Karyn Bye

2023 Inductee
Karyn Bye was born and raised in River Falls where she played youth hockey in a generation where she needed to hide her gender to play, and, in fact, used her initials K.L. Bye as an identity, rather then her first name.

Sis Paulsen

2023 Inductee
Sis Paulsen was born and raised in Eau Claire. She played youth hockey for the Eau Claire Youth Hockey Association, and high school hockey for Eau Claire North High School.

Terry Watkins

2023 Inductee
Terry Watkins was born and raised in St. Paul, Minn., where he played youth hockey followed by high school hockey at Cretin High School.

  • Pete Susens - 2012

Pete Susens was born in Superior where he played his youth hockey for the Superior Amateur Hockey Association (SAHA). Though he played junior varsity hockey only thru his sophomore year, the Superior coach, Tom Saterdalen, asked him to become the team manager as a junior, and this led to his interest in coaching. That interest turned to a passion that led to coaching hockey for more than 30 years. His coaching career began early as he coached youth hockey at Squirts and Peewees for SAHA while still attending the University of Wisconsin-Superior. As the assistant Peewee coach, his team won the State Tournament and participated in Nationals.

After graduating from college, Susens’ high school coaching career actually began with freshman basketball and girls softball at Wauzeka High School. In 1977, Susens moved to Wausau West High School to teach business education, and became a non-paid assistant hockey coach and the freshman baseball coach. Within a year, he assumed the head hockey coach’s position, a position he has held ever since.

As the high school coach at West, Susens has accumulated more than 500 wins, 9 conference championships, 11 State Tournament appearances, three State second place finishes and a State Championship. As a measure of accomplishment against many other great high school coaches in the State of Wisconsin, Susens’ high school teams have won more high school games than any other coach.

Outside of his high school team, Susens has spent countless hours working with hockey players as they advance through WAHA development programs. His guidance wasn’t restricted just to hockey, but to all of the other life lessons that one gets on the rink, in the locker room and in the class room. Susens has become deeply involved in his community not only as a member of the hockey family, but also as a teacher, counselor and friend.

Susens is also an avid golfer and softball player, and was part of the All Car-Green Bay team that won the 1994 fast-pitch softball world championship. He has played on many softball teams that have won State titles in Wisconsin and Minnesota. He has coached other sports at West including baseball, a sport he played from little league through college. At UW-Superior, Susens lettered in baseball all four years and was named WSUC All-conference as a senior.

Susens was recently awarded the UW-Superior Mertz Mortorelli Coaching Achievement award by the UW-Superior Hall of Fame, and was inducted into the Superior Athletic and Academic Hall of Fame in the Spring of 2012.

Susens and his wife Kim have two children, Kristin and David.