Why the kids who struggle early often last the longest.
Scott and Jamie sit down with Jeff LoVecchio - former D1 and pro player, longtime Hockey Think Tank co-host, and founder of GMBM: Give More Be More to unpack a hockey journey built on getting cut, staying patient and learning how to own your development.
Jeff walks through growing up in St. Louis with grounded parents who refused to fight his battles, getting cut from teams, playing one or two shifts a game his first year of AAA, and being forced to look in the mirror instead of blaming coaches. He explains how those moments, not early dominance, shaped his confidence, work ethic, and long-term success.
The conversation dives into what Jeff sees now after 18 years training thousands of players: why parents rush too early, how over-scheduling hurts development, why competition and discomfort matter, and how mentorship, not micromanagement, changes outcomes.
In this episode:
- Getting cut and why it was the best thing that happened to him
- Parents who didn’t call coaches and why that mattered
- The danger of trying to build the “best 10-year-old”
- What real development actually looks like over time
It’s an honest reminder for hockey parents everywhere: the path isn’t clean, progress isn’t linear, and the kids who learn to struggle early are often the ones still standing at the end.
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