A Game, A Loss, and a Moment That Transcended Sport:

On Saturday morning, just hours before Game 7 of a second-round NHL playoff series, Winnipeg Jets forward Mark Scheifele got the call no one ever wants:

His father had unexpectedly passed away.

With his mother’s blessing, Scheifele laced up and stepped onto the ice.
Because that’s what his dad would’ve wanted.

He scored the first goal of the game.

Then, late in the third, tied 1–1, Scheifele took a penalty.
Just over a minute into overtime, with him still in the box, Dallas scored.
The Jets’ season ended.

The Power of a Handshake Line

As is tradition in hockey, players from both teams line up at center ice after a playoff series to shake hands. But this time, the line was different.

At center ice, Scheifele hugged his goalie, Connor Hellebuyck, and broke down.
It wasn’t brief. It wasn’t hidden. It was human.

Every single Dallas player stopped to offer condolences.
Even Jamie Benn, the Stars’ captain who had sucker-punched Scheifele in the face just one game earlier.

That handshake line wasn’t about hockey.
It was about humanity.
It was about toughness—the kind that lasts.

First Responders Know This Kind of Toughness

You’ve run into burning buildings.
You’ve walked up to cars that didn’t feel right.
You’ve been the calm on someone’s worst day, again and again.

You know what it’s like to shove it down.
Push through.
Get the job done.

First Responders Are Some of the Toughest People on Earth.

But toughness isn’t about shutting it all down.
It’s about knowing when to push and when to feel.
It’s about showing up through the hardest moments—and not carrying them alone.

Mental toughness isn’t just holding the line.
It’s knowing when to lean on it, and on each other.

What About After the Call?

• What about the weight you carry home?
• What about your teammate going through hell but still showing up?
• What about you?

Being Mentally Tougher isn’t about turning it off.
It’s about showing up with grit and heart, for yourself and your crew.

It’s about staying human in a job that tests your humanity every single day.

There’s no shame in feeling.
No weakness in grieving.
And no doubt that empathy belongs on every truck, beat, headset, and shift.
Because in the end, you don’t have to carry it alone.

We’re Not Here to Make You Soft. We’re Here to Help You Last.

Mentally Tougher was built for this.
To help you lead with empathy.
To give you the tools to stay steady—on shift, off shift, and when the hard stuff hits home.

How Empathy Makes You Mentally Tougher:

• Builds emotional resilience
  • Toughness isn’t numbness. It’s the capacity to keep going while feeling everything. Scheifele chose to play not because he didn’t care, but because he cared deeply. That goal wasn’t just a stat—it was a message to his dad.That embrace afterward? That was strength.
• Strengthens trust between teammates
  • Teams don’t rise and fall on talent—they rise and fall on trust.
    When humans know they can show up as their whole selves—not just their best self—they recover faster, communicate better, and stay in the fight longer.
    
    Psychological safety isn’t soft. It’s strategic.
• Model healthy leadership for the next generation
  • Young people saw something real:
    That you can grieve and compete.
    That you can battle and still show respect.
    That you can cry and lead.
    
    That’s a message every locker room, unit, precinct, and firehouse needs.
• Protects against burnout and moral injury
  • Empathy protects against burnout. It fuels connection, loyalty, and meaning. People who feel supported push harder, last longer, and recover faster—because they’re not white-knuckling it through silence. They have people in their corner.

If you like this post, be sure to join us the Level 2 trainings being conducted in June at Cincinnati Fire Department, Cincinnati Police Department, and Norwood Fire Department.

Want to bring this message to your department, station, or agency?
Let’s talk.

As always: Be Mentally Tougher.