Parents: New Years Resolutions for Goalie Parents

You don't get the puck. Get the skates. Hutch on assignment, but joins us for the Stop It Goaltending U, the app parent segment brought to us by our good friends, Stop It Goaltending.

Yeah. You wanna have 25 of NHL goalie coaching experience at your fingertips? Wanna tap into the goalie parenting expertise that helped Joey Daccord reach the NHL? That's what you get with a subscription to Stop It Goaltending U the app. All the knowledge from Brian Daccord who has been an NHL goalie coach, NHL goalie scout, and NHL goalie director at two stops, including now with the Detroit Red Wings, as well as all the insights and expertise from his staff at Stop It, which last year celebrated twenty five years as one of the world's top goalie schools and includes teachers who are coaching in the NCAA.

All delivered in easy to digest chunks, including five short daily primers each week, weekly style analysis and breakdown videos, and drills you can take onto the ice with your team and coach. All that plus, you get an InGoal premium subscription included. So check it out now at the App Store or Google Play and get the best of both worlds with a subscription to Stop It Goaltending U, the app, and included a subscription to InGoal premium magazine or InGoal Magazine Premium.

That works too. It's our parent segment, By, the cofounder of Merilainen. Here is David Hutch. Hutch.

Most of the long term successes we see in young goalies doesn't come from better drills or newer gear. It comes from routines, independence, mental skills, and a healthy parent child relationship.

This is our last episode before the New Year. And as we turn the calendar, there's always a lot of talk about resolutions, getting better, working harder, fixing weaknesses. You'll probably notice some themes here that I keep coming back to, and that's for good reason. Most of the long term successes we see in young goalies doesn't come from better drills or newer gear. It comes from routines, independence, mental skills, and a healthy parent child relationship.

So instead of New Year's resolutions for our goalies, I want this week to offer a few ideas for us as parents to reflect One, help build routines, then get out of the way. Routines create calm and a chaotic sport. Packing the gear the same way, a consistent warm up, a pregame reset. Early on, this might mean checklists on the wall or walking through the process together. But the goal isn't compliance.

It's ownership. If they forget something, resist the urge to fix it. That discomfort is often the fastest teacher. Two, say less on game day. Game day should feel familiar, not instructional.

Last minute reminders, mechanical tips, or emotional pep talks. Now they often add noise, not clarity. If something matters, it should already be part of the routine. A simple, have fun, or I love watching you play often lands better than another technical reminder. Three, let mistakes be theirs.

Tough goals, missed gears, hard nights. Our instinct is to protect from embarrassment, disappointment, consequences. But independence grows when kids learn they can recover, adapt, and move on without being rescued. The message I want them to internalize is, I can handle this. Again, going back to, I love watching you play.

You got this. Something positive to reinforce that you're there for them while letting them handle it. Four. Praise effort and preparation, not outcomes. Wins, shutouts, save percentage, they're noisy, they're unpredictable.

Preparation is controllable. Did they take care of their body? Did they stay engaged? Did they compete through adversity? When we consistently reinforce effort over results, we reduce anxiety and build resilience and a better goaltender.

Five, protect the relationship above all else. Your child's going to have many coaches over their career. They only get one parent. If hockey disappeared tomorrow, the relationship needs to still feel safe, supportive, and intact. That doesn't mean avoiding hard conversations.

Just means choosing the right time, the right tone, and remembering who you are first. Now, look, don't take any of these on as rules. I'm not suggesting you have to do any or all of them. Just see them as prompts for reflection. So here's the question I'll leave you with as we head into the new year.

What will your resolution be as a goalie parent, and how might it make the rest of the season feel healthier for everyone involved? Let us know. Parents at ingoalmag.com.

Remember when we first started this and you guys were gracious enough to allow me to take part? We had, like, a big long talk and then a feature interview.

Yes.

Slowly but surely, you you've added these different segments to to the podcast. The the parent segment has been one of those great segments that everybody can listen to, not just the goaltender.

Yeah. It was started as a I mean, it's a staple. Right? Like, it's one of the reasons people come to this segment because of all the great advice that Hutch brings about life as a goaltender parent. A life I haven't had to live, but he has.

And so it's heartfelt, it's sincere, and it's experience based. And like I said, it's become a can't miss segment here on the InGoal Radio Podcast. So thanks to Hutch for doing such a great job with it.