I was listening to NHL Network Radio on Sirius XM last night and heard an interesting, Godfather-related story.

Hockey Hall-of-Famer Phil Esposito said that he, and baseball player Tony Conigliaro, were asked to audition for the role of Carlo.

He said it went so far that they were flown from Boston to Hollywood to read for the casting people. After the reading, he inquired about the filming schedule.

When he was told that it would be 6-8 weeks in winter (during the hockey season), and that the pay would be only $7500, he bowed out.

We know boxer Vito Antuofermo was cast in GFIII, but I had no idea that the idea of casting athletes in the Trilogy went back so far.