What the NHL Taught Me About Building Companies

I grew up in Toronto with hockey at the centre of everything. Most of my time was spent at the rink, working to become the best hockey player I could possibly be. I played defence through junior, eventually skating in the OHL with the Owen Sound Attack, Oshawa Generals, and London Knights.

In 2005, I heard my name, Trevor Koverko, called at the NHL Draft by the New York Rangers. That moment felt like the payoff for years of work.

Years later, after my hockey career ended, I found myself building companies in very different environments. What stayed consistent from hockey through to entrepreneurship were the principles I learned early on.

‍

Competing for Your Spot Never Stops

In junior hockey, nothing is guaranteed. You’re constantly competing for ice time, for trust from coaches, and for progression to the next level. Even after being drafted, you still have to prove yourself every day.

That mindset carried directly into business. After leaving hockey, I started my first company, eProf. It didn’t work. There wasn’t a clear product market fit, and I didn’t yet understand how to build a company properly.

What hockey had already taught me was how to respond to that. You don’t get to sit out after a bad game. You reset and go again.

‍

Preparation Is What Gives You Confidence

As a defenceman, you rely heavily on reading the play. If you hesitate, you’re already behind. Preparation helps you act faster.

When I started my second company, a VR project focused on real estate visualization, I approached things differently. I had seen the Oculus Rift early and believed there was a real use case for it. We built quickly and got traction, even helping sell a high-end unit using the product.

That company was eventually acquired by a Canadian private equity group. It was my first real win. Preparation wasn’t just about research. It involved understanding timing, opportunity, and execution.

‍

Hockey forces quick decisions. You don’t have time to calculate every option.

That became even more relevant when I got involved in crypto early. Around 2012, I started buying Bitcoin. At that point, there was very little clarity on how the space would evolve.

Later, in 2017, I co-founded Polymath. The idea was to bring securities onto blockchain infrastructure in a compliant way. It wasn’t a widely accepted concept at the time. There were more questions than answers.

You make decisions based on conviction and adjust as things develop.

‍

Team Dynamics Drive Outcomes

The best teams I played on weren’t always the most skilled. They were the most cohesive. Everyone understood their role.

That translated directly into building companies. At all of my startups, the quality of the team has always been one of the biggest factors in execution.

You can’t build anything meaningful alone. The ability to work with others, trust them, and move in the same direction matters more than individual output.

‍

Setbacks Are Part of the Process

In 2011, my hockey career ended abruptly after a serious car accident. It forced a complete shift in direction. I had no other choice but to figure out what came next.

I returned to school at the Ivey Business School and began focusing on business and technology. That period required a different kind of discipline, though the foundation from hockey helped.

In startups, setbacks are constant. My first company failed. Later projects required iteration. Even with Polymath, building in a new category meant working through uncertainty and changing conditions.

You get used to adjusting and continuing forward.

‍

Discipline Compounds Over Time

Hockey is built on routine. Training, practice, repetition. Progress comes gradually.

That same pattern shows up in business. Building a successful company takes years of effort. The same applies to what we’re doing now with my latest startup, Sapien, focused on building a decentralized data marketplace for AI.

There are no shortcuts. Consistency compounds.

‍

You Carry the Same Mindset Into Different Arenas

From the outside, when people read about Trevor Koverko going from NHL prospect to entrepreneur, it may seem like a major change. But for me, it felt more like applying the same approach in a different setting.

Compete daily. Prepare properly. Work with strong teams. Stay steady under pressure. Keep going when things don’t work.

Those principles started on the ice and still apply today.

‍