North Shore Hockey – Greatest Assist of 2023

I saw his comment, then thought, “I need to introduce myself to his son, Reese.”

I was sitting close to the North Shore bench during warmups when Reese approached.  I introduced myself and told him I’d coached his Dad many years ago.  Mentioned that he was great to coach, and that he’s obviously still a big hockey fan—he seems to be at every UMD game.  Then, I asked Reese if he was injured and, therefore, out of the lineup.

Reese surprised me when he said, “No, one of my teammates forgot his skates so I let him use mine.”

Surely, I didn’t hear that correctly because, of course, nobody is that unselfish.

I responded:

“Wait.  What?”

Reese elaborated.

“One of our team captains is a Senior and he forgot his skates.  I’m just a sophomore and he only has a couple more games to play. Playing in this game would mean a lot to him so I let him use my skates.”

Wow.  Wow.  Wow.  

I know a lot of words. Some big words with many syllables.  But “Wow” seems the most applicable descriptor. Many of us know that feeling of a career winding down.  Missing one of the last games due to a simple mistake would have been crushing.

Enter Greysen Peterson, Team Captain, North Shore Storm.

“We’d just finished our dryland warmup, and I started unpacking my hockey bag. I couldn’t find my skates. I double checked.  Then I thought, maybe one of my teammates was playing a prank on me.  I soon learned that wasn’t the case.”

The first two words to pass through Greysen’s mind were the same two words that 97% of us would have thought:

“Oh shit.”

Next, he thought, “I’ve been playing hockey for 13 years and never forgotten my skates before.  And now, of all places, we are in International Falls—three hours from home.  It’s not like Dad can quickly drive home and grab ‘em.”

“I told a couple of the guys sitting next to me that I’d forgotten my skates.  Reese was sitting around the corner and must have heard what I said.  Nobody asked him to give up his skates. He just came over and said something like, ‘I know this is an important game for you, why don’t you just wear mine?”

“It means so much because as a Senior, my time is winding down.  It happens so fast.  Everyone tells you the time will go by quickly.  They sure were right.  Every shift is important.  Every game is important. I’ve only got a few games remaining.  But Reese works hard too and every bit of ice time he gets is important to him.  For him to do this, it was just such a leadership move.  It means a lot to me.”

But did the skates fit?

“Oh my god.  I wear CCMs.  He wears Bauers. And they were form-fit to Reese’s feet, so I was a bit wobbly. It took a period before I started feeling comfortable.”

Reese’s move was admirable.  But this speaks highly of Greysen too. All captains are not created equally.  Some early season leaders lose a few followers along the way.  It’s a testament to Greysen’s leadership that someone would respect him so much that they’d make this sacrifice for him. 

It’s also a positive reflection on the culture currently being cultivated by the hockey coaching staff, and athletic leadership in general in Two Harbors.

Hockey players typically get recognition when they score goals, get assists or earn a shutout.  They never get recognition when they stand on the bench behind their teammates during a game. International Falls won 4-1. 

Reese’s name didn’t appear on the scoresheet or in any newspaper or online stories the following day. But Reese Radtke had one of the most impressive, honorable and unselfish assists I’ve ever seen or heard of. Meanwhile, the best leaders understand the importance of celebrating a teammate’s moment in the limelight. Greysen has done exactly that for Reese.

I loved seeing Smoky Bear. I loved seeing the water tower.  I loved seeing Bronco Arena.

But I really love everything about this story.