Discover
Youth Hockey Podcast

Youth Hockey Podcast
Author: Randy Gifford Lance Alexander
Subscribed: 16Played: 822Subscribe
Share
© Randy Gifford Lance Alexander
Description
Trying to navigate the youth hockey landscape? We have seen it all and done it all. Our experiences include the top prep school in the nation down to the dirtiest rink in Southern California. One thing has become clear. It's better to have a bit of a roadmap and a shoulder to cry on when everything heads south. We are optimistic, ebullient, and sharp as a rusty old skate that's seen too many ponds. We want to help you glide along the path to hockey stardom, and have a few chuckles along the way.
Email: youthhockeypodcast@gmail.com
Sponsor: https://gabegiffordhockey.thinkific.com
Email: youthhockeypodcast@gmail.com
Sponsor: https://gabegiffordhockey.thinkific.com
160 Episodes
Reverse
Lorenz updates us from Switzerland. Being a team manager across the ocean also seems stressful.
Lance talks about tryouts like it is a science. Randall tries to keep people from limiting their options.
Rolly gets tired of kids lobbying for more points with the refs.
Randall knows his Canadian TV. He brings up the idea of hockey levels and parent satisfaction.Corwin loves the idea of coaches being one of the barometers of success.Lance doesn't understand what it's like to have his kids on anything less than AAA.
Lance wants to know why people are so violent in the stands. The anger that is in the sport is perhaps growing.Corwin talks up the social media winners.Randall wants to know why his parents never came to his games. Wasn't he special?
Coach wants to talk about how one gets into coaching in the US. The steps are really interesting.Lance wants to know if systems are part of hockey coaching training.Randall shows his love for Canada by responding to the new information that Canada day is being celebrated all over the 49th parallel.
Playoff hockey in the youth world. Everything is coming down to spring. Lots of new things for a young hockey player.Lance talks about how different coaches (on the same team) managed games. When one coach was missing, the style of play changes. The favored players changed. It was a chaotic mess and he loved every minute of it. That's my take. :)Corwin talks about how teams see each other in the playoffs.
Randall looks into a few flashes in the pan who were aided by early maturity. There are kids who will appear at 12u and just rocket past the kids. Are they benefiting from a mirage?
Lance has several examples of how kids have been pushed to the top by growth spurts only to come back to the pack later.
Corwin amplifies this with talk about hockey birthdays.
Lance talks about the 10-7 rule in college hockey. He knows about how to get your kid ready for college with course choice preparation in high school.
Corwin talks about the Canadian college process.
Randall has a game relating to world juniors. Corwin knows the kid who helped put the US on top this year.
Lance got an email about a five-year-old hockey player. The question was: how do they start out and then get to where his kids got?
Corwin talks helmets and kids.
Randall talks about how the fit of the skates makes all the difference.
Randall goes through the reporting on the top twenty youth hockey scandals as presented by AI.
Corwin has a more personal approach.
Lance thinks that every team his kid played on were choirboys and the other teams are filled with thugs.
Lance talks about how people are quitting hockey in their teens.
Corwin is a bit shocked by the number. He talks about how it might be part of the lower levels.
Randall makes a point about AAA girls teams.
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 pretty chill for most of the hockey time.
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 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.
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, sister and dog-walker alike. Nobody can breathe until the list of who made the team is posted.
Lance talks a bit about how his kids were recruited over the years. It's pretty cool when the coach is reaching out and making you feel special. That's what I've heard at least. Lance says it's great. We really don't like Lance.
Corwin introduces class to the podcast. We're not sure if we like it or not. We definitely like him.