• HOME
  • NHL Teams
    • Atlantic Division
      • Boston Bruins
      • Buffalo Sabres
      • Detroit Red Wings
      • Florida Panthers
      • Montreal Canadiens
      • Ottawa Senators
      • Tampa Bay Lightning
      • Toronto Maple Leafs
    • Metropolitan Division
      • Carolina Hurricanes
      • Columbus Blue Jackets
      • New Jersey Devils
      • New York Islanders
      • New York Rangers
      • Philadelphia Flyers
      • Pittsburgh Penguins
      • Washington Capitals
    • Central Division
      • Chicago Blackhawks
      • Colorado Avalanche
      • Dallas Stars
      • Minnesota Wild
      • Nashville Predators
      • St. Louis Blues
      • Winnipeg Jets
    • Pacific Division
      • Anaheim Ducks
      • Arizona Coyotes
      • Calgary Flames
      • Edmonton Oilers
      • Los Angeles Kings
      • San Jose Sharks
      • Seattle NHL
      • Vancouver Canucks
      • Vegas Golden Knights
  • NHL Rumors
  • NHL Prospects
  • Fantasy Hockey
  • THW Archives
  • More…
    • Columns
    • NWHL
    • Women’s Hockey
    • Other Leagues
    • Long Read
    • NHL Entry Draft
    • Books
    • NHL History
  • Log in
The Hockey Writers
  • Site Index
  • NHL Salary Caps
  • Hockey 101: A Beginner’s Guide
  • Join Our Team
  • Free Newsletter
  • Store
  • Log in
The Hockey Writers
  • HOME
  • NHL Teams
    • Atlantic Division
      • Boston Bruins
      • Buffalo Sabres
      • Detroit Red Wings
      • Florida Panthers
      • Montreal Canadiens
      • Ottawa Senators
      • Tampa Bay Lightning
      • Toronto Maple Leafs
    • Metropolitan Division
      • Carolina Hurricanes
      • Columbus Blue Jackets
      • New Jersey Devils
      • New York Islanders
      • New York Rangers
      • Philadelphia Flyers
      • Pittsburgh Penguins
      • Washington Capitals
    • Central Division
      • Chicago Blackhawks
      • Colorado Avalanche
      • Dallas Stars
      • Minnesota Wild
      • Nashville Predators
      • St. Louis Blues
      • Winnipeg Jets
    • Pacific Division
      • Anaheim Ducks
      • Arizona Coyotes
      • Calgary Flames
      • Edmonton Oilers
      • Los Angeles Kings
      • San Jose Sharks
      • Seattle NHL
      • Vancouver Canucks
      • Vegas Golden Knights
  • NHL Rumors
  • NHL Prospects
  • Fantasy Hockey
  • THW Archives
  • More…
    • Columns
    • NWHL
    • Women’s Hockey
    • Other Leagues
    • Long Read
    • NHL Entry Draft
    • Books
    • NHL History
Home
Other Leagues
AHL
Stockton Heat

Flames Prospect Josh Healey Delivers Hits Both on and Off the Ice

By Earl Jessiman February 16th, 2019

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn WhatsApp

Josh Healey is both a professional hockey player and an entrepreneur who remembers the challenges he faced when he was younger and looking for direction in his hockey career. Because he was too small to be considered a serious prospect for the WHL, he decided to play in the Alberta Junior Hockey League (AJHL) for the Sherwood Park Crusaders, where he quickly grew and developed a reputation as a hard-hitting defenceman.

Healey remembers feeling confused and unsure about his options and who he should trust as an advisor for his hockey career when a few player agents approached him at the end of his junior career. He decided to accept an offer to attend Ohio State University where his reputation as a physical player continued while he anchored the OSU blue line for four seasons.

Josh Healey OSU

Josh Healey OSU (Courtesy Brianna O’Mara)

While pursuing his finance degree, he decided that he wanted to develop an app but was unsure what purpose it should serve. It was during his first season as a professional player with the Calgary Flames’ AHL affiliate Stockton Heat that he decided the app would be a platform to start a fund called The Sports Aux Player Fund, to help give kids the opportunity to play hockey. The challenge was how to get funding to support the cause. Hence the genesis of The Sports Aux App.

Drawing on Past Experience

It was a trip to a local sports store with his mother, Pam, that proved to be a tipping point for Healey. He remembers walking into the local Source for Sports store in Edmonton and being shocked by the price of hockey sticks: “The sticks were priced at $320 which was outrageous. There had to be a way I could help out kids (financially) that want to play, but their parents can’t afford it,” he said.

Healey decided to draw on his experience with player agents to develop a funding source. The strategy he decided upon was to build a library of testimonials from players about their agents and their coaches. “I saw a need to help players and parents with decisions regarding agents and coaches and tying that into a source of funds to help kids that don’t have the resources to play the game. There is nothing out there on agents or coaches that provide verified opinions from current and past players.”

Josh Healey Stockton Heat

Josh Healey Stockton Heat (Courtesy Jack Lima)

Healey is convinced that today’s elite players and their families will welcome a digital source of information about player agent representation. The initial funding for the development of the new app was the signing bonus he received from the Calgary Flames.

Healey’s app will also serve as a source of player information for scouts, coaches, agents and data-hungry fans on one platform. Players are encouraged to register their profiles on the site with their statistics updated daily by the eliteprospects.com website. Players are asked to answer a series of questions about their past and present coaches and agents with an audit committee in charge of the integrity of the content posted on the site.

Hard-Hitting Accountability and Transparency

The Sports Aux App (Agents Page)

Where the site is innovative is that it provides both accountability and transparency regarding how players rate their coaches and agents on job performance. In the past, players looking for professional career advice were forced to find an agent on their own, usually dependent upon referrals from other players.

The Sports Aux App asks players to provide anonymous reviews of these hockey professionals on performance, reliability, communication (agents), and administration (coaches). The agents and scouts receive a score on a scale of 1-10, and the players are encouraged to offer comments. Healey wasn’t sure what to expect at first. “As far as comments were concerned, many reviews about agents and coaches have been positive, which will benefit them in the eyes of players that are looking for advice.”

According to Healey, the app has already attracted 430-440 verified players and 600-700 agents, coaches and fans since its inauguration on Jan. 23, 2019. “We are focusing on increasing our user base, and then we will look at ways to monetize the venture and allow us to create the fund to help kids in need. We want to build a large library of player views about agents and coaches and to sell access to that information possibly. That may take the form of a subscription service; whether that is monthly or yearly, we will work that out.”

What Does The Future Hold?

When asked about the future of the app, Healey was as aggressive with his vision as he is when he competes for the Heat. “We are looking at adding warm-up, cool-down, and stickhandling videos for both players and goalies. We want to establish partnerships with development leagues (AHL, NCAA, USHL, CHL) so teams can purchase the right to allow their players access to the app to help with their training and development. We want to be where everything or anything related to hockey is available.”

    Josh Healey Entrepreneur

Healey’s value proposition to players and their parents is apparent:

I would hope that my app would help young players and parents make more informed decisions about their hockey careers and opportunities. We want to be a one-stop shop for players that don’t have access to the information they need or the resources to play the game.

I have never seen Josh play. Following our telephone interview, I came across a Twitter posting entitled “Wow. Does that Josh Healey kid ever hit hard”. After seeing the highlight video, I would put my money on Josh that The Sports Aux App will be a big hit with players, parents, and stakeholders in the hockey industry.

  • Tags
  • Business of Hockey
  • Josh Healey
Facebook Twitter LinkedIn WhatsApp

Facebook Comments

Editor’s Picks
Martin St. Louis, the Little Big Man

Martin St. Louis, the Little Big Man

9368
'Mr. Hockey' Gordie Howe

'Mr. Hockey' Gordie Howe

9830
Recent Posts
Dec 11th 9:35 AM
Long Read

Soaring High: Windsor Spitfires’ All-Decade Team (2010-19)

Dec 11th 9:20 AM
Prospects

2020 WJC Team Sweden Preview

Dec 11th 9:05 AM
Dallas Stars

Top Stars Getting Outshined by Unsung Heroes in Dallas

Dec 11th 8:50 AM
Columbus Blue Jackets

Blue Jackets’ Defensive Depth Offers Deadline Options

Dec 11th 8:35 AM
Prospects

2020 World Juniors Camp Invites by NHL Team

Dec 11th 12:59 AM
Chicago Blackhawks

Fleury Returns, Leads Vegas to 5-1 Win over Blackhawks

Dec 11th 12:35 AM
Toronto Maple Leafs

Tavares Scores Twice, Andersen Comes up Big in Third as Leafs Beat Canucks

Dec 10th 11:59 PM
Arizona Coyotes

Flames’ Win Streak at 6 Games with 5-2 Win over Coyotes

Dec 10th 11:47 PM
Carolina Hurricanes

Sebastian Aho Scores Twice, Hurricanes Beat Oilers 6-3

Dec 10th 11:45 PM
Detroit Red Wings

Blake Wheeler Sparks Offence, Jets Hand Red Wings 12th Straight Loss

Stay in Touch
Contact Us

Via our Newsletters
RSS Feeds

Privacy Statement

Our Partners
HFBoards

About THW…

Founded in 2009, The Hockey Writers is a premier destination for news and information on everything hockey. Updated daily with news and features from over 130 writers worldwide. Over 2 million monthly readers now come to THW for their hockey fix.

Join over 18 000 Subscribers of our free bi-weekly Newsletter.

© The Hockey Writers 2018. All rights reserved.
logo
  • HOME
  • Hockey Headlines
  • NHL Rumors
  • Atlantic Division
    • Boston Bruins
    • Buffalo Sabres
    • Detroit Red Wings
    • Florida Panthers
    • Montreal Canadiens
    • Ottawa Senators
    • Tampa Bay Lightning
    • Toronto Maple Leafs
  • Metropolitan Division
    • Carolina Hurricanes
    • Columbus Blue Jackets
    • New Jersey Devils
    • New York Islanders
    • New York Rangers
    • Philadelphia Flyers
    • Pittsburgh Penguins
    • Washington Capitals
  • Central Division
    • Chicago Blackhawks
    • Colorado Avalanche
    • Dallas Stars
    • Minnesota Wild
    • Nashville Predators
    • St Louis Blues
    • Winnipeg Jets
  • Pacific Division
    • Anaheim Ducks
    • Arizona Coyotes
    • Calgary Flames
    • Edmonton Oilers
    • Los Angeles Kings
    • San Jose Sharks
    • Seattle NHL
    • Vegas Golden Knights
    • Vancouver Canucks
  • Store
  • The THW Archives
  • Prospects
  • The Goalie Page
  • NHL Salary Cap Information
  • Join Our Team
  • Search THW