Our Kids Play Hockey
Our Kids Play Hockey is a podcast that focuses on youth hockey, offering insights, stories, and interviews from the hockey community. It provides valuable advice for parents, coaches, and players, covering various aspects of the game, including skill development, sportsmanship, teamwork, and creating a positive experience for young athletes. The show frequently features guests who share their expertise and personal experiences in youth hockey, both on and off the ice.
The show features three hockey parents, who all work in the game at high levels:
- Christie Casciano-Burns - USA Hockey Columnist, Author, and WSYR Anchor
- Mike Bonelli - USA Hockey Coach and Organizational Consultant
- Lee M.J. Elias - Hockey Entrepreneur, Author, and Team Strategist
In addition to the main podcast, there are several spin-off series that dive into specific aspects of youth hockey:
1.Our Girls Play Hockey – This series highlights the growing presence of girls in hockey, addressing the unique challenges they face while celebrating their accomplishments and contributions to the sport. Each episode of Our Girls Play Hockey is also hosted by Sheri Hudspeth who is the Director, Youth Hockey Programs and Fan Development for the Vegas Golden Knights.
2.The Ride to The Rink – A shorter, motivational series designed to be listened to on the way to the rink, offering quick, inspirational tips and advice to help players and parents get into the right mindset before a game or practice.
3.Our Kids Play Goalie – This series is dedicated to young goalies and the unique challenges they face. It provides advice for players, parents, and coaches on how to support and develop young goaltenders, focusing on the mental and physical demands of the position.
Together, these shows provide a comprehensive platform for parents, players, and coaches involved in youth hockey, offering insights for all aspects of the sport, from parenting, playing, or coaching to specialized positions like goaltending.
Our Kids Play Hockey
The Ride To The Rink: Unlocking Your Game by Talking About Your Feelings with Jon Nelson
On this episode of The Ride to the Rink, we’re joined by Jon Nelson, a hockey coach and mental health advocate, to talk about the highs and lows of a hockey season and what to do when you’re feeling down.
🏒 How to recognize and talk about your feelings
🤝 What makes a great teammate on and off the ice
💡 Why engaging with teammates, coaches, and even rink staff can change your game
Jon shares simple but powerful advice for young players on supporting each other, embracing the team-first mindset, and creating a positive hockey experience.
🎧 Tune in for a quick but impactful ride to the rink! And don’t forget to check out our full conversation with Jon on Our Kids Play Hockey this week!
#RideToTheRink #HockeyMindset #MentalHealthInSports #OurKidsPlayHockey
Click To Text The Our Kids Play Hockey Team!
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:
Lee MJ Elias [0:08 - 0:57]: Skaters and goalies around the world. Welcome back to another edition of the Ride to the Rink. It's Lee with Christie and our friend John Nelson. Today, you know, we were talking on our big episode this week just about feelings and, and you know how throughout the course of a hockey season, how many different feelings feelings you experience as a hockey player. There's highs, there's lows, there's left, there's right. There's having a two goal lead, there's losing a two goal lead, there's gaining a two goal lead, coming back on a two goal lead. There's a lot. And what we want to talk about today is what if you're feeling a little down, right? What if you're out there and you're feeling a little down and what if it happens a lot that you're feeling down? And again, John, our friend here is a coach, he's an expert in the space. And John, I want to ask that question to you. What if you are feeling a little down? What, what should kids kind of think about or know to do in those situations?
Jon Nelson [0:58 - 2:03]: Awesome question. So here's the easiest way that I would explain it is the natural cycle of life are human emotions. And you just mentioned it, right? A lot of different aspects of the game. You know, you could wake up in the morning and be sad by afternoon. You're playing the game, you're pretty happy, you get angry later in the day, right? Like that's what life is. And so one of the things that we all need to be cognizant of is when the, when the feelings start getting sad and they continue to stay there. When you all of a sudden are feeling a little anxious, right? Your thought process is a little different. Things are a little bit more magnified than they are than they typically are. All that is, is you just need to talk about it. You need to go to your coach, you need to get things out of your head. You need to talk to your parents, talk to ultimately an adult and let them know what you're thinking. There is absolutely nothing wrong with that. What we want to do is get you out of your head. And if we can get you out of your head and you can start talking about it, then we can start hopefully getting that negative feelings that you're having to be a little bit less and providing you with some relief.
Christie Casciano [2:04 - 2:14]: Right? Hey Joe, we know you've been coaching for a long time. What characteristics do you love to see in your hockey player? What makes a good teammate?
Jon Nelson [2:15 - 3:44]: The person that makes a good teammate is the One that just is psyched to be at the rink. You know, they're walking in the door smiling, they're walking into that locker room and they are just so excited to be part of that team. They're not thinking about their own individual stats. This isn't a me, me, me thing. This is, hey, I kept the puck in the zone. I kept the puck in the. Kept it in the zone and we scored that goal. Right. That's just as important as the primary assist, the secondary assist the goal. Right. We're focusing on running through a wall for each other. We're focusing on making sure we're going and tapping that goalie's pads you're lined up before the exams off to make sure you're going out on that ice. Anything that's not me, me, me. That's what makes by far the best kids that I have seen. And I will tell you, this is the very first year I've ever had it. I have four kids, four, that I have not heard one bit of negativity from the entire season. I haven't heard one wine on the bench. I haven't heard one talking back to a referee, nothing. And let me tell you, and this is what I would tell every single kid that's out there listening. If I had a team of 16 of those, we'd be 12 years old fighting for the Stanley Cup. Truly, like, that's how important it is to be absolutely a phenomenal representative of your club, of your team. Having each other's back and making sure you can do whatever you can to be a quality human being and a quality teammate.
Lee MJ Elias [3:46 - 4:47]: Yeah, we all play a role, kids, in creating that environment that makes hockey super duper fun. I mean, it's fun in most environments, but like John is saying, if you can come with that let's we'll say we over me attitude, right? The environment that gets created, it becomes really special. And I'll tell you what, kids. You know, I've been involved with hockey for over 30 years, and those are the, those are the locker rooms that as a player and as a coach, I actually remember today. Right. Those are the ones that stick with you. Is. Is the ones that you had lifelong friends or that you, you all got along. It's not even so much what we want. In fact, some of the seasons I'm thinking about it now, I can't even tell you if we want, but I remember the people on the team. All right, so that's a great one. And then just rounding this out again, as John said, If you're feeling a little down, it's okay to talk to someone, all right? And it doesn't always have to be your mom or dad. We hope you can do that. That is obviously a good person to go to. Talk to your coach, you know, talk to someone if you're feeling a little down. There's nothing wrong with that. There's nothing wrong that, that's wrong with having that conversation, right, John?
Jon Nelson [4:48 - 6:01]: In the, in that conversation, guys. Could be guys and girls is. I'm just. I'm in a funk and I. I can't get out of it. Um, you know, it's. It's just talking about it is. Is vital. It's so important. And the other piece of advice I will give, this comes down to hockey. This is, this is, this is life lesson stuff. And one thing that I've noticed over the years with kids and with coming to the rink is majority of kids now. And this is something that I will provide as an example to increase your life skills. The majority of kids now, when they walk into a rink, watch them. Watch. They focus on the, on the door in the locker room and they walk right through the lobby and they don't interact and they don't engage. Interact and engage with people. Look, go buy a parent, a friend or somebody, give them a pound. Say, great to see you. Go to the guy who's running the exam and give them the pound. Right? Hey, man, you know, awesome to see you. Right? Engage. Humanity is something that we're missing now, and I've kind of put that to the technology era. But just, just engage with people. Be. Be a. Be a. Be a great human being, a great kid. And trust me, wait till you see how much that benefits your team by being an engaging human being. It'll help your teammates, too.
Lee MJ Elias [6:02 - 6:32]: I love it, John. I think that's just tremendous advice across the board. And that is going to do it for this edition of the Ride to the Rink. You know, kids, we make it bite sized for you. We hope you enjoy it. But if you want to hear more, you can listen to our full episode with John this week on our Kids Play Hockey. But that's gonna do it for Christie, for John, for myself. We'll see on the next ride to the rig. Kids, no matter where you're at on your hockey journey, remember, we believe in you. You should too. All right, have fun, skate hard, and as always, enjoy your hockey. We'll see you next time, everybody.
