🚗 The Ride Home That Can Make or Break a Hockey Kid Every hockey parent knows the feeling: the game just ended, and the emotions are high. Maybe your child missed a breakaway. Maybe the team blew a lead. You start to talk — or worse, “coach.” But w…
🏒 Introduction: Beyond the Puck In youth hockey, players are often taught to focus on the play right in front of them — the puck, the rush, the goal. But as Lee and Mike explain in this week’s episode of The Ride to the Rink, the real magic of hock…
Coaching Girls in Hockey: Why Words Matter More Than You Think One of the most fascinating challenges in youth hockey coaching is recognizing that how you say something can be just as important as what you say. This was at the heart of a recent Our…
🧊 The Mental Load of Being a Hockey Parent: Why You’re Not Crazy (The Hockey World Is) If you’ve ever found yourself gripping your coffee in a cold rink at 6 a.m. thinking, “Why does this feel like so much?” — this episode is for you. Being a hock…
🏒 Introduction: A Modern Communication Breakdown “Okay.” “K.” “👍.”Three words — or symbols — that can cause a whole lot of confusion. In this episode of The Ride To The Rink, Mike and Lee dive into the growing challenge facing young athletes every…
What do you do when your child starts dreading the rink? In a recent Ride to the Rink episode, Olympian Hayley Scamurra and mental performance coach Nick Stoop joined Lee Elias to explore powerful lessons around mentorship, mindset, and what truly …
Teaching Kids to Communicate in Hockey: Lessons Every Parent Should Hear When your child sits on the bench or struggles to find their voice with a coach, it’s easy to jump in and “fix it.” But what if the best thing you can do is step back? That’s…
🎬 Tournament Time: More Than Just Games For hockey families, tournaments are more than a weekend of games — they’re where friendships are forged, lessons are learned, and core memories are made. But too often, players and parents miss out on the be…
Mentorship in Hockey: Building Confidence, Community, and Character On and Off the Ice In youth hockey, there's a quiet force that often shapes a player's journey more than skill drills or game strategies: mentorship. In a powerful episode of Our G…
💸 The Breaking Point: When Tournaments Stop Being Fun If you’ve ever sat in a hotel lobby wondering why you paid $700 for the privilege of playing a team from your own zip code — this episode is for you.In “Tournament Turmoil,” the Our Kids Play Ho…
💥 The Real Difference Between Good and Great When it comes to hockey, every young player dreams of skating like an NHL pro. But as Riley Armstrong, NHL Director of Player Development, reminds us — greatness doesn’t start with goals or assists. It s…
Big Feelings Are Part of the Game Every hockey player, from the youngest skater to the biggest pro, experiences big feelings. Maybe your team goes down 2–0 early. Maybe you miss a pass. Maybe you just don’t feel like yourself on the ice that day. T…
🏒 Introduction: Why “Development” Means More Than You Think Every hockey parent has heard it: “It’s all about development.”But what does that actually mean? For Riley Armstrong, Director of Player Development for the Philadelphia Flyers, it’s not a…
🏒 A Smarter Way to Learn the Game If you’ve ever wished for a way to make hockey training easier, smarter, and more fun, TeamSnap and Bauer Hockey just made that wish come true. The new Bauer Hub—now live inside the TeamSnap app—brings together eve…
A Hockey Journey Rooted in Resilience Gabbie Hughes grew up in a true Minnesota hockey family, skating on backyard ponds and competing with her older brothers. But her path wasn’t always smooth. At age eight, her dad thought she wasn’t cut out for …
If you’re a hockey parent, there’s a good chance you’ve opened TeamSnap more times than your email. But how much do you really know about the people behind it? In a recent episode of Our Kids Play Hockey, hosts Lee Elias, Christy Casciano Burns, an…
When most people hear “ROI” — return on investment — they think about dollars and cents. But in hockey, ROI goes far deeper. It’s not just about the cost of equipment, the long drives to rinks, or even the dream of a college scholarship. According t…
Not Every Day Feels Like a Hockey Day—and That’s Okay Even the most passionate hockey players wake up some days feeling... off. Maybe it’s a rough start to the morning, a bad night's sleep, or just a dip in motivation. In a recent Ride to the Rink …
Beyond Scholarships: Jack Han on Smarter Youth Hockey Development When parents invest in youth hockey, they often dream of Division I scholarships or professional careers. But what if the true return on investment (ROI) is much bigger—and much long…
How to Be a Great Teammate in Hockey: Lessons from Goalie Ian Shane Every hockey kid dreams of scoring the big goal or making the game-winning save. But ask almost any pro, and they’ll tell you: the players who truly stand out aren’t just the most …
When girls feel seen, supported, and celebrated in hockey, the entire game wins. That’s the heart of the All Caps All Her initiative — a powerful, community-focused program launched by the Washington Capitals to uplift girls and women across the ho…
From California to Cornell: Lessons from Goalie Ian Shane’s Incredible Journey When you think of hockey hotbeds, California isn’t first on the list. But Ian Shane didn’t need a traditional zip code to become an Ivy League standout and ECAC Goaltend…
If you ask any hockey parent what helps their child succeed, the answers usually sound the same: more ice time, better coaching, extra practice. And while all of those are important, there’s one factor that often gets overlooked but has just as much…
The Secret to Being a Great Teammate: Lessons from Taylor Heise When we think about great hockey players, we often picture highlight-reel goals, big saves, or championship wins. But as USA Hockey’s Taylor Heise reminds us, the real measure of great…