How I Got Here with Corey Koskie

Corey A. Wulf, MD, provides specialty care in Orthopedic Sports Medicine at Twin Cities Orthopedics. Before this, he was a multisport athlete in Lennox, South Dakota. Playing youth sports doesn't mean that you are going to "go pro" and make millions of dollars playing in front of sold-out crowds. Yeah, that can be pretty cool, but the reality for almost everybody that plays youth sports is that they will end up in the real world. Youth sports can provide lessons to take into other fields and give you the edge on your competition. While Corey was in medical school he saw this and he had an edge. Listen as Dr. Corey Wulf tells us his story.

* Louis Vincent "Lou" Nanne born on June 2, 1941 in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. His nickname, "Sweet Lou from the Soo," stems from his native town in Sault Ste. Marie Ontario where he played his minor pro hockey with the Esposito brothers. Lou Nanne’s mom wanted Lou to be a dentist and that was the plan until he ended up at the University of Minnesota in 1960 where he studied business administration. With the Gophers, he became the only defenseman to this day to win the WCHA scoring title. He was one of the biggest stars in American college hockey during the 1960s. Lou Nanne’s impact on US Hockey especially in Minnesota is immeasurable. Listen to Lou tell his stories about this path.

It is not easy to be a youth hockey player in the US in the 80’s. There are few teams ,the travel is crazy, and it is expensive. The path to the NHL is hard. It is even harder when you get cut from your bantam travel team, you have no interest from any professional teams while in college, and you have only played defense your whole career. Blake Sloan just starts playing forward and then he gets the call. Now he is thrusted into a Stanley Cup run with NHL legends. This episode talks about the journey that started in Illinois, ends in Germany, and the new path that is started at 38 years old

As a Canadian growing up in New Westminister, British Colombia Justin loved hockey. But he also played every sport he could; ball hockey, golf, basketball, volleyball, and baseball. He loved hockey growing up but he had to make a choice, hockey or baseball. How do you choose between the sports you love with one of them being the pride of your country? Justin tells his story of growing up and dealing with a lot of adversity in the minor leagues, getting a wake-up call that changed his career path that lead him to be a American League MVP

Chad Greenway was raised on a hog and crop farm in Mt. Vernon, S.D., where he played 9-man high school football and had 26 kids in his class. Greenway learned the rigors of farm life. Summer seemed the worst season. At 5 a.m. it was wake up to help load pigs, or walk bean fields.

Chad Greenway earned a scholarship from the University of Iowa and then on to an 11-year career with the Minnesota Viking. Chad talks about farm life, dealing with smelling like a pig farmer, blowing his ACL and dealing with the overwhelming fear of failure.

Joe Mauer was a high school All-American in every sport he played. Being the youngest of 3 boys he did his best to keep up with his older brothers. He was living his dream of playing baseball for his childhood team, the Minnesota Twins. Listen to Joe tell his stories about growing up in St.Paul, his path to the Big Leagues, and dealing with the injuries that impacted his career.

It is Sept 15, 2012, and the players have been locked out by the NHL because of the labor dispute between the NHL and the NHLPA. Some players go to Europe to play and others stay back. Mark talks about the turmoil between the players during the lockout. After dealing with that Mark signs with his hometown team the Minnesota Wild and then a few seasons later get released by the Wild. He goes from the best day of his life to his worse year. He bounces around a little after this and then he has to deal with the reality that he is not good enough to play in the NHL anymore and his career is done. Listen as Mark shares his stories through this.

Steve's tenacity, resilience, and grit have paid off in high school and junior hockey. Now the fun starts. Steve talks about what it was like getting recruited, playing for Team USA, and being drafted by the LA Kings. Anybody that doesn't know Steve Johnson story can say he is "lucky". Luck doesn't make you a starting defenseman for the Gophers after sitting the bench a lot your first year.

As a youth athlete, Steve Johnson loves to compete. He loves sports and plays baseball, hockey, and soccer. He wants to win. As he is getting to high school age he starts to lean more towards hockey. He is small and he is playing a physical sport at a physical position. He doesn't let that stop him and learns at every stage of the way. He gets his growth spurt and blooms into a hockey player that gets a full ride to the University of Minnesota and is drafted by the LA Kings. It seems easy right, NO! Steve has to fight against fate many times to get where he is today. In this Episode, Steve tells stories of getting cut from his high school hockey team and what he had to do to get noticed by the University of Minnesota Gophers

Joe Mauer was a high school All-American in every sport he played. Being the youngest of 3 boys he did his best to keep up with his older brothers. He was living his dream of playing baseball for his childhood team, the Minnesota Twins. Listen to Joe tell his stories about growing up in St.Paul, his path to the Big Leagues, and dealing with the injuries that impacted his career.