In his rookie pro season, Nathan took advantage of injuries to some veteran players and solidified his spot with the St. John’s Leafs. Where 3 seasons later he would be the team captain.  

At that time Nathan had his sights set on bigger things, he was ready to become an NHL’er but…  

Solid season after solid season was not enough to get Nathan the opportunity, he felt he deserved.  Nathan continued to grow his game, and his leadership skills and made one huge decision that allowed him to become an NHL regular with the Chicago Blackhawks in 2002. 

After finally making his NHL dreams come true and enjoying his third season in the Show, Nathan experienced symptoms of early onset Parkinson’s while playing with the LA Kings and Nathan had new challenges to face.  

Although he wasn’t officially diagnosed until year later, Nathan felt it affecting his game and was forced to retire from the sport in 2008 

Leaving the game behind was not an option for Nathan and he now serves as the Campus Director at Vimy Ridge Hockey in Edmonton, Alberta where he is supporting young athletes develop their love and skills for the sport. 

This is a very raw and real conversation and we cover so many great things like: 

• Why finding your identity and not caring about the judgement of others is so important 
• How Nathan defines resilience and why he believes you can practice it 
• The key decision that Nathan “called” selfish that got him his NHL job 
• Why working on your strengths might be more important than working on your weaknesses 
• How the proper mindset made a difference for Nathan as a player and how it continues to make a difference for him as person. 

Many thanks to my old teammate Nathan Dempsey for spending time with me and being so open and vulnerable about so many things. I believe this is a very inspiring episode and one that you will enjoy.