🏒 What does being “coachable” actually look like during a hockey game?

In this episode of The Ride to the Rink, Lee Elias and Mike Bonelli speak directly to young players about how to listen, learn, and stay engaged when coaches are talking to them on the bench.

Being coachable is not about blindly agreeing with everything you hear. It’s about being present, being willing to receive information, and looking for something useful that can help you on your next shift.

Mike shares a few simple habits coaches notice right away: sitting with your linemates, encouraging teammates, making eye contact with your coach, listening when someone is trying to teach you, and staying mentally connected to the game instead of drifting into unrelated conversations.

Lee adds an important reminder: coaching is not judging.

When a coach tells you what they want to see differently, that does not automatically mean they think you are a bad player or that you ruined the game. Most of the time, they are simply trying to help you improve.

🎧 In this episode, young players will learn:

🏒 What coaches notice when players come back to the bench
🤝 Why positive communication with teammates matters
👀 Why eye contact and attention show coaches you are ready to learn
🧠 How to pull one useful takeaway from coaching instructions
🎯 Why staying present matters in a fast-moving game
📈 How every mistake can become a learning opportunity
💬 Why coaching feedback is meant to help—not blame
⭐ How being coachable builds trust with coaches and teammates

The goal is simple: every shift, try to learn something.

Maybe it’s finding more open ice.

Maybe it’s making a better pass.

Maybe it’s supporting a teammate.

Maybe it’s just being more aware.

You do not have to become a perfect player in one shift. Just try to become a little better each time you step onto the ice.

Stay engaged. Stay curious. Help your teammates. Listen for the lesson.

📖 Want a written version you can reference anytime? Check out our companion blog: How to Be More Coachable—and Learn More From Every Hockey Shift

And remember: we believe in you—but you should believe in yourself too.

#TheRideToTheRink #YouthHockey #HockeyKids #BeCoachable #HockeyDevelopment #HockeyMindset #YouthHockeyPlayers #HockeyCoaching #HockeyTeammates #PlayerDevelopment

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🏒 Looking for hockey gifts that players will actually use—and that can help protect expensive gear, create more training opportunities, and make life a little easier for hockey families? This episode is for you.

On this special edition of Our Kids Play Hockey, Lee Elias kicks off the Hockey Family Holiday Deals series with the story behind Hockey Wraparound—and a limited-time offer designed to help hockey families save while picking up practical products built specifically for the game.

Hockey Wraparound started with a simple problem: how do you let players train outside with the stick they actually use without destroying the blade?

That problem led to the creation of the Hockey Wraparound blade protector, designed to help players use their hockey sticks on rough off-ice surfaces while protecting the blade from unnecessary wear. With high-end sticks now costing hundreds of dollars, it’s a simple way to help extend the life of an expensive piece of equipment while giving players more freedom to practice at home.

And that was only the beginning.

In this episode, Lee shares the story behind Hockey Wraparound, how the original product evolved through years of testing and customer feedback, and how the company continues building products aimed at making hockey training and travel easier for families.

🎁 Products featured in this episode include:

• Hockey Wraparound Blade Protector — helps protect your stick blade so players can shoot, stickhandle, and train on rough off-ice surfaces without sacrificing their primary stick.
• Puck Around Pro Training Puck — designed to give players a more natural off-ice shooting and puckhandling feel, helping reps away from the rink translate more effectively back to the ice.
• Dry Stick Equipment Dryer — a portable solution that uses your hockey stick to help hang and air out wet gear, especially useful for tournaments, travel, and busy hockey weekends.
• Limited-Edition “Puck Around and Find Out” Shirts — returning in yellow and black for a short two-week release.

You’ll also hear how Hockey Wraparound began with Lee creating homemade training aids as a kid, why the first version of the product had to overcome major growing pains, and how listening to hockey families helped turn one idea into a global hockey brand.

🔥 And for a limited time, listeners can save 26% during Hockey Wraparound’s Yellow & Black Friday Sale.

The promotion runs Friday through Monday on eligible Hockey Wraparound products, including featured training gear and the limited-edition apparel release.

Whether you’re shopping for a hockey player, looking for practical stocking stuffers, trying to protect a costly stick, or searching for ways to help your player get more meaningful reps away from the rink, this episode highlights products created by hockey people to solve real hockey-family problems.

Lee also explains why the Hockey Family Holiday Deals series exists and why transparency matters. Our Kids Play Hockey is being completely upfront about its connection to Hockey Wraparound so listeners can hear the story, understand the products, see the value, and decide what makes sense for their own family.

🎧 Listen now to hear the full Hockey Wraparound story, learn how these products can help your player train and protect their gear, and take advantage of the 26% Yellow & Black Friday offer while it’s available.

#OurKidsPlayHockey #HockeyWraparound #HockeyGifts #HockeyGiftIdeas #YouthHockey #HockeyParents #HockeyTraining #OffIceHockey #HockeyEquipment #HockeyTrainingAids #HockeyFamily #HolidayHockey

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🏒 Are you coaching the players on your bench—or shouting instructions at the players already flying around the ice?

There’s a big difference.

In this episode of Our Kids Play Hockey, Lee Elias and Mike Bonelli tackle one of the most common habits they see in youth hockey: coaches trying to control every decision from the bench.

After more than 50 years of combined coaching experience, Lee and Mike admit they’ve both evolved. The younger versions of themselves yelled more, talked more, and believed they could influence every play as it happened.

Today, they see the bench very differently.

The game is where players apply what they’ve learned. The real teaching happens through practices, preparation, video, repetition, and conversations before and after the action.

🎧 In this episode:

🏒 Why shouting constant play-by-play instructions isn’t really coaching
🧠 Why players—especially younger players—struggle to process tactical information during a shift
📋 How to enter every game with just a few clear points of emphasis
🍩 Why simple code words like “donuts,” “butter,” and “go hunting” can communicate more than a long speech
📝 How Lee and Mike use notes, lineup sheets, and game observations to improve future practices
🔄 Why good bench management includes line rotation, fair ice time, substitutions, and situational awareness
👥 How head coaches can better utilize assistant coaches
⏱️ What to say between periods when you only have a few seconds
😤 Why a coach’s emotional state can quickly become the team’s emotional state
📣 Why parents coaching from the stands can make things harder—not easier
🎯 How the definition of success should change depending on the age and developmental level
❤️ Why youth hockey coaching ultimately includes teaching character, empathy, and life lessons

One of the biggest takeaways?

In-game bench management may be the least effective time to teach hockey.

Save the detailed teaching for practice. Save it for video. Save it for the locker room.

On the bench, manage the environment. Communicate simply. Keep players engaged. Control your emotions. Help them compete.

And then let them play.

For coaches trying to become more effective—and parents wondering what good bench coaching should actually look like—this is a conversation worth hearing.

📖 Want a written version you can reference anytime? Check out our companion blog: How to Coach a Youth Hockey Bench Without Overcoaching the Game

#OurKidsPlayHockey #YouthHockey #HockeyCoaching #YouthHockeyCoach #BenchManagement #HockeyDevelopment #HockeyParents #CoachDevelopment #HockeyPractice #PlayerDevelopment #PositiveCoaching

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