Never Far from Home

Mike "Doc" Emrick joins the show for round two, and does not disappoint! We delve into some more tales, and explore some of the impactful calls "Doc" has been involved with. Being playoff time, we dive into some of his favorite pieces of the game, and much of it stems from this time of year. Enjoy another fantastic stretch of time with Mr. Emrick!   https://www.beautyunis.com/ https://www.thegarde...

Dana Anderson-Helstrom is the tenth guest in the "Minnesota Chronicles", a special series from my time in Minnesota for the Boys State High School Tourney. We connected on a phone call, and Dana shared some an incredibly emotional story about her journey with childhood cancer, as her son had been diagnosed. Dana shares the powerful tales of a fantastic spirit in her son, Tucker. And she also regal...

Beth Bowshall joins us from Australia. We talk about how she came to fall in love with hockey and the rink in general in an area that does not have a robust community known for it. She regales us with tales of competitive days, with some stories spanning different continents, and eventually we land in the realm of reffing. She tells of how she chose to ref, and we dive into a few stories from her...

Corey Brenner is the ninth guest in the "Minnesota Chronicles", a special series from my time in Minnesota for the Boys State High School Tourney. He is an entrepreneur, and founder of the goalie guru ( https://www.getgoalieguru.com/ ). We connected on a phone call, and immediately, the tone of the recording was set with some wonderful discussion the pre-dated my opening questions. Corey and I wer...

Erik Westrum is the eighth guest in the "Minnesota Chronicles", a special series from my time in Minnesota for the Boys State High School Tourney. We connected on a phone call, and dove head first into a timeline riddled with wonderful anecdotes, including a youth experience that led to passion, passion that led to college hockey, and eventually, a pro career including stints in the NHL and AHL. E...

Paul Ranheim is the seventh guest in the "Minnesota Chronicles", a special series from my time in Minnesota for the Boys State High School Tourney. We connected on a phone call, and I caught him off-guard with the conversational, long-form interview. Due to time restraints, we keep this first episode together short. That said, we dive into his timeline, including a state championship run with the...

Kalli Funk is the sixth guest in the "Minnesota Chronicles", a special series from my time in Minnesota for the Boys State High School Tourney. Kalli was kind enough to find some time to meet up, after we had a very brief introduction the Monday I got in. She is playing on the Women's USA Bandy team, and I had attended the practice. We sat down in the Minnesota Wild offices, and she regaled me wit...

Derek Shepherd is the fifth guest in the "Minnesota Chronicles", a special series from my time in Minnesota for the Boys State High School Tourney. We got into his timeline within the rink, from his beginning as a player through his time as an official. As is the case in so many of these episodes, I tried to find the balance between timeline exploration, and storytelling. Derek has a history of re...

Delaney Middlebrook is the fourth guest in the "Minnesota Chronicles", a special series from my time in Minnesota for the Boys State High School Tourney. Delaney shared an incredible story, filled with so much challenge, so many tales of overcoming those difficulties, and she shares how she has become the wonderful human I was able to meet for a bit. From asking to play hockey at 4, and making a p...

Kenzie Torpy is the third guest in the "Minnesota Chronicles", a special series from my time in Minnesota for the Boys State High School Tourney. Kenzie and I met at White Bear Lake Arena to sit down for our chat, and we explore a timeline riddled with fun stories, and culminating in a college career at St. Thomas. With positive strides taken, year over year, we also find a challenging moment, in...

Chris Middlebrook is the second guest in the "Minnesota Chronicles", a special series from my time in Minnesota for the Boys State High School Tourney. Chris and I dive into a fascinating timeline that includes hockey at the collegiate level, and a lengthy history with bandy. He also has a few years of coaching we get into. The big draw for Chris was his book about his daughter, Delaney: "The Girl...

Tom Peart is the first guest in the "Minnesota Chronicles", a special series from my time in Minnesota for the Boys State High School Tourney. Tom goes through a timeline that is filled with hockey, from coming to the sport a bit late at 12-13, and finding himself in love with the goalie position, to his college playing days (post-Marines), through his many years as a coach. I hope you enjoy his s...

Kassidy Sauve came on and we go into her timeline of involvement, as we do on the show. Hers is a Canadian story. She was almost born with skates on, and was playing from 4 years old. She quickly found herself loving the crease, and everything that came with being a goalie. Her career is still going strong, today, but she does an excellent job moving through the years that led her to pro hockey. F...

Amanda Provan was kind enough to join the show, and we explore her passion for the game. She began playing at 12, but had loved it since her youth. The path of life was such that she found blind hockey after a few years playing sighted, and we talk on what the transition was like. She quickly found herself engrossed with the community of Blind Hockey in Canada, and is the first woman to win gold w...

Kenny Simmons was the third live guest of Never Far from Home. We sat down at West End Sports Grill, and had a great chat about his timeline within the game of hockey, and just how it was a Michigan boy ended up in Steamboat Springs. I had multiple friends and family members reach out with questions before the show, and we get to those as well. Enjoy a fun chat with a good hockey guy. thegardensic...

Tristan Lindberg comes on the show, and we explore a timeline that includes sighted hockey for a large chunk of time, including some time in juniors. Then, as things declined visually, he found himself back in the game with Canadian Blind Hockey. Enjoy the many tales Tristan shares, as we navigate rink stories, difficulties he has overcome, and of course, there is some off-ice exploration as well!...

Salmaan Chaudhri joined the podcast, and we were able to get into some of his timeline connected to the rink. We talk about one of my favorite things, community, and how the community of blind hockey has grown over the last few years. Salmaan shares his connection to the game, and within the exploration, we also find some good stories. Enjoy another wonderful guest! beautyunis.com thegardensicehou...

Lee Becker and I have been pining to get together on a podcast for a while, and his stories do not disappoint. We explore a timeline that includes growing up in a hockey-rich household, finding a passion in the games nuances, regarding equipment, and eventually traveling overseas and finding the game in a whole new way. Lee has some incredible tales that we move through, but even more that will be...

Ryan Kucy and I dive into his hockey timelines, highlighted by his first few times skating, and eventually, finding blind hockey a little later in his teen years. After finding his community, the experiences he has had have been mostly wonderful. As you may have come to expect, we explore family, passion for a sport, and the ever important: community. Enjoy some wonderful tales from my friend, Rya...

Ryan Kucy and I dive into his hockey timelines, highlighted by his first few times skating, and eventually, finding blind hockey a little later in his teen years. After finding his community, the experiences he has had have been mostly wonderful. As you may have come to expect, we explore family, passion for a sport, and the ever important: community. Enjoy some wonderful tales from my friend, Rya...

Hannah Croonquist and I met up at the Howie Dome, and she regaled me with stories about falling in love with the game. Originally from Minnesota, she wasted little time in becoming involved with the community of the rink, and even now as a young adult, she realizes the special connections it has given her. We walk through her youth hockey, her family, and where she landed for college. And of cours...

Missy Segall came on the show and we wasted little time diving into the stories and timeline! Missy grew up just outside of Boston, and she fell in love with hockey at a young age. We explore how that love became a passion, and just how far the passion took her. While she is currently moving into a different role in life and hockey, this is another example of a wonderful person who will always sta...

Spencer Wayman was guest #2 live from West End Sports Grill! We had a great time going through his involvement within the game, from his youth days in Craig through his time in college where he had to make more of an effort to stay involved. We find the different reasons he continues to love the game, and what drives him to stay involved. Enjoy! beautyunis.com thegardensicehouse.com

Mike "Doc" Emrick was welcomed to the show, and shared some great stories. We had limited time, but made the most of it, exploring some of the roots of his love for the game, examining the different meanings of family, touching on the late Peter McNab, and of course we dove into the senses as well. Enjoy the chat with my friend, Doc. thegardensicehouse.com beautyunis.com

Dave Paolillo joins the show and we were able to explore many stories within his great life. He spent some years in New York, where he learned to love the game of hockey, then went to Florida, and ended up in the Air Force. The path was not that linear, and we take a deep dive into some fantastic, and at times incredibly challenging, career path. Enjoy my friends tales. I sure did. thegardensiceho...