After 12-year-old Evan Morrow is unceremoniously cut from the Ducks, he and his mom, Alex, set out to build their own team of misfits to challenge the cutthroat, win-at-all-costs culture of youth sports today.
Tropes:
- As You Know: During the opening, Nick and Mary Joe explain the current state of the Ducks to their podcast audience.Nick: Now, for anyone who's new to the show, or Earth, the Ducks are a powerhouse organization with a record 10 state championships.
Mary Joe: A little different than the Ducks of the '90s. They actually used to quack.
Nick: [Laughs] Adorable! - The Bartender: Winnie, who runs the snack bar.Alex: I don't know why I'm telling you this whole story.
Winnie: It's okay. People tend to open up to me at the hot chocolate bar. - Brutal Honesty: When Evan tries to convince Alex that she's capable of coaching because she's been to his Ducks practices, Alex reveals that if she was ever wearing sunglasses at practice, she was asleep.
- Call-Back: "Here's the long and the short of it: I hate hockey, and I don't like kids."
- Establishing Character Moment: There are several, but Lauren's stands out. She has it in the first lunchroom scene, after Nick tries to get popular girls to join the team and gets shot down.Lauren: (To Nick) Don't let 'em get to you. They make fun of me 'cause I dress like a warrior princess and go to Magic: The Gathering conventions. But it doesn't bother me. (Angrily crushes an empty soda can in one hand)
- Failed Dramatic Exit: Alex ends her speech by stating that she and Evan are leaving. Unfortunately, she’s in the middle of the ice without skates and has to gingerly walk back to the stands.
- Oh, Crap!: Coach T's reminder that their division is "full contact," supplemented by a video with players brutally ramming into each other, results in Evan uttering this.
- Plot-Based Voice Cancellation: Winnie runs a noisy hot-chocolate dispenser while Alex tells her about Evan's father, who's "never around". We learn the full story in Episode 5.
- Ragtag Bunch of Misfits: The team the Morrows put together is comprised of a kid too small to hack it on the Ducks, an injured sniper, a daredevil skateboarder, a popular girl, a geeky nihilist, a podcaster, a sedentary gamer, and a kid who can't even skate, all coached by someone who's never even played.
- "The Reason You Suck" Speech: When Evan gets cut, Alex lays into the entire Ducks culture for being insane, expensive, and controlling at center ice. Naturally, she has to wobble her way back to the bench, and becomes a viral embarrassment for Evan at school.
