Over a 15 year National Hockey League Career, Gregory Joseph “Joey” Kocur transformed into a hockey legend by playing the game the way that it should be played. By being the rough and tumble, old school player, he cemented his lore across North America.

During his time in the NHL, he amassed over 2500 penalty minutes while acting as the Enforcer as well as the primary Security blanket for such NHL Hall of Famers as Mark Messier, Brian Leech, Igor Larionov and Steve Yzerman. He played his role well and was respected in addition to being feared.

His partnership with another famed enforcer, Bob Probert, would brand the both of them as “The Bruise Brothers”. The tales of this collaboration (some a wee bit taller than others) would be placed onto paper and banded together for an awaiting fan base with the release of the “Bruise Brothers” autobiography in 2008.

Towards the end of his career, he was plying his craft in an industrial league. While some have regarded this as the “Beer League” era, it allowed for him to stay in shape in anticipation of an eventual return to the NHL. His previous relationship with Steve Yzerman convinced the Captain to have a conversation with Head Coach Scotty Bowman in order to lobby for the return of #26. Joey Kocur’s passion for the game, dedication to training and focus on the ultimate goal would once again pay dividends in the result of a championship.

In the final 5 seasons of his playing career, he would hoist Lord Stanley’s Cup on 3 separate occasions with both The New York Rangers and The Detroit Red Wings.

Upon his retirement from active competition, he went to work as a video coordinator for the Bowman led Red Wings. In the aftermath of the 2002 Stanley Cup, the Hall of Fame Coach specifically credited Joey’s work in the video arena as a catalyst for the Winged Wheels success during the year. Over the next 2 seasons he became a bench coach for Dave Lewis and enjoyed a record of 96 wins against 41 losses, with a win percentage of (.711) .

Today, Joey is the head of Kocur Enterprises, a leading manufacturing representative firm located in South East Michigan. With a lifetime of knowledge that started on a Farm in Saskatchewan and continues to this day in the blue collar, industrial communities in which he chooses to do business. In an Auto Industry that is under siege by those that don’t understand the region, Joey Kocur is once again willing to fight. Now, it is for the business of his clients. He takes great pride in throwing on the Carhartt gear and getting his hands dirty while working side by side with the companies that make this region thrive. This motivation, and his skills from the ice, has translated well into the business arena enabling him to turn the hockey knowledge into business knowledge in order to anticipate, as well as provide solutions for customer and client needs.

He remains active in the Detroit Red Wings Alumni Association and enjoys working with local charities. He continues to reside in Highland, Mi with his wife of 18 years Kristen and their 2 children, Kendall and Liam.