Hockey Think Tank with Topher Scott, Episode #36

Today’s guest is Topher Scott, founder of the Hockey Think Tank. Topher played hockey at Cornell University where he was a two-year captain. After a brief stint playing professionally, he went on to be a division one assistant coach for six years at Miami of Ohio and Cornell. Topher currently works with organizations from youth to college levels in team-building and hockey development. The Hockey Think Tank provides a platform for connecting people that are passionate about the game of hockey. It provides a unique opportunity for dedicated coaches, players, and parents to gain and share hockey knowledge. Topher has created a community of people that are fans, players, and students of the game of hockey and are working diligently to grow the game. Which is something I am passionate about too!

You will want to hear this episode if you are interested in…

  • Topher’s path to founding the Hockey Think Tank [2:06]
  • What is the Hockey Think Tank all about? [5:20]
  • Things the Think Tank is trying to impart upon youth hockey players and parents [6:51]
  • Some of the things that Topher has taken away from working with youth players [13:55]
  • Is there a difference between a youth hockey player and other sports? [17:37]
  • Understanding the difference in the path of a hockey player vs other sports [21:00]
  • What’s the goal of Topher’s podcast and what does he attribute the success to? [24:18]
  • Does Topher see anything changing with the game of hockey? [29:30]
  • What’s the next big thing for the Hockey Think Tank? [31:50]
  • What Topher did today that put him in the right mindset for success? [32:39]

What is the Hockey Think Tank and what are they doing for the sport?

The Hockey Think Tank is a company that strives to bring smart and passionate hockey people together to make the game better. Topher says the biggest thing that Hockey Think Tank is doing is creating and providing a lot of hockey educational content. When he was a Division One Assistant Coach at Cornell he had a chance to talk to a lot of people around the US, Canada, and even in Europe about hockey; specifically, youth hockey because those were the kids he was recruiting to come to the school. One of the biggest things that Topher found— being in communication with so many different people in the sport— was there was a major need for coach and parent education on what the game is about and why it’s important.

Topher says we get so caught up in the wins and losses and all the other BS regarding youth sports. He doesn’t think that’s just a youth hockey problem but a youth sports problem. We forget about the things that are important like learning to be a part of a team, creating a passion for yourself, learning how to hit adversity, building resiliency, all the things that will help us later in life. Those things are also important for our overall human development. The Hockey Think Tank has taken hockey culture and packaged that with specific hockey systems, hockey development, and skill development to do their best to get the word out and educate people on the ins and outs of the game.

The top 3 things that Topher and the think tank are trying to impart upon youth hockey players

Most of the kids that are playing have dreams and aspirations of doing some pretty cool things in this sport. So the number one thing is that there’s no one path, everybody takes their own road. At the end of the day, most of the people that end up playing at the highest levels have a path filled with a lot of ups and downs, being cut, learning how to fail, and weaving through so much of what the youth hockey experience has to offer.

Number two goes back to number one in that the path to success is rarely straight or without bumps. The more that we can amplify how important it is to fail, the more we can amplify the importance of resiliency and battling adversity and how important having the right support system around us is.

Number three goes back to the support system from number two. Surround yourself with good people. That’s probably the most important thing that you can do. Whether you’re a parent and you’re trying to figure out this whole crazy youth hockey landscape. A coach and you need other good coaches around you to make your job a little bit easier and to make it better for the kids. Or as players, especially during the teenage years. One of the things that Topher talks about in his team building is that you are the direct reflection of the five people that you surround yourself with the most, so choose your friends wisely. If you don’t, you’re making a huge mistake. If you do, you’re putting yourself on a path to be able to achieve those things by having the right people in your corner.

What’s next for Topher and Hockey Think Tank?

Hockey Think Tank has a lot of things on the go right now. They are in the process of signing a deal with a podcast company and some deals with some other hockey education companies and websites. The plan is to provide even better content for the people that are trying to get better outside of the game. Those things will be coming out in the next couple of months or so. Topher says the company was founded based upon bringing great hockey people together that are passionate about the game and that’s always been the goal and he would love to continue to do that and just keep moving the game forward.

Connect with Topher Scott

Topher played hockey at Cornell University where he was a two-year captain. After a brief stint playing professionally, he went on to be a Division-One Assistant Coach for six years at Miami (Ohio) and Cornell. Topher currently resides in upstate New York with his wife and daughter where he works with teams and organizations on Leadership and Team Building.

Guests on the Mitlin Money Mindset Show are not affiliated with CWM, LLC, and opinions expressed herein may not be representative of CWM, LLC. CWM, LLC is not responsible for the guest’s content linked on this site.

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