Our Kids Play Hockey

🏒 Want to become a better hockey player? It’s not just about what you do during practice — it’s about the habits you build everywhere else, too.
On this episode of The Ride to The Rink, Lee, Mike, and Christie are joined by Coach Andrew, a high-level junior hockey coach and former NCAA player, to talk directly to young skaters and goalies about what really helps players improve.
Andrew breaks down the balance between skill development and team systems, why younger players should spend most of their ice time building skills, and how players can start developing their hockey brains off the ice through video, chalk talks, and learning team concepts.
But the biggest message? Great players don’t only grow during one hour of practice. They grow through their preparation, attitude, rest, schoolwork, backyard shooting, stickhandling, conditioning, and willingness to do a little more than everyone else.
In this episode, we cover:
🥅 Why 8U, 10U, and 12U players should focus heavily on skill development
 🏒 How team concepts can be learned off the ice without wasting valuable practice time
 💪 Why strength, conditioning, and mobility become major separators as players get older
 🧠 How young players can become better teammates through better habits
 🔥 Why drive and desire have to come from the player — not parents, coaches, or teammates
This is a great listen for young hockey players who want to improve, parents who want to support the right habits, and coaches who want to help kids develop the full picture of what it means to grow in the game.
📖 Want a written version you can reference anytime? Check out our companion blog: How Young Hockey Players Can Get Better On and Off the Ice
🎧 Listen now, have fun, skate hard, and go learn something.
 #TheRideToTheRink #OurKidsPlayHockey #YouthHockey #HockeyDevelopment #HockeySkills #HockeyParents #HockeyCoach #OffIceTraining #HockeyMindset #SkateHard
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🏒 What really makes a hockey player better — more ice, a higher-level team, a longer commute, or the right culture?
This week on Our Kids Play Hockey, Lee Elias, Mike Bonelli, and Christie Casciano-Burns sit down with Andrew Trimble, GM and co-owner of the New England Wolves Hockey Club, founder of Scoring Concepts, and author of Beyond the Scoreboard. Andrew has coached from learn-to-skate all the way to the collegiate level, giving him a rare perspective on what true development looks like at every stage of the game. 
In this conversation, Andrew breaks down why hockey IQ is really about finding space, how small area games and street hockey can teach decision-making better than repetitive drills, and why parents should think carefully before assuming the “best” hockey opportunity is always the one with the longest drive or flashiest logo. 
The crew also dives into junior hockey, billet families, player character, development-focused programs, parent communication, and the reminder that the goal is not just to build better hockey players — it is to help shape better people. 
In this episode, we discuss:
🏒 Why hockey IQ starts with finding space, not just skill execution
🧠 How watching full games — not just highlight clips — helps players understand how plays develop
🥅 Why small area games and street hockey are powerful development tools
🚗 How parents can balance opportunity, pressure, fun, and family life
🤝 What junior hockey coaches look for beyond talent
🏠 Why billet families and community culture matter in player development
📈 Why development should include academics, character, confidence, and life decisions
Andrew’s message is simple but powerful: every player’s path is different, and the best hockey environments are the ones that help kids grow as athletes, teammates, and people.
📖 Want a written version you can reference anytime? Check out our companion blog: Beyond the Scoreboard: Andrew Trimble on Building Better Hockey Players — and Better People
🎧 Listen now and share this episode with a hockey parent, coach, or player who needs a reminder that development is bigger than the scoreboard.
 #OurKidsPlayHockey #YouthHockey #HockeyParents #HockeyIQ #JuniorHockey #HockeyDevelopment #NewEnglandWolves #AndrewTrimble #SmallAreaGames #HockeyCulture #BeyondTheScoreboard #ADM #StreetHockey #PlayerDevelopment
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🏒 What happens when you win a championship, celebrate the biggest season of your career—and then learn that your entire professional future may be changing?
In the first Day in the Life episode of the new season, Olympic gold medalist and Walter Cup champion Hayley Scamurra joins Lee Elias and Mike Bonelli to discuss her next major chapter: signing a three-year agreement with the PWHL’s new Las Vegas expansion team.
Hayley takes listeners inside a fast-moving expansion process filled with complicated rules, major career decisions, emotional goodbyes, and exciting new possibilities. She explains why Las Vegas felt like the right opportunity, how her relationship with general manager Domi DiMaggio and head coach Kim Weiss came full circle, and why she is ready to take on a more visible leadership role.
The conversation also explores the realities of professional women’s hockey—from public salary information and cross-country moves to offseason training, adapting to a new market, and helping younger players learn what it truly means to become a professional.
Most importantly, Hayley shares an encouraging reminder for every young athlete navigating change: the next part of your journey may be opening a door you cannot see yet. 
In this episode:
🏆 Hayley reflects on winning the Walter Cup and celebrating with family
 🎰 Why she signed a three-year deal with the Las Vegas expansion team
 📋 How the PWHL expansion and player-selection process worked
 💔 The mixed emotions of leaving a Montreal organization she loved
 📈 How Hayley’s championship season increased her confidence and value
 🤝 Why relationships and first impressions matter throughout a hockey career
 🏒 Her vision for mentoring rookies and building a strong team culture
 💰 Hayley’s perspective on salary transparency in professional women’s hockey
 ☀️ The excitement—and logistics—of moving to Las Vegas
 💪 How she knew her body and mind were ready to begin training again
 ❤️ The role Nick Stoop and Hayley’s family play in supporting her career
 🎯 Why she is staying present before setting her next major goal
Whether you are a young player facing a new team, a parent helping an athlete navigate uncertainty, or a fan following the continued growth of professional women’s hockey, this episode offers an honest look at change, leadership, resilience, and opportunity.
Subscribe to Our Girls Play Hockey and follow Hayley’s journey as she helps build a new PWHL organization from the ground up.
📖 Want a written version you can reference anytime? Check out our companion blog: Hayley Scamurra’s Next Chapter: Leadership, Change, and Building Something New in Las Vegas
Have a question for the show? Email team@ourkidsplayhockey.com.
#OurGirlsPlayHockey #HayleyScamurra #PWHL #WomensHockey #GirlsHockey #LasVegasHockey #HockeyLeadership #WalterCup #ProfessionalHockey #HockeyDevelopment #FemaleAthletes #DayInTheLife
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🧠 What if you could begin preparing for your best game before you even stepped onto the ice?
In this episode of The Ride to the Rink, Lee is joined by goaltending and mindset expert Pete to introduce young athletes to mind mapping—a simple but powerful exercise that can help players visualize success, strengthen their confidence, and prepare mentally for tryouts, big games, and pressure-filled moments.
Pete shares how he used this exercise with a goaltender preparing for a championship game. By writing down what he wanted to see, hear, and feel, the goalie created a clear mental picture of the performance he wanted to deliver. Lee and Pete then walk listeners through how they can build a mind map of their own. 
🏒 In this episode, young athletes will learn:
 How to create a mind map before a game, tryout, or important event 
 Why players should include what they want to see, hear, and feel 
 How visualization can help make a big moment feel more familiar 
 What to do when a negative thought interrupts their confidence 
 Why recognizing a negative thought is already an important victory 
 How to replace “I can” with the stronger statement “I am” 
 Why mental skills deserve practice just like skating, shooting, and saves 
Pete also offers a memorable way to understand negative thinking: your mind is like a garden. When you intentionally plant confident and constructive thoughts, you give those thoughts room to grow. When a negative thought appears, acknowledge it, swat it away, and return your attention to the picture you want to create.
This exercise is not only for hockey. Young athletes can use mind mapping before a school presentation, recital, test, performance, or any situation in which they want to feel prepared and confident.
📖 Want a written version you can reference anytime? Check out our companion blog: How Mind Mapping Can Help Young Hockey Players Build Confidence
🎧 Listen together on the ride to the rink, then grab a piece of paper and create your own powerful-game mind map.
No matter where you are in your hockey journey, we believe in you—and you should too.
#TheRideToTheRink #YouthHockey #HockeyMindset #MentalPerformance #SportsConfidence #HockeyTryouts #Visualization #GoalieMindset #YoungAthletes #OurKidsPlayHockey
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🥅 What separates a talented goalie from one who consistently performs under pressure? According to renowned mental performance coach Pete Fry, the answer often begins with the picture that goaltender holds in their mind.
Pete Fry—known throughout hockey as “The Goalie Mindset Guy”—joins Lee Elias and Christie Casciano Burns for a powerful conversation about confidence, visualization, resilience, preparation, and the mental demands of playing one of the most challenging positions in sports.
A former WHL All-Star, NHL draft pick, and professional goaltender, Pete has worked with athletes across the NHL, AHL, CHL, NCAA, international hockey, and other professional sports. He shares lessons from his own playing career, including how limiting beliefs affected his opportunity after being drafted by the New Jersey Devils—and how that experience led him to dedicate his life to mastering the mental side of performance. 
In this episode, Pete explains why goalies do not simply react to what is happening around them. They often react to the images, sounds, expectations, and stories playing inside their own heads.
🏒 Inside the episode:
 How visualization and “mind mapping” can prepare goalies for pressure 
 Why positive thinking must always be followed by meaningful action 
 How to shrink negative mental images before a big game 
 A practical reset routine after allowing a goal 
 Why water, breathing, posture, and smiling can help reset the brain 
 How coaches accidentally plant negative thoughts in young goalies 
 Why parents should avoid becoming postgame statisticians 
 The difference between an athlete mindset and a fan mindset 
 Why goalies should learn to welcome breakaways, penalties, and difficult moments 
 How a goalie’s body language can influence the entire bench 
 Why parents should support their child’s right to dream big 
Pete also shares examples involving NHL and elite goaltenders, including Stuart Skinner, Jakub Dobeš, Mads Søgaard, Carter Hart, Carson Bjarnason, and Josh Ravensbergen. He explains how mental rehearsal, confident language, and purposeful body language can help a goaltender prepare for the next shot instead of replaying the last one.
The message for young goalies is simple but powerful:
Good goal, bad goal—who cares? The only thing that matters is the next shot and the next save.
📖 Want a written version you can reference anytime? Check out our companion blog: How Young Goalies Can Build Confidence, Handle Pressure, and Reset After a Goal
🎧 Listen now and discover how goalies, parents, and coaches can build a stronger, calmer, and more resilient mindset—on the ice and in life.
Learn more about Pete Fry, his books, speaking, mindset coaching, and goalie-parent course at PeteFry.net.
Have a question for the show? Email team@ourkidsplayhockey.com or use the text link accompanying this episode.
Keep dreaming big, keep doing the work, and keep building the mindset that allows young athletes to thrive.
#OurKidsPlayGoalie #GoalieMindset #YouthHockey #HockeyGoalie #GoalieParents #MentalPerformance #SportsPsychology #HockeyConfidence #GoalieTraining #YouthSports #HockeyCoaching #PeteFry
Click To Text The Our Kids Play Hockey Team!
Keep your player sharp this summer with NHL Sense Arena. Save $25 on an annual plan with code OKPH at hockey.SenseArena.com/okph
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