What an NHL Scout Really Wants Young Hockey Players to Know

When young hockey players imagine what an NHL scout might be looking for, they may picture dazzling goals, impressive statistics, creative moves, or a dominant performance.

Former NHL player and current NHL scout Patrick Rissmiller has a much simpler message:

Have fun. Be coachable. Become a great teammate. Play other sports. Enjoy your childhood.

During his appearance on The Ride to the Rink, Patrick spoke directly to young athletes about the habits and attitudes that matter most during their development. His advice was not centered on scoring more goals, building an online profile, or filling every free moment with hockey.

Instead, he encouraged players to protect their love for the game and allow their motivation to grow naturally.

That message is especially important in a youth hockey culture where players can feel pressure to constantly train, compete, travel, and improve. While hard work matters, development cannot be separated from happiness, curiosity, rest, and the player’s own desire to participate.

Being a Kid Is Part of Becoming an Athlete

Young players often hear that they need to make sacrifices if they want to succeed. There will certainly be moments when commitment requires difficult choices, particularly as athletes grow older.

But childhood itself should not be treated as an obstacle to development.

Riding a bike, swimming, playing outside, throwing a lacrosse ball against a wall, joining a game of wiffle ball, or simply spending time with friends and family can all contribute to a young athlete’s growth.

These activities give children opportunities to:

• Explore movement without constant instruction

• Develop balance, coordination, and creativity

• Solve problems independently

• Compete without worrying about rankings

• Build confidence in different environments

• Return to hockey mentally refreshed

Unstructured play is valuable because it belongs to the child. There is no coach organizing every drill, no scoreboard defining the experience, and no adult correcting every decision.

The player gets to experiment.

That experimentation can help young athletes become more creative, adaptable, and confident when they return to the ice.

Great Players Start by Becoming Great Teammates

Patrick’s advice to his own children has remained consistent: be a great teammate, be coachable, work when you are on the ice, and enjoy the experience.

Those qualities may not receive as much attention as goals or assists, but they influence nearly every part of a player’s journey.

A great teammate:

• Encourages others

• Responds positively after mistakes

• Celebrates team success

• Treats coaches and officials respectfully

• Works hard even when the puck is not on their stick

• Helps create an environment where everyone can improve

Being coachable is equally important. A coachable player does not have to agree with every decision or understand every lesson immediately. Coachability means being willing to listen, try, adjust, and learn.

Young players will make mistakes. That is unavoidable—and necessary. The question is whether they can respond to those mistakes with curiosity instead of frustration.

The ability to accept feedback and apply it is a skill that will benefit players far beyond hockey.

Your Motivation Has to Belong to You

Parents can provide transportation, equipment, encouragement, opportunities, and support. Coaches can create practices, teach skills, and challenge players.

But neither parents nor coaches can manufacture lasting motivation for an athlete.

A parent may be able to force a player to shoot pucks in the driveway or attend an extra session. That approach might create short-term activity, but it does not guarantee long-term passion.

Eventually, the player must decide that they want to do the work.

That does not mean a young athlete has to wake up every morning eager to train. Even highly motivated players have days when they feel tired, distracted, or interested in something else.

The larger question is whether the desire to improve is growing inside the player—or whether the entire journey is being pushed forward by adults.

Self-driven development may look like:

• Shooting pucks because the player feels inspired

• Asking a coach how to improve a specific skill

• Playing street hockey with friends

• Watching a game and studying a favorite player

• Practicing a move simply because it is fun

• Choosing to work on something without being reminded

When the motivation comes from within, the work feels different. It becomes exploration rather than obligation.

Taking a Day Off Will Not Ruin Your Hockey Future

Youth athletes and their families can sometimes feel that every practice, clinic, tournament, and development opportunity is essential.

It is easy to worry that missing one session will cause a player to fall behind.

Patrick offered a reassuring reminder: one missed day will not determine a child’s hockey future.

Taking a day off can allow a player to spend time with family, go to a movie, recover physically, or simply think about something other than hockey. That break may help the player return with more enthusiasm and energy.

Rest is not the opposite of development. It is part of development.

Without enough space away from the game, hockey can begin to feel like a job. When that happens, effort may decline—not because the player lacks character, but because the joy that once fueled the work has started to disappear.

Sometimes stepping away briefly really does make the heart grow fonder.

Young Players Deserve a Voice

One of the most important lessons from this conversation is that children should have a voice in their hockey experience.

Adults have more experience and perspective, but young players are the ones putting on the equipment, stepping onto the ice, and living through the schedule.

They should be encouraged to communicate when they are:

• Excited to practice more

• Curious about trying another sport

• Physically or mentally tired

• Feeling too much pressure

• Ready for a new challenge

• In need of a break

• No longer enjoying part of the experience

Listening to a young athlete does not mean allowing the child to avoid every difficult moment. Commitment still matters, and players sometimes need help working through temporary frustration.

But there is a major difference between teaching perseverance and ignoring a child who is consistently overwhelmed or unhappy.

Healthy communication helps families make better decisions together.

Development Is About More Than Hockey

Playing multiple sports and enjoying activities away from the rink can help children become better athletes. More importantly, those experiences can help them become well-rounded people.

Hockey will teach valuable lessons about teamwork, discipline, resilience, and responsibility. Other experiences will add different lessons, friendships, challenges, and memories.

A child’s identity should not depend entirely on their performance as a hockey player.

Goals, statistics, rankings, and roster decisions will change. The personal qualities developed through the journey can remain for life.

That is why Patrick’s advice matters so much. An NHL scout understands the talent required to reach the highest levels of the sport. Yet his message to young players begins not with specialization or pressure, but with joy.

The Message for the Ride Home

Young players, work hard when you are at the rink. Listen to your coaches. Support your teammates. Challenge yourself and enjoy improving.

But also give yourself permission to be a kid.

Ride your bike. Go swimming. Play another sport. Spend time with your family. Take a day off when you need one.

When you feel inspired to shoot pucks, practice a move, or work on your game, go for it. Let that energy come from your own love of hockey.

Your parents and coaches can guide you, but they cannot create your passion for you.

The belief has to come from within.

Keep learning, keep having fun, and keep becoming the kind of teammate others love to play beside. Everyone at The Ride to the Rink believes in you—and we hope you continue learning to believe in yourself, too.

Listen to the full episode and share it with a young athlete or hockey family that needs permission to slow down, enjoy the journey, and remember why they fell in love with the game.