Our Kids Play Hockey

By Our Kids Play Hockey | Youth Sports & Hockey Stories, Insights, & Advice

Our Kids Play Hockey delivers engaging hockey stories and expert advice on teamwork and youth sports. Focused on parenting athletes, hockey parents, and young players, our podcast offers insightful

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How many episodes does Our Kids Play Hockey have?

The podcast currently has 627 episodes available.

Best of Our Kids Play Hockey

The most played episodes among Podcast App listeners.

Number 1: Our Girls Play Hockey: Growing the Game Starts With Belonging
🏒 What does it really mean to “grow the game” of hockey? Is it getting more kids to pick up a stick? Building more elite teams? Selling out professional arenas? Or is the real work making sure that once a young player discovers hockey, they feel like they belong enough to stay? On this episode of Our Girls Play Hockey, Lee Elias, Mike Bonelli, and Olympic gold medalist and PWHL Walter Cup champion Hayley Scamurra dig into what growing hockey actually looks like—from grassroots programs and community outreach to the small choices coaches, parents, organizations, and players can make every day. Inspired by Lee’s recent experience helping introduce hockey to young players in Puerto Rico, the conversation explores why simply putting a stick in a kid’s hands isn’t enough. There needs to be a pathway forward. 🏒 In this episode, we discuss:🌎 Why hockey can belong anywhere—from traditional rinks to Puerto Rico and beyond🏒 The difference between expanding elite hockey and truly growing the grassroots game📈 Why retention matters just as much as recruitment💰 How cost, equipment, ice access, and early specialization can shrink the game👧 How coaches can make girls feel like hockey players—not outsiders—on co-ed teams🤝 Why welcoming a new family at the rink can have a bigger impact than you realize⭐ How PWHL players and professional athletes inspire new players simply by being visible and accessible🧒 Why older players helping younger teams can build stronger athletes, better people, and deeper organizational identity❤️ How fun, belonging, community, and connection keep kids coming backHayley also shares what she sees when young girls encounter professional women’s hockey up close—including the story of a young player who started hockey after watching the Minnesota Frost play the Ottawa Charge in Raleigh. And the message is simple: you do not need a national platform, professional title, or massive event to grow hockey. A coach can invite younger players onto the ice. An older team can help at a learn-to-play session. A parent can introduce themselves to the new family standing alone at the rink. A player can make sure the new kid gets the pass that leads to their first goal. Those moments matter. 🎯 The challenge: Find one thing you, your team, or your organization can do this season to make hockey more welcoming, accessible, and fun for someone else. And if you can, go watch a PWHL game—live or from home. Let the next generation see what is possible. If this episode gets you thinking, share it with a coach, parent, player, or hockey leader who can help grow the game in their community. 📖 Want a written version you can reference anytime? Check out our companion blog: Growing Girls Hockey Starts With Something Bigger Than Recruitment Have a story about how you’re growing hockey where you live? Send it to [email protected] and keep the conversation going. #OurGirlsPlayHockey #GirlsHockey #WomensHockey #GrowTheGame #YouthHockey #PWHL #HockeyParents #HockeyCoaches #GirlsInSports #HockeyDevelopment #HockeyCommunity #WomenInSports Click To Text The Our Kids Play Hockey Team! Hockey IQ: Scanning the ice, recognizing pressure, anticipating what happens next, making the right decision faster. Research shows these perceptual and decision-making skills can actually be trained. With NHL Sense Arena, kids can get extra game-like reps at home, working on hockey IQ, reactions, real stick-handling for skaters, while goalies can train reads and tracking. Save $25 on an annual plan with code OKPH at http://hockey.sensearena.com/okph Have A Topic You Want Us To Cover? Let us know! Please Be Sure To Subscribe & Leave A Review For Us On Apple Podcasts, doing so helps our show grow! Follow Us On Social Media:Facebook GroupXInstagramLinkedInYouTube
September 01, 202657min
Number 2: Passed Over Twice, Still Made the NHL: Kurtis Gabriel’s Lesson in Relentless Belief
🏒 What happens when a player’s belief is strong enough to take him all the way to the NHL—but his identity becomes so tied to hockey that he has to rediscover who he is when the game ends? Former NHL player Kurtis Gabriel joins Lee Elias and Mike Bonelli for a powerful conversation about chasing impossible dreams, being overlooked, finding your role, handling pressure, and learning that hockey can be an incredible part of your life without becoming your entire sense of worth. Kurtis wasn’t a highly touted prospect. He played AA hockey, considered hanging up his skates, was passed over in the NHL Draft, and still developed an unwavering conviction that he would eventually play in the NHL. What followed was a remarkable journey built on work ethic, sacrifice, resilience, and what Kurtis describes as something even stronger than belief: knowing. But reaching the NHL is only part of his story. Kurtis opens up about how deeply his identity and self-worth became connected to being a hockey player, the struggles he faced after retiring earlier than expected, and why his journey inward has changed the way he now looks at hockey, parenting, coaching, success, and happiness. 🔥 In this episode, you’ll hear:Why Kurtis believes young players should be allowed to dream as big as possibleHow a AA player went from nearly quitting hockey to eventually reaching the NHLWhy parents shouldn’t have to manufacture motivation for their kidsThe difference between supporting a player’s passion and making hockey their identityWhy your child needs home to remain a safe landing place after difficult gamesHow parents can model the behaviors and values they want their children to developWhy process, presence, and self-awareness can matter more than obsessing over outcomesHow meditation and recognizing emotions can help athletes respond to mistakes and pressureWhy Kurtis believes happiness and fulfillment cannot ultimately come from hockey—or anything outside yourselfWhat he learned from reconnecting with former NHL opponents through The Fight Plan PodcastOne of the biggest reminders from this conversation is one we return to often on Our Kids Play Hockey: The return on youth hockey isn’t a scholarship, a roster spot, or even the NHL. It’s the person your child becomes through the experience. Let them dream. Let them work. Let them stumble. And when they come home from the rink, make sure they know that their performance never determines their value to you. 🎧 Listen now for an honest, vulnerable conversation every hockey parent, player, and coach should hear. 📖 Want a written version you can reference anytime? Check out our companion blog: Your Child Is More Than a Hockey Player: What Kurtis Gabriel’s NHL Journey Can Teach Hockey Families And be sure to follow Kurtis Gabriel and check out The Fight Plan Podcast, where he continues exploring the fights athletes face on the ice—and the much bigger fights all of us face in life. #OurKidsPlayHockey #KurtisGabriel #YouthHockey #HockeyParents #HockeyDevelopment #HockeyMindset #MentalPerformance #AthleteIdentity #YouthSports #HockeyLife #NHL #SportsParenting Click To Text The Our Kids Play Hockey Team! Hockey IQ: Scanning the ice, recognizing pressure, anticipating what happens next, making the right decision faster. Research shows these perceptual and decision-making skills can actually be trained. With NHL Sense Arena, kids can get extra game-like reps at home, working on hockey IQ, reactions, real stick-handling for skaters, while goalies can train reads and tracking. Save $25 on an annual plan with code OKPH at http://hockey.sensearena.com/okph Have A Topic You Want Us To Cover? Let us know! Please Be Sure To Subscribe & Leave A Review For Us On Apple Podcasts, doing so helps our show grow! Follow Us On Social Media:Facebook GroupXInstagramLinkedInYouTube
August 27, 20261h 3min
Number 3: Our Girls Play Hockey: Why Confidence Can’t Come From Coaches or Parents
🏒 What if confidence isn’t something a coach, parent, teammate, or scoreboard can give you—or take away from you? Olympic gold medalist and Walter Cup champion Hayley Scamurra joins the conversation for a powerful look at one of the most important—and misunderstood—parts of being an athlete: building confidence from within. Even at the highest levels of hockey, doubt doesn’t disappear. Hayley opens up about seeking approval from coaches and parents as a young player, struggling with public speaking, learning to trust her own assessment of her game, and discovering that confidence isn’t about never making mistakes. In many ways, it’s built because of them. The conversation also explores the experience of girls in hockey, including the pressure many young female athletes feel to be perfect, follow every instruction exactly, and avoid mistakes. Hayley explains why giving girls permission to experiment, create, fail, and learn can be critical to developing both confidence and long-term success. 🔥 In this episode: Why external validation can make confidence fragile How athletes can reset after a bad play or mistake The power of asking, “Are you proud of yourself?” Why coaches and parents should help athletes evaluate their own performance How mistakes can become evidence that an athlete is growing Why girls may feel extra pressure to be perfect How coaches can create environments where young female players feel safe being creative Why comparing your everyday game to someone else’s social-media highlights can destroy confidence How even Olympic champions still whiff pucks, get nervous, and have imperfect practices Why real confidence is less about praise and more about learning: “I can figure this out.”For parents and coaches, this episode is an important reminder: our job isn’t to manufacture confidence for young athletes. It’s to create the conditions where they can discover it for themselves. 📖 Want a written version you can reference anytime? Check out our companion blog: How Girls Hockey Players Can Build Real Confidence: Lessons From Hayley Scamurra 🎧 Listen, share this episode with a hockey parent, coach, or young player who needs the reminder, and subscribe to Our Girls Play Hockey for more conversations supporting girls at every stage of the game. #OurGirlsPlayHockey #GirlsHockey #WomensHockey #HayleyScamurra #HockeyConfidence #YouthHockey #FemaleAthletes #HockeyParents #HockeyCoaches #MentalPerformance #AthleteMindset #GirlsInSports Click To Text The Our Kids Play Hockey Team! Hockey IQ: Scanning the ice, recognizing pressure, anticipating what happens next, making the right decision faster. Research shows these perceptual and decision-making skills can actually be trained. With NHL Sense Arena, kids can get extra game-like reps at home, working on hockey IQ, reactions, real stick-handling for skaters, while goalies can train reads and tracking. Save $25 on an annual plan with code OKPH at http://hockey.sensearena.com/okph Have A Topic You Want Us To Cover? Let us know! Please Be Sure To Subscribe & Leave A Review For Us On Apple Podcasts, doing so helps our show grow! Follow Us On Social Media:Facebook GroupXInstagramLinkedInYouTube
August 25, 202647min
Number 4: The Ride to The Rink: How Young Hockey Players Can Fuel for Better Performance
🥅 Want more energy on the ice? Start by looking at what you’re putting into your body. On this episode of The Ride to The Rink, Lee Elias, Mike Bonelli, and Christie Casciano Burns talk directly to young hockey players about something that can make a real difference in how they feel, focus, and perform: nutrition. Food is fuel, and just like a car can’t run well without the right gas, hockey players need the right fuel to perform at their best. The crew breaks down why healthy eating doesn’t have to be complicated, expensive, or boring. They talk about building better routines, making smarter snack choices, learning how to cook, trying new foods, and getting the whole family—or even the whole team—involved. 🏒 In this episode, you’ll hear about:Why nutrition can affect your energy, focus, and performance🍌 Simple hockey snacks like bananas with peanut butter, yogurt with berries, apples, wraps, oatmeal, and smoothiesWhy creating a food routine can make game days easierHow NHL players often rely on consistent pregame meals and routinesWhy healthy eating habits are easier to build when you start youngHow young players can help prepare their own meals and snacksWhy cooking at home can sometimes be more affordable than fast foodHow picky eaters can challenge themselves to try something newWhy eating well works even better when teammates and families do it togetherAnd one of the biggest challenges from the episode? Try one new food this week without deciding you hate it before you even taste it. Your hockey development doesn’t only happen at practice. What you eat, how you prepare, and the habits you build away from the rink can all help you become a stronger, more energized athlete. 🎧 Listen now, share this episode with your teammates, and start thinking about one small nutrition habit you can improve this week. Work hard. Have fun. Fuel well. And keep enjoying the ride. #YouthHockey #HockeyNutrition #HockeyPlayers #YouthAthletes #SportsNutrition #HockeyTraining #HealthyEating #HockeyParents #AthleteNutrition #HockeyPerformance #HockeySnacks #TheRideToTheRink Click To Text The Our Kids Play Hockey Team! Hockey IQ: Scanning the ice, recognizing pressure, anticipating what happens next, making the right decision faster. Research shows these perceptual and decision-making skills can actually be trained. With NHL Sense Arena, kids can get extra game-like reps at home, working on hockey IQ, reactions, real stick-handling for skaters, while goalies can train reads and tracking. Save $25 on an annual plan with code OKPH at http://hockey.sensearena.com/okph Have A Topic You Want Us To Cover? Let us know! Please Be Sure To Subscribe & Leave A Review For Us On Apple Podcasts, doing so helps our show grow! Follow Us On Social Media:Facebook GroupXInstagramLinkedInYouTube
September 12, 20269min
Number 5: What Should Hockey Players Eat? Easy Meals, Snacks & Rink-Day Nutrition for Hockey Families
🏒 What’s for dinner when practice starts at 5:30, homework still needs to get done, and everyone is heading in a different direction? For hockey families, feeding everyone during the season can feel like another full-time job. Between practices, games, tournaments, school, work, and travel, the fast-food drive-thru can start looking like the easiest option. But it doesn’t have to be. In this episode of Our Kids Play Hockey, Lee Elias, Mike Bonelli, and Christie Casciano-Burns tackle one of the most relatable challenges hockey parents face: how to feed your family—and fuel your hockey player—when the schedule is completely chaotic. 🥘 From crockpot meals and rotisserie chicken to breakfast-for-dinner, taco night, prepacked snacks, and tournament-friendly options, the crew shares realistic ideas that hockey families can actually use. You’ll hear: 🏒 Why meal planning matters more than creating the “perfect” dinner 🥪 Simple grab-and-go foods for busy practice nights 🍌 Easy snack ideas for before and after hockey ⏰ How food choices can change depending on how close you are to game time 🥘 Why the crockpot may be the MVP of hockey season 💰 How planning ahead can help families rely less on expensive fast food 🍝 The hosts’ favorite hockey-family meals that kids actually eat 🧊 Why packing food for tournaments can save time, money, and frustration 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 How involving kids in meal planning can teach habits that last well beyond hockey And perhaps most importantly, this episode is a reminder that the goal isn’t gourmet—it’s preparation. Your family dinner may happen at 4:45 one night and 9:30 the next. Some nights everyone may eat together; other nights it’s grab-and-go. What matters is creating a plan that works for your family and gives your young athlete the fuel they need. As Lee points out, parents spend enormous amounts of time thinking about skating lessons, shooting coaches, camps, clinics, and development opportunities. But something as basic as what a player eats can also have a real impact on how prepared and energized they feel on the ice. 📖 Want a written version you can reference anytime? Check out our companion blog: How Busy Hockey Families Can Make Mealtime Easier and Fuel Their Players Better 🎧 Listen now and steal a few ideas for your next busy hockey week. Have a favorite hockey-family meal, tournament snack, or crockpot recipe? Send it to [email protected]. You can also explore books, apparel, partners, and more at OurKidsPlayHockey.com/deals. #OurKidsPlayHockey #HockeyParents #YouthHockey #HockeyNutrition #HockeyMom #HockeyDad #YouthSportsNutrition #HockeyMeals #MealPrep #HockeyLife #TournamentHockey #SportsParents Click To Text The Our Kids Play Hockey Team! Hockey IQ: Scanning the ice, recognizing pressure, anticipating what happens next, making the right decision faster. Research shows these perceptual and decision-making skills can actually be trained. With NHL Sense Arena, kids can get extra game-like reps at home, working on hockey IQ, reactions, real stick-handling for skaters, while goalies can train reads and tracking. Save $25 on an annual plan with code OKPH at http://hockey.sensearena.com/okph Have A Topic You Want Us To Cover? Let us know! Please Be Sure To Subscribe & Leave A Review For Us On Apple Podcasts, doing so helps our show grow! Follow Us On Social Media:Facebook GroupXInstagramLinkedInYouTube
September 10, 202650min