Golfer who ‘got dropped like a bucket of balls' in fight with ex-NHLer Nick Tarnasky apologizes

Yahoo

2 days ago

Warning: Videos below contain violence and swearing.
The man who got into a fight with a former NHLer with a history of handing out on-ice beatings has apologized for his part in the incident that was captured on video and has since gone viral.
'Yep, that's me, guys. The guy that got dropped like a bucket of balls in a pond,' Trevor Ogilvie begins in a confessional video stitched above one showing the beatdown he suffered at the hands of Nick Tarnasky, a veteran of 245 NHL games, at Alberta Springs Golf Resort, just outside Red Deer, Alta.
'Not my finest moment, I know. Looks real bad. I played 36 holes of golf, we drank way too much, and my mouth ran faster than my brain.'
In the extended version of the video, Tarnasky and his golf group are expressing frustration with the pair they're playing behind, saying they're taking too long to tee off and slowing down play for everyone.
'You're not a tough guy. Hurry up,' Tarnasky says to a Hawaiian shirt-clad Ogilvie as the group of men argue around their golf carts near a tee-box.
'He's pretty tough,' Ogilvie's unidentified playing partner replies.
Tarnasky and company vehemently disagree and urge the duo to get moving or let the group play through.
Eventually, as Ogilvie is slowly teeing up, Tarnasky can be heard complaining about their slow play and threatening to 'throw them' in the lake. Ogilvie then drops his club and tells Tarnasky to 'F—ing cry about it' and calls him a 'p—y.'
As he's warned to back down and told he's not scaring anybody, Ogilvie throws his sunglasses to the ground and starts acting aggressively, shouting 'Let's go f—ing go, man.'
'Buddy, you don't want to go at me,' Tarnasky can be heard warning him.
Moments later, Ogilvie lunges at the much bigger and taller Tarnasky, who uses the aggressor's momentum to manhandle him into the nearby aforementioned water hazard.
Ogilvie quickly climbs from the water and goes back at Tarnasky only to be served two meaty right hands by the former pro who had 297 penalty minutes in his five NHL seasons, which included heavyweight tilts against the likes of Aaron Asham, Zenon Konopka, Milan Lucic, Chris Neil and Colton Orr, among several others. (He racked up another 1,054 minutes in 522 AHL and KHL games.)
Each landed fist is accentuated by Tarnasky shouting 'Bang!'
An undeterred Ogilvie, however, climbs to his feet and is delivered another three punches, each with their own 'Bang,' before being pushed to the ground.
'Enough. Get out,' Tarnasky screams as Ogilvie staggers toward him again, only to be rag-dolled onto the grass.
As Tarnasky's group again urge the tandem to leave, Ogilvie gathers his belongings and stumbles forward looking for a handshake. An incensed Tarnasky wants none of it and pushes him to the ground again.
Then, after Ogilvie starts putting his clubs in someone else's cart and is pushed away, he appears to briefly brandish the club as a weapon. The camera cuts away as Tarnasky and the others continue to yell at Ogilvie and the unidentified man to leave, which they soon do.
Ogilvie's latest post, while contrite, came without a direct apology to Tarnasky.
'All jokes aside, guys, I'd like to apologize to all the folks on the course, anyone caught up in it and anyone who had to deal with me that day. I lost my cool, and I've learned from it. It's just one of those days where you should have kept the cart on the path, ya know.
'Stay hydrated. Keep your stick on the ice. Maybe stick to 18.'
Tarnasky, meanwhile, is set to break his silence on the slow-play fisticuffs in the next episode of the popular Spittin' Chiclets hockey podcast — he chatted with co-host and retired NHLer Paul Bisonnette for an episode set to air on Tuesday.
Local RCMP were made aware of the incident, but Const. Cory Riggs told the Red Deer Advocate that 'it appears to be a consensual fight and no further action is being taken.'
However, the incident has prompted an internal investigation on the part of Tarnasky's employers, Red Deer Minor Hockey.
'We are aware of a video circulating on social media involving a coach with Red Deer Minor Hockey,' the organization said in a statement to the Canadian Press last week. 'At this time, given that we understand the matter is being reviewed by local policing authorities and we are conducting our own internal investigation into the alleged incident, we will have no further comments.'
National Post has contacted the association for more information on their probe.
In May, Tarnasky was announced as the North Stars' returning U17 AAA head coach for the 2025-26 season. The veteran of 14 pro seasons took over the bench after the team's slow start in October 2024 and went on to guide the boys to a berth in the Hockey Alberta Provincials, earning himself Alberta Elite Hockey League coach of the year honours in the age group.
'His ability to create a positive, high-performance environment and bring out the best in his players has been a key factor in the team's resurgence,' the association wrote.
Alberta golf course fight involving ex-NHLer Nick Tarnasky prompts investigation
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