This week on Pucked Up Parents, Michael and Angela dive into the myth known as the “off-season.” Spoiler alert: there isn’t one.

They break down the world of spring and summer hockey — from skill camps and power skating clinics to tournament teams that are “super laid back” but somehow still require a bit of travel. Is it development? Is it fun? Is it just one more ice slot? Yes.

They also tackle the great multi-sport debate. Should hockey kids be playing other sports? (Yes.) Will they? Also yes — between ice times. The conversation covers gymnastics for balance, baseball for hand-eye coordination, golf for patience, and even laid-up fishing for mental recovery… because sometimes the best cross-training is sitting quietly on a creek bank.

The duo recap a weekend of high-scoring games that had parents updating GameChanger like it’s the stock market. Michael is slightly under the weather but refuses to sit this one out — especially when it comes to his passionate rant against cowbells at youth hockey games.

It’s a lighter, funnier look at spring and summer hockey — where the vibes are chill, the goals are plentiful, and the calendar is somehow still full.

This week, Michael and Angela dive headfirst into the slippery ice of making new hockey friends—because nothing screams bonding like awkward hotel lobbies and forced smiles at team dinners. They tackle how to pass the endless downtime between games, whether it’s surviving board games , watching other sports on a TV in a hotel lobby or quietly judging other parents. Along the way, they explore how youth hockey magically creates lifelong friendships—for kids and parents alike—and dissect the fascinating species of hockey parents: helicopter parents, the sports dad, mama bears, coaches, penalty box monitors , and the overcomplicated scoreboard operators. All this while recapping a weekend of pond hockey, a road trip to a miraculous rink with actual working heaters, and reconnecting with old teammates. Bring your skates, your sarcasm, and a flask—you’re going to need it!

In this episode, Michael and Angela try to decode the wild, confusing, heavy maze that is youth hockey levels. From Mites to Squirts, PeeWees to Bantams, and all the way up to U16s and U18s, they break down what each level actually means—plus all the mysterious sublevels that somehow make it even more complicated. Because apparently “just hockey” isn’t a thing.

They also dive into the skill tiers—from house league chaos to AAA intensity—and explain what really changes between levels (hint: it’s not just skill… it’s stress, cost, and how far you get to travel on a weekend).

And because karma is undefeated, they share a story from this past weekend where they completely ignored their own advice from Episode 8 about forgotten equipment—leading to a full-blown family meltdown and the ultimate sin: a forgotten jersey. Yes, the podcast hosts became the cautionary tale.

It’s chaos. It’s parenting. It’s youth hockey.
And it’s another perfectly on-brand episode of Pucked Up Parents 🏒😂