Joe OberleJul 17, 2021 0 6 minutes read I didn’t know Joe Johnson when he was a young high school hockey stud for Edison and was pictured, with his sister, a future U of M goalie, Stephanie (and a couple other promising players) on the sports page of the Star Tribune. But I would have liked to have met him then. He must have been a terror. Sports, as in life itself, often favors the bold, focused, and hard-working — all three attributes that describe my friend, Joe, who tragically passed away earlier this week. We met about seven years ago when VikingsJournal.com was nearing its last legs and Joe was working there while building his own sports publishing network on the side. He was already a dynamo with his work ethic, his desire, his Purple passion, and his unique and ever-present sense of humor. We hit it off right away.