During a youth hockey game, the coach knelt beside one of his 7-year-old players during a break and asked gently, “Hey buddy, do you know what teamwork means?”
The little boy nodded confidently.
“And you understand it’s not just about winning — it’s about playing fair and working together, right?”
Another nod.
“And you know that when the ref makes a call, you’re not supposed to argue, yell, or call him a ‘pecker-head,’ correct?”
The boy’s eyes widened slightly, but he nodded again.
“And when I rotate players and give someone else a chance on the ice, it’s not okay to shout that your coach is ‘a dumb jerk,’ is it?”
The boy looked down and gave a small, guilty nod.
The coach smiled and said, “Awesome. Now … do you think you could go explain all that to your mom?”