Power Plays

Hockey

Host: Peter Palandjian, Intercontinental Real Estate chairman and CEO. Highlights: Palandjian was a world-ranked athlete (in tennis), and can mow down opponents. While the game is officially no-contact, “cleansing fights” break out every so often, one player reports. But feelings aren’t hurt: Some big real estate deals are born in the postgame locker room.
When: Twice a week, at the Fessenden School in West Newton.
Who’s in: Largely real estate and finance execs with hockey experience, among them Sovereign Bank CEO Joseph Campanelli and NStar senior VP Joe Nolan Jr., and City Councilor Michael Flaherty.

Basketball

Host: James Pallotta, Tudor Investment vice chair and Celtics co-owner. Highlights: On the court, Pallotta’s everywhere: driving, roaming outside, hurling prayers. But, befitting the secrecy of hedge funds, no one will say if he’s a ball hog.
When: At least weekly, at Harvard University.
Who’s in: Pallotta’s Tudor colleagues, Highfields Capital hedge fund cofounder Jonathon Jacobson, and Newbury College b-ball coach L. J. Harrington.

Poker

Host: John Sasso, lobbyist and Democratic operative.
Highlights: Sasso, who worked on the Dukakis and Kerry presidential campaigns, is a cunning player, dodging trouble faster than his candidates could. For a big pot, normally dignified men hiss things like “I want you bad.”
When: Twice a month.
Who’s in: Time journo Robert Ajemian, Access Capital Strategies CEO Ronald Homer, political consultant Jack Weeks, restaurateur Pierre Saroufim, West Insurance Agency of Mass. president John Jenkins, psychiatrist Max Shapiro, and attorneys Roger Zehntner, Marc Cumsky, and Fletcher “Flash” Wiley.

Bocce
Host: Paul Scapicchio, senior VP at ML Strategies and former Boston city councilor.
Highlights: House Speaker Sal DiMasi and ex–Senate President Robert Travaglini are perennial champs, while Sox chief Larry Lucchino ranks among the best hecklers. “It starts really funny,” says one player, “but becomes a total badge of pride for these guys.”
When: A few times a year in the North End, as a charity fundraiser.
Who’s in: The aforementioned heavyweights, plus others such as Mayor Thomas Menino, Lieutenant Governor Tim Murray, and ex–UMass honcho Stephen Tocco.