Sean Erickson
Director of Advisement | Minnesota
Sean Erickson grew up playing hockey in St. Louis before moving to Eden Prairie at 15. His junior year at EP he was demoted to JV, riding the bench through sections and the state tournament. His senior year he earned a permanent role on varsity but did not play a single playoff minute. Of the nine players from his senior class who went on to play Division I hockey, Sean was one of three. He was the only one who played pro.
His first game of junior hockey, Sean was a healthy scratch. The coach said he was too small to play against Bismarck. His father's response was straightforward: prove them wrong and do whatever it takes to stay in the lineup. The second game of the season, suspensions opened a spot and Sean was in the lineup. He fought on his second shift. He was never a healthy scratch again for the next 13 years.
Two years in the NAHL led to four years at the University of Connecticut, where Sean was named captain his junior and senior seasons. He went on to play seven years of professional hockey in the ECHL, AHL, and the EIHL in Britain.
Sean now leads APX Advisors as Director of Advisement, overseeing the full program and every advisor on staff. The perspective he brings to every family he sits down with comes from 13 years of navigating this game at the highest levels, starting from a position most people would have walked away from.
"My dad told me two things. Prove them wrong and do whatever it takes to stay in the lineup. I never forgot that. It is what I bring to every athlete we work with."
— Sean Erickson, Director of Advisement
Nick Sova
APX Senior Advisor | Minnesota
Nick Sova knows what it takes to earn a roster spot at every level of the junior and college game. He competed in the NAHL with the Minot Minotauros and the SIJHL with the Minnesota Wilderness, where he was part of the 2013 RBC Cup National Semi-Finalist team. He went on to play collegiate hockey at Hamline University at the NCAA Division III level.
That path through junior and college hockey is exactly where Nick's advising strength lives. His focus is junior and college hockey placement, and he brings a firsthand understanding of what programs are looking for and what athletes need to do to be ready when the opportunity comes.
The 2013 RBC Cup run is not a footnote. Competing at a national semi-final level in junior hockey requires a team built the right way and a player who performs when the stakes are highest. Nick carries that standard into every athlete he works with at APX Advisors.
"Competing at the RBC Cup level taught me what it takes to build toward something. That is what I bring to every athlete I work with." — Nick Sova, APX Senior Advisor
Hunter Warner
APX Senior Advisor | Minnesota
Hunter Warner has competed at nearly every level this game offers. The USHL and WHL in North America. The AHL. Professional leagues in France and Austria. That range gave him an understanding of the sport, and what it demands, that most advisors simply do not have.
His networks run deep across the CHL, USHL, BCHL, and NAHL. When he advocates for an athlete, those relationships deliver.
At 18, Hunter was committed to Minnesota State Mankato when the Minnesota Wild offered him a contract. Signing meant walking away from his college commitment and aging out of juniors in the WHL. It was a decision most adults would struggle with, and he had to make it at 18. It is the reason he sits in this chair today. He knows what it feels like to be across the table from a family facing a choice that feels too big and too fast.
Hunter also knows what it feels like to be overlooked. Early on he had no traction. No fall team, no spring team, no recognition through the usual Minnesota pathways. One combine put him in front of the right eyes and changed everything. That is why he advocates so hard for every athlete he works with, and why he believes the players easiest to miss are often the ones with the highest ceiling.
"I remember the difficulty of navigating that decision at 18. That is exactly why I appreciate walking with families through the tough moments." — Hunter Warner, APX Senior Advisor
Brad Stepan
APX Senior Advisor | Minnesota
Brad Stepan grew up playing hockey in Hastings, Minnesota before moving on to the OHL with the Windsor Spitfires and the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds. He went on to play professionally in the IHL with the Denver Rangers and signed a three year contract with the New York Rangers of the NHL.
His networks at APX cover the NAHL, USHL, and WHL.
Brad and his son Derek are the only father and son duo in NHL history to both sign with the New York Rangers. Derek Stepan went on to become the first American born player to score a hat trick in his first NHL game.
That is the kind of hockey family that has seen this game from every angle. Brad brings that perspective and those relationships to every athlete he advises at APX.
"Hockey has given my family everything. Being able to pass that on to the athletes I work with at APX is something I do not take lightly." — Brad Stepan, APX Senior Advisor
Austin Heidemann
APX Advisor | Minnesota
Austin Heidemann grew up playing at Breck School in Minnesota before competing in the MJHL with the Steinbach Pistons and earning a spot in the USHL with the Green Bay Gamblers. He went on to play Division I college hockey at Mercyhurst University and RPI, then extended his career professionally in the ECHL with the Wichita Thunder.
His networks span the USHL, BCHL, NAHL, MJHL, SJHL, and NCDC.
During his last year of juniors, Austin was injured at the peak of college recruiting season. Programs backed off. Mercyhurst University did not. They continued to believe in him through his recovery and offered him a spot. He committed immediately. That decision led to contributing right away, competing for an Atlantic Hockey Championship, and earning a Hobey Baker nomination as a sophomore.
He did not end up at the biggest program. He ended up at the right one. That distinction shapes every conversation Austin has with a player and their family. The most prestigious offer is not always the best decision. The right fit, the right belief, and the right opportunity to develop are what determine how far an athlete actually goes.
"The biggest program is not always the best path. Sometimes the right fit is the place that believes in you and gives you the opportunity to reach your full potential."
— Austin Heidemann, APX Advisor
GABE GAUTHIER
APX Advisor | Pacific
Gabe Gauthier grew up fifteen minutes from the beach in Buena Park, California. Hockey made no sense to anyone around him. He played anyway.
From rollerblading in a cul-de-sac to leaving home as a teenager to compete in the BCHL with the Chilliwack Chiefs, Gauthier built his game from scratch in a place that gave him no shortcuts. He went on to play four years at the University of Denver, winning back-to-back NCAA Championships in 2004 and 2005. After college he signed with the Los Angeles Kings, played in the NHL, and went on to compete professionally in the AHL and the DEL in Germany.
His networks at APX span the CHL, USHL, NAHL, NCDC, AAA, and European professional hockey. For families whose athlete is looking at a path that goes beyond North America, Gabe has been there.
He is also the author of Beaches to Benches, a memoir about what it actually takes to chase a dream at the highest level and what comes after. It is the kind of perspective that does not come from studying the game. It comes from living every part of it.
"Being a hockey player was everything to me. It defined me. It gave me purpose and identity and a reason to wake up every morning." — Gabe Gauthier, APX Advisor
James Ladouce
APX Advisor | Southern United StatesJames LaDouce came into the 2015-16 season as one of the final cuts from the Lincoln Stars USHL roster. He landed in Minot with the Minotauros in the NAHL. By the end of that season he had broken the single season franchise record for points by a defenseman, won the NAHL Central Division Defenseman of the Year award, and signed a Division I scholarship.
He went on to play four years of NCAA Division I hockey at the University of Alaska Fairbanks.
James advises out of Nebraska and the Central Plains region, with a network that spans multiple NAHL programs and into the USHL. For any athlete navigating that path from junior hockey into the college game, he has walked it firsthand and knows exactly what it takes to turn a setback into a signing.
"Being a final cut does not define where you end up. How you respond to it does."
— James LaDouce, APX Advisor