Normally hockey franchises do all they can to stay away from controversy, but not the Trashers. The hockey team earned more penalty minutes in one season than any other team, and distributed high rule-breaking payrolls to their players. All eyes were on Danbury, even ESPN and Sports Centre turned their attention to the small city.

“Danbury didn’t really have an identity, this is part of the reason we did what we did,” said Galante.  “We’re kind of like a forgotten city out here, and New York obviously won’t claim us because we’re part of Connecticut, so it’s one of those situations where, unless there’s something really big going on here, no one’s no one’s tripping over themselves to come to Danbury.”

The Trashers generated attention then and they are generating more attention now. The documentary has reached very high popularity on Netflix. This begs the question, will the Galante’s return to the hockey business?

“I haven’t been approached at all yet, but everything in my life has been so random,” said Galante. “Who knows, you know, where I could be sitting a year from now, who knows what position I could potentially be in but you know you always got to be ready for an opportunity no matter what.”

Whether or not AJ Galante returns to the hockey world, he sure has made a statement in the sports world that will live on for generations to come.