Mike Bonelli’s New Player Advising Program for Youth Hockey Families

This episode is powered by NHL Cents Arena. Hello, hockey friends and families around the world, and welcome to a special edition of Our Kids Play Hockey or your host's coach hockey. Probably more apt for this one today. You know, from time to time, gang, we bring you some specials that we do here. Today's coming right from Mike Benelli. So really excited to talk about this one because most of you know Mike and I are coaches, right? This is what we do for our living. We coach, we are involved in the game. We are very blessed to do that in addition to this podcast. But Mike has something special, a new player advising program. It's led by him directly. So if you've been listening to all 600 episodes of this show, I would say it like that, Mike. We're now bringing you something exciting from Mike. No, Mike, let's talk about this with the people. We can get into uh your experience. I people I think people know that. Um, but but this is a great advising program. We're gonna give you obviously all in our kids play hockey discount. But Mike, walk us through what's special about this and what you're offering.

Yeah, so I'm doing it now at the beginning of the year because I just think you know, it's one of those things that you don't know how to get somewhere, you know, unless you know where you started. Right. And for all those players that want to progress, this is the time of year for me as an evaluator, as a skills assessment coordinator, as somebody that's helping other programs and coaches and players and families navigate their development. Not, you know, how much playing time am I getting? Not, oh, you know, what kind of program should I be in later in life? This is like a very simple uh program that I put together that gives there's a beginning in the middle and an end. And it's basically just an in I call it an intake call, but it's just an initial evaluation of a player. This is the best time to do it because there's so much video out there of players playing in like the first couple of tournaments, the you know, end of August, September, October, like the tournament time right now. I could get tons of film on players. Uh so we do a beginning uh kind of assessment of the player, and then we'll do four sessions. So during the year, there'll be four progress reports. And then at the end of the year, we give a big report card. And it's the opportunity for players to say, okay, well, uh, here's where I was, here's what I ended up doing. The whole time I talk to that player's coach. So I'll just contact the coach, say, hey, I'm working with so-and-so, we're doing this. What'd you see in that what do you see in your initial feedback? Um, again, most of us, most coaches don't have the time for individual player assessments, don't have the time for individual film sessions. Uh, I'm just doing it at a, I think, a very economical way. Uh, but it's also a way for players to get real value out of the season. It's not one weekend, it's not a one-time assessment. It's a it's basically a body of work on the 26, 27 season.

Yeah, and and Mike, what what age groups are you looking for for this one?

Yeah, so this is really like your first, like again, I the the advising piece is just my role, but I'm not advising prep school or the college or pro. This is just for me to say, you know, for a youth player. So right now I have uh, you know, basically 20 uh 18s to you know 2011s. And and you know, anywhere in that youth hockey world um, you know, is really part of where you're not getting as much as the older kids. You know, 15, 16, 18-year-old players are probably getting a lot of film, they're getting a lot of feedback. Uh, the youth player doesn't seem to get as much of that. And I'm trying, and I'm just filling that voice.

Well, and I would say if you are somehow listening to this in the future, uh, that's that's eight, eight to fourteen, eight to fifteen year olds uh is that date range. Mike, Mike, just that's how into this he is, right? We're we're recording this in 2026 for those of you that like to do math at home. Uh, but uh Mike, I think it's a really interesting thing because I don't think, especially at that age, um, kids get enough of that tailored kind of investment into their well-being as a hockey player. Um, you know, you a lot of clinics, a lot of a lot of practices, and you could put money out for like a private uh skater, uh, I'm sorry, private teacher, private instruction. Um, and I'm looking at the pricing here. Uh again, for our kids play hockey special, um, and it's worth it just because if you look at if you're gonna do private lessons or a clinic, it's basically that price or less, right? For for how they're doing it. And and I'm again saying you get you get the intake meeting one-on-one, uh, the personalized progress reports, uh, the private video portal, film feedback suite. I mean, you get a lot of stuff. It's you get some speaker series as well. I mean, if you listen to this podcast, that's pretty fun. Um, and then you get Mike. And and I'm gonna say this too, guys. Look, I'm a coach. Mike knows I'm a coach. Here's the thing with my kids, and most kids of parents, they don't listen to the parents most of the time. So it's it's like for me, it's like a tool for my kids, right? For someone else to be telling them not the same things that I'm telling them, hopefully, but but it's a different perspective. And I think that that, Mike, is actually powerful as well of saying, hey, look, we've got an expert coach, it's really gonna invest the time in you, Mike. I gotta say this too. I love that you talk with the coaches, like not just a practice what we preach kind of thing. Um, but it would be irresponsible for you to have not done that, which is why I can I you thought of everything here. I can see that.

Well, again, the coach, you're playing for the coach. I'm not your coach, right? I'm just trying to help you navigate what the coach wants you to do. And sometimes a coach, and we've talked about this on the show a million times. Like coach might say, Hey, you got to work harder, or I need you to do this, but they really don't have the time to sit down. So, one of my one of the partners I've used in this process is a company called ReactView. And what ReactView allows me to do is say if you're a fan of Austin Matthews and your kid wants to be like Austin Matthews, well, I can take a film of Austin Matthews, I can take a film of you, and I can put them side by side and say, This is why Austin Matthews is successful in this in his offensive zone entries. And here's where you are, and your coach is saying, Oh, you know, we talked about this a lot, right? Yo, coach is like, oh, you keep losing the puck 10 feet inside the blue line. Okay, well, let's solve that problem by giving you a visual of what another athlete might do. Now, the cool thing for me is I have access to OHL, BCHL, uh, you know, every league there is in the world, I can get film from. And I what I'm trying, what I'm hoping to do, and what I have been doing with the older kids is being able to take that and directly influence the player the next day they step on the ice. And that's why these four sessions throughout the year allow us to, you know, look at a specific thing we want to talk about, fix it, move on to the next thing.

Yeah, and last thing I'm I'm just gonna brag about you. By the way, if we've had Satoshi Takano on the show before from React View, if you guys are interested in that, check out that episode. Just it's not the episode's not about React View, it's about how to use video the right way. You should check that out. Um, Mike, another one on your that that's here that I think is undersold is uh your skate and blade review, right? Like, like it's so important that your skates and your hollow and your skate setup are there. Mike's gonna go over that with you and your kid. Uh uh just tap on real quick why that's so important because it it is easily one of the most underserved aspects of most every player gets us gets their steel and it's stamped.

And we've had uh episodes on about skate sharpening specifically. But what I try to do is say I try to you know marry the player with the blade. And so marry a player with okay, and again, it gets really technical, but individually when you're talking to people, it's not so bad. It's about you know making sure you have the right radius, making sure you have the right hollow, making sure that the blade matches the player. And sometimes if you can if you can help a player find the right blade, it actually makes the player perform a different way in a positive way. And so sometimes it's it's like I I the only way I can describe it sometime to parents is you don't know until you know. Like you don't even know you needed it until you do it, and then you say, Oh, that makes a whole difference in the world. And and I'm so glad I found that little bit of a tweak. And we're not talking about you know, five weeks of hockey development, we're talking about literally putting on a different set of blades. Right. And then and then the technology we have today, it's unbelievable. You know, you can mimic that throughout the rest of your career and and and and and the ebbs and flows of what that does. But again, that's the piece that is most impactful for your development is the blade on the ice, uh, more than anything else that we do. And so that's a big piece of my evaluation process is making sure that when I'm watching the player, I'm like, well, okay, here's how you're skating and here's what you're doing. You're not gonna be able to get here unless we fix this.

I love it, Mike. Look, for everybody listening again, uh, I know this sounds a bit like, I mean, I guess it is an advertisement, but we support each other here as coaches, and what Mike has built uh is something special. Now, I I do have to say this because it's true. Uh, spaces are limited. All right. So my time is limited.

Yeah. So I I I kind of did make it, I did make a little give it a cutoff, but again, it was inspired by the fact that because of this show, a lot of people contact me.

Right. Right.

So and I'm like, well, you know what? If there's if there's an audience out there that's lacking this piece in their own youth development, and I can help one or two players from each organization, I feel really great about it. I'm doing it anyway. Um, and I do I and I do have a great team behind me, you know, people that help me do the editing, help me find out the players, get all that information. Uh, and it gives me a lot of time. I love watching. I uh you know, unfortunately, I love watching video. I love watching youth hockey players progress. So I get to watch a player in the beginning and transform where they get to be at the end.

Here's what I'll say to you, Mike. Um I'm laughing because uh, you know, I'm thinking here, parents, listen, enjoy the process of being with Mike Benelli, having him tell your kid something, having your kid run to you and say, Coach Mike taught me this and it worked. And then in your head, going, I've been saying that to you for four years.

Sounds like my father.

It sounds like no, and and obviously, joking aside, uh, Mike's expertise and decades of coaching, he is a tremendous coach. He's a mentor to me. All right, and we're trying to make that available for you. So, gang, if you're interested in this, here's what we'll do. Um, Mike has opened up his Calendly uh for if you have any questions or you want to talk to him, uh, we'll put that in the show notes here. Um, if you Mike, should they go to Mike Benelli Hockey Solutions if they want more info for this?

Or yeah, no, just uh my all my information is in the calendarly in that piece. They could just email me or text me. Again, I'm not uh I I'm I'm really uh at the point right now, this is the beginning of the season. I won't be really accepting any more players probably after October because I can't do the initial starting point. This is really the most important time for me, is because I want to get a player fresh, new, ready to learn, ready to develop, you know, and ready to be molded into the player they want to be. And again, and for coaches out there that don't have the time and need this type of support, that's why I'm here for. I'm never gonna say, oh, that coach doesn't know what he's talking about. I can't believe they have you playing in this role. It's always gonna be how can I help the coach and the player have a better, uh, have better definitions of what they want throughout the season.

All right, gang. So listen, we're gonna put that Kelly Lee link in the show notes here. Uh, if you're in a position like you're driving and you can't stop, we'll also put it on our kidsplayhockey.com forward slash deals for for a limited time. Uh so you can check that out. But Mike, I just want to thank you for providing this. Again, we talk about innovation on this show. This is thinking outside the box. And and while look, being on the ice is obviously always the best. Um, you know, if you're looking for that edge or you're looking for something that's gonna help your kid develop, I I would I I mean, I don't know what to say. You get Mike Vinelli here for the whole season.

That's for for cheaper than a for cheaper than uh your your local branded hockey stick, right?

I mean, it really is. It's cheaper, it really is cheaper than a stick. Just like that. All right, gang. Uh that's it for me and Mike today. Appreciate you listening. Uh, again, any questions, email us team at our kidsplayhockey.com. That's another way you can ask about this if you're not sure. But for Mike, I'm Lee. We'll see you next time, gang. Take it. We hope you enjoyed this edition of Our Kids Play Hockey. Make sure to like and subscribe right now if you found value wherever you're listening, whether it's a podcast network, a social media network, or our website, our kidsplayhockey.com. Also, make sure to check out our children's book, When Hockey Stops, at When Hockey Stops.com. It's a book that helps children deal with adversity in the game and in life. We're very proud of it. But thanks so much for listening to this edition of Our Kids Play Hockey, and we'll see you on the next episode.