Written Option 1:

Slip McScruff is actually a master manipulator because he is unpredictable. The star players all know exactly what a competent hockey player would do in any given situation, but with Slip McScruff, they aren't dealing with a competent hockey player. He can make them look like fools just by making the worst decisions and taking the worst shots possible.

So we find ourselves in a situation where Slip McScruff picks a fight with a secretly tough goal scorer. To get into their head, Slip critiques their technique very genuinely and says the most frustratingly wrong things. He gets into their head and they can't help but try to correct him. However, you can't debate an idiot. Every valid point that they make, he has some totally new way to be boldly incorrect. The natural conclusions are either the gloves coming off to settle the point or the star comes away with a new perspective which shatters his ability to score goals. Either way, Slip will blissfully continue to exist in a bubble of ignorance in the box opposite his new friend.