The head coach I worked with last year was running a one on one drill, throwing out pucks for the kids, and suddenly started pulling different kinds of balls out of his pocket and throwing them out instead of pucks. All of a sudden the kids started paying attention again.

I think it is very important to finish most drill with a shot on net. This gives the kids something to look forward to when they finish the drill. It also ensures that you never forget about the goalies.

I am not a hockey coach but my son plays in 5-6 year old mites and I coach 5-6 soccer (5 seasons) and high school rugby (2 seasons).
My methods involve some of the above, and some twists. I try to stay the same in time slots 10 minutes of X, 15 minutes of y etc... and then end in some type of scrimmage or competition. I use basically 6 drills three on one day and three on the next with escalating challenges for each drill as the season goes to keep the basic drill in muscle memory but for them to always be engaged with something new however small it is. One I always stand by is using the cone drills (or gate drills), and always end with either a shot on goal, pass for a shot on goal (rugby is score a try) for that sense of accomplishment and focus point. I sometimes throw soft cloth type balls at the kids (like a dodge ball type event) to keep them looking around and ready for something else while the negotiate the cones. They are by no means hard in fact softer than nerf, basically a cloth ball with material inside it a little larger than a tennis ball. I also try to keep things working in a circle type rotation so there is hardly ever standing around. Include frequent water/ goof off breaks and the kids have fun and pay attention during drills. I try to make simple games included with these drills like Simon says, duck duck goose, red light green light, spins an occasional roll or cartwheel etc... most importantly I try to have fun with them so everyone has fun and be patient. This is the time to make them just love the sports and learn basics. I want them to look forward to practice as much as games or playing in the park etc... It seems to have worked well parents try to get on my teams and I never select by talent, and our teams do well. I give the kids homework like they have to do 20 passes with their siblings or parents between practices or watch a sporting event (anything can count) with their parents or simply thank their parents for taking them to practices and games.

I had a Tier 1 national champion coach suggest using apples and onions as motivation. He said he makes almost of of his drills competitive. Doing it correct or winning gets you a bite of an apple and incorrect or losing gets you a bite of the onion. It was an interesting and amusing suggestion from this coach. The important thing is that as a coach you come up with your own ways to accomplish your goals. It has to work for you and your specific group of players.