Cooper Black: Charlotte Checkers Goaltender on the Power of Self-Belief

Welcome to Episode 81 of the Dialed & Driven Mentality Podcast!

Up next in The Goalie Nation Series, Jeff Lerg and Natalie Ferenc sit down with one of the fastest-rising young goaltenders in professional hockey, Charlotte Checkers goaltender Cooper Black.

Standing 6'9" and coming from the small hockey town of Alpena, Michigan, Cooper's journey is anything but conventional. From playing house hockey and AA, leaving home at 14 to chase AAA, returning to high school hockey, getting cut from multiple junior teams, and nearly walking away from the game altogether, his story is a powerful reminder that there is no single path to success.

Now entering his fourth professional season after signing with the Florida Panthers organization out of Dartmouth College, Cooper shares how resilience, patience, and an unwavering belief in himself helped him overcome rejection after rejection while continuing to chase his NHL dream.

Throughout the conversation, Cooper explains why adversity became his greatest motivator, how learning to trust the process transformed both his game and mindset, and why developing the mental side of hockey has become the biggest separator at the professional level.

He also gives listeners an inside look at the realities of junior hockey, Division I college hockey, and life in the American Hockey League, while sharing what it's really like competing every day with one goal in mind: earning an opportunity to play in the NHL.

Episode Highlights:

• Growing up in Alpena, Michigan, and taking an unconventional path to professional hockey

• Why returning from AAA to high school hockey didn't end his hockey dreams

• Nearly quitting hockey after his junior year—and what changed everything

• Getting cut from multiple junior teams before finally earning an opportunity

• Using rejection as fuel instead of letting it define you

• The importance of loving the game through every setback

• Choosing Dartmouth for both hockey and academics—and how his mindset evolved once he arrived

• Transitioning from college hockey into the business of professional hockey

• What surprised him most during his first days as a pro

• Why the mental side of the game becomes even more important at the AHL level

• Learning to trust preparation instead of overthinking during games

• Why patience is one of the most important qualities for developing athletes

• How confidence is built through consistent work—not outside opinions

• Why every athlete's journey looks different, and why that's exactly how it's supposed to be

AND SO MUCH MORE!

Whether you're a goalie, athlete, coach, or parent, this episode is filled with valuable lessons on perseverance, patience, confidence, and trusting your own path—even when it doesn't look like everyone else's.

Cooper's story proves that setbacks don't determine your future. Being cut, overlooked, or doubted doesn't mean your journey is over. If you're willing to keep showing up, keep learning, and keep believing in yourself, your biggest opportunities may still be ahead.

Stay present. Stay dialed. Stay driven.

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