Former Red Wings enforcer Joey Kocur revealed how Bob Probert unintentionally played a key role in his NHL return. Kocur credited Probert for showing that Detroit had a void in its roster that Scotty Bowman needed to address.
Probert was considered one of the toughest enforcers of his era. Kocur, meanwhile, was also highly respected and achieved a lot of success.
Kocur revealed that a game between the Red Wings and the Chicago Blackhawks led to his return. At the time, the Saskatchewan native played in a beer league, while Probert played for the Blackhawks.
After Probert had his way with the Red Wings players, Bowman immediately addressed the issue by adding more toughness. He called Kocur’s agent and reached an agreement to bring the enforcer back into the NHL.
Ex-Red Wings Enforcer Joey Kocur Reveals How Bob Probert Played A Key Role in His NHL Return
Former Red Wings enforcer Joey Kocur admitted that Bob Probert deserves a lot of credit for his NHL return during the 1996-97 season.
According to Kocur, Probert had imposed his will on the Red Wings during a regular season game. This set off a quick series of events that saw him return to Detroit for a second stint. He also understood that he would eventually have to fight Probert.
“I was playing in the beer league and I went down to the Chicago-Detroit game. And I talked to [Probert] after the game and I said, ‘Probie, next time you come to Detroit, you got to get me back in the league. Do a little something stupid,'” He comes back the next time, he spears [Shanahan], beats up Jamie Pushor, runs everybody. Scotty Bowman calls my agent the next day, ‘Tell Joe to get down to the minors, get in shape. We want to bring him back,'” Kocur said during his Gloves Off: The Enforcer Code podcast.
“[The] next game [we played] in Chicago, four minutes in, I line up against Probie at the faceoff. [I said], ‘Probie, let’s go.’ He kind of looked at me [and said], ‘Why?’ [I said], ‘We’re going to [expletive] go.’ Well, we end up fighting,” Kocur said.
Kocur Shares Hilarious Story of Thanking Probert Years Later
Kocur also shared a hilarious story about thanking Probert and expressing his gratitude years later. He revealed that Probert was still did not realize, even after all those years, that his actions had led to Kocur’s NHL return.
“It was 15 years later, we’re sitting together writing our book. And I’m talking to Probie and I’m like, ‘Hey buddy, thanks for getting me back in the league.’ He goes, ‘Why did you want to fight me?’ [I said], ‘Because that’s why [the Red Wings] brought me back. You were being an [expletive] the game before for me,'” Kocur said during an episode of his Gloves Off: The Enforcer Code podcast.
While Kocur laughs about the fight now, he admitted that fighting Probert was a very tough task.
“When I fought Probie, he was much bigger than me and he was [expletive] tough, so I’m trying to kill him.”
Ex-Red Wings Enforcer Joey Kocur Reveals Bob Probert’s Role in His NHL Return