Youth Hockey Podcast

Randall tries to get to the bottom of why people are so committed to their ideas in youth hockey. Don't try to get people to listen to yours. Corwin keeps us balanced by noting that kids need to be able to grow into their talents. Lance tells the podcast audience how frustrated he was with waiting his turn.

Corwin takes on the topic of travel. What are the rules in stay to play? How do the decisions about tournaments get made? Will anyone be happy with a decision that is not their own? Lance went across the country several times for his kids. Driving. Flying. Walking. Running. Waverunning. Randall notes that there is often issues with hotels with all of the different families. It's still been pre...

Randy smells the panic in all the teams who are just about to begin their seasons. It is so desperate, and fun. Lance reports on crazy parents, refs and rinks. Corwin thinks that refs should throw more people out of the arena. OK, that's not true.

Lance talks about a cold rink in Simi where his kids frustrated him by alternatively loving and hating the ice. Corwin talks about San Diego ice which is made from pure champagne. It's true. Look it up. Randall had a Groupon. Yes, a Groupon set him head first into a life of cold mornings and parking lot altercations (watching, not participating).

Lance used to pay for a newsletter that ranked all of the hockey players in North America. It was the best money he ever spent. Randall likes to think about how rankings push the buttons of other parents. Good to keep them on their toes. Corwin talks about how Canada keeps track of players. And there are a lot of them.

Randall answers questions from listeners. There are so many good questions coming in the mail Corwin gives a coachie perspective and breaks the hearts of parents that think that winning is everything. Lance reflects back on his journey when answering a question about his boys.

Corwin Talks managers. He has important criteria for a team manager. Lance talks fundraising. Randall updates the podcast on the top talent meeting in Chicago last weekend. Man could those CCM 68 bantams put the puck in the net.

Lance has a theory that coaches and how much they matter in the development of a young hockey player. Randall has his own take. Corwin talks about player buy in as an important part of the player coach relationship.

Corwin talks about equipment and how to know when it needs to be replaced over the summer. He also peppers Randall and Lance with trivia. They underperform on most questions.

How do you get your kid promoted to a better line? It's something every hockey dad has thought about. It has kept them up at night. Randall has some stories on how he's seen the promotions play out over the years. Lance takes it to another level. Corwin looks at it from the perspective of a coach. It's pretty informative.

Randall sets the tone with some tough love on parents who stalk the sidelines with outbursts during the game. Take some allergy medicine and sit. Corwin talks about the constant critics that can get in a kids head. Mistakes are part of the game, bringing up each one does not need discussion. Lance has the stats on the best goalscorer of all time in Squirt hockey. Hint. It's a Canadian.

Coach Corwin talks about how stars of the game are always chosen from one kind of player. Where is the love for the support players? Randall talks about how violence in the sport is not uniquely Canadian or American. There is something else that determines how much blood will be on the ice. Lance talks about some of the barns that his kids have played in.

First notes on how hockey teams are built in the offseason. Coach Corwin knows what makes the best captain. He lets the kids vote, but then uses his own judgement. Lance talks about the elements of his best season and how he participated in it.

Corwin has tips for your kids over the summer. How do you get them advantages going into the next season. Lance gets his kids on the ice in Las Vegas. Family fun that ends in hitting the tables. Randy remembers how Lance got his kids on a Canadian team, thus bringing everyone together in their love of hockey, Canada and Vegas.

Randall talks to short dad about why his kid is not on the first line. Lance talks about the years of cutthroat competition and where it got the kids who participated. Corwin knows how to balance lines. He talks about how it looks on the bench.

We have a Canadian. We have reached the point where Canada itself has come to the aid of the podcast. We are so proud. Corwin Nicolochat is a bona fide coach and player of the game with insights that Lance and I are in awe of. Randall talks about tryout frenzy. It's the glorious time of the year when rumors are more important that truth. Relationships are strained between neighbor, brother, si...

Special Announcement from the YHP gang.

What is the worst thing that someone on your own team has said to you? I can tell you that the nastiest comments come from your "friends" in the stands. Rolly has some history with parents who have tried to get him banned from a rink. Rolly! The nicest guy around. Lance is pretty well known all over the country for the skirmishes with parents on his own team

Lance has a great topic. How do you deal with the outcast on the team. Is there a way to draw them in? Is it better to leave it alone or rally to a cause. Rolly talks about how friendships are not formed under duress. Sometimes kids need be left alone in dealing with roster issues. Randall talks about parental friction. Hint. There is lots.

Rolly knows stuff. He shows it in this episode. He takes on the profiling of skates and how that effects a skater and what they can do on the ice. He mainly sticks to two of the systems for profiling skates, but he gives great advice for those in the market to do some aftermarket upgrading of the blade. Randall talks about how he always trusts any skate shop that employs a guy named Doug. Doug kno...

Randall has a story from his kids playing league hockey. One kid was getting a beat down and the other came to the rescue. It's not fun to get in a fight, but a brother can sometimes be good at having your back. Rolly has insights on teams that have multiple returning players and those that are fresh starts for everyone. The chemistry is different. The culture is sometimes different. Lance lov...

Rolly talks about some of the meager options to watch your kid play hockey at tournaments and local rinks. New Youtube options are especially interesting to the crew. Randall talks about hockey for girls. His daughter is currently playing. The landscape is interesting and the rules are different (just like in the game). But in the end, the sport is a great one for the maidens of mayhem (a real tea...

Lance does not like the new numbers for youth sport participation. He remembers some things that pushed his kids away. Rolly thinks that coaches need to modulate their approach to the younger groups. Randall thinks that the phone somewhat is replacing the kids' enthusiasm for activity. It also is replacing other parts of the growth of some kids. Kathy joins the podcast with invaluable insights...

The podcast talks about how teams sometimes fold in the middle of the season. It's something that seems like it's an extraordinary circumstance, but it happens more than people think. Lance talks about how both his kids were pushed up on the same team then treated less than generously when the season ends. Rolly gives us a cautionary tale about sandbagging.

Randall takes a listener's email on tournaments and turns it into a frenzy of conversation. Rolly talks about the Boston tournaments that only have two periods for the regular games and only one period for the semifinals and finals. He also has a take on the Brick tournament in Edmonton (in a mall). Lance talks a little about Quebec peewee tournament.