Whole Athlete Development

Skill gets you there.
Character keeps you there.

Every athlete has a peak. Most never reach it - not because they lacked talent, but because nobody built the person behind the player.

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The Gap Nobody Is Filling

Everybody has the ice covered.
Few have the person covered.

High-level hockey can be an investment of $20,000, $40,000 or even higher per year. Skills coaches, ice time, equipment, travel. And almost zero of those investment dollars go directly toward developing who the athlete actually is.

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Where Is The Player's Identity?

Jersey numbers, stats, logo? Burnout, anxiety, and pressure all lying under the surface unaddressed, showing warning signs in all kinds of unhealthy ways.

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Character Can't Be An Afterthought

Leadership and character development needs to be more than an add-on or a box to check. It needs to be layered into the very DNA of our programs.

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Support When It Matters

Players in critical adolescent years are moving away, experiencing injuries, new homes, sickness, loneliness and so much more. They need continued guidance and life-coaching. The off-ice cries for development and attention as much as the on-ice.

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The Game Ends. The Person Remains.

One day the skates come off for good. The real question is who your athlete becomes when the jersey is hung up - and whether anyone helped shape that person along the way.

The gap in youth sports development isn't on the ice. It's everything that happens in between when the skates come off and before they go back on.

What We Offer

Six Programs. One Mission.

Every offering is designed to develop the whole athlete - mind, character, resilience, and identity. Available for individual players, teams, academies, and full organizations.

The Mental Reset Cohorts

A 4-5 week guided cohort experience helping high-level players decompress, process failure, re-ground themselves, and reconnect with why they play. Online and in-person options available.

Contact For Pricing

Team Workshops

Book your team and/or parents one of our many workshop topics, including resilience, mental health, leadership, technology, team culture, identity, and more. In-person or online options available.

Contact For Pricing

1-on-1 Mentorship

Private sessions for individual players, including goal setting, debriefing, video review, character building, and processing challenges on and off the ice.

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Grief & Loss Care

Support for athletes navigating significant loss, including getting cut, losing a family member, processing divorce, or a season-ending injury.

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Faith & Sport

For faith-driven athletes learning to live out their beliefs in a competitive, high-pressure sports world. Online or in-person connection available - individual and group opportunities.

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Chaplaincy Program

For teams and organizations looking for ongoing spiritual care and community. Our chaplaincy program offers regular mentorship, Bible studies, devotionals, and support for players navigating new cities - including connecting athletes with a local church in their new community.

Contact For Pricing

We individualize all pricing to meet the needs of your player, team, and organization. Contact us to build the right package.

Who Apex Is For

Two Doors. Same Mission.

For Parents, Players & Teams

Your athlete is performing. But are they doing okay?

There's a difference between performing and thriving. If you're watching your kid carry more than they should - and you're not sure where to turn - this is the call to make.

  • Player and/or parent workshops
  • 1-on-1 mentorship
  • Mental Reset group cohorts
  • Grief and loss care packages
  • Faith & Sport programs
Start The Conversation ↗
For Academies & Organizations

You've built a strong program. Let's build strong people.

The academies that stand out aren't just the ones with the best ice. They're the ones whose athletes are known for their character. Apex is the program that makes that happen.

  • Team Mental Reset programs
  • Workshop series for full rosters
  • Crisis and grief response
  • Monthly culture programming
Partner With Apex ↗
Wade Gardiner, Founder of Apex Whole Athlete Development

Wade Gardiner

Founder & Executive Director

780-940-0862
wade@apexathlete.ca

The Story Behind Apex

I've sat with a lot of athletes who had everything - except someone who saw them.

"I've watched talented kids walk away from sport broken. Not from lack of skill. From lack of someone in their corner who cared about who they were becoming."

For 25 years I've been working with kids, youth and families - as a pastor, a coach, a mentor, and a sports organization leader. I founded Encounter Sports, which serves over 3,000 youth and families annually. I've watched the gap in athlete development up close - and I built Apex to fill it.

Founder and Executive Director of Encounter Sports since 2020.
Nearly 30 years coaching and developing kids and youth athletes across hockey, basketball and beyond - from first-timers to high-level competitors.
25+ years in kids, youth and family development - mentoring thousands of young people through some of the most defining seasons of their lives, on and off the field of play.
A father of athletes who has lived every dimension of this journey from the stands, the dressing room, the late-night drives home, and the hard conversations that follow a tough season.

Ready To Develop The Whole Athlete?

Whether you're a parent with a worried heart or an academy director with a vision - the conversation starts with one call.

Book Your Free 30-Minute Call