Image by Jim Macris. All Rights Reserved
Nicholas credits his parents for having the greatest influence on him as a player saying “they have always supported me no matter the circumstances.”
He also recognizes the many coaches over the years but makes notable mention of Tomas Kapusta, Mathieu Schneider and Sandy Gasseau.
Bantam ‘major’ Years
– 2015 USHL ‘Development Series’ invitee
– BCHL, USHL & NAHL tryout camps invitee
– California selection Western Regional High Performance Camp
– Overtime game winning goal captures the inaugural “Richmond Bantam Division Tier 1 Tournament” Title and a team perfect 5 & 0 record
– Top 3 in overall points
– Selected Alternate Team Caption
– Continued charitable work threw leftlegfirst
Peewee Years
Following the squirt years Nicholas switched positions to forward from defense, settling on right wing; a position he now calls his natural position.
Starting his pewee year with a new club, Nicholas changed his jersey number to 13 after another of his idols Michael Cammalleri
In his first season as a forward, Nicholas played 15 regular season games and recorded 21 points. He was ranked 28th overall in SCAHA amongst 99/00 birth year players and led his team in goals and points. He was named Alternate Team Caption that season.
In his Major year Nicholas joined the AAA team. Shortly after tryouts, tragedy struck the family when his younger brother was diagnosed with Lupus; a chronic inflammatory disease that occurs when your body’s immune system attacks your own tissues and organs. Taking a page from his idol Dustin Brown and his fundraising work with KaBOOM and other notable charities, Nicholas would start leftlegfirst; a fundraising campaign for Pediatric Lupus Research.
Squirt Years
His first two seasons were marked as a defense man. Hoping to model his playing style after Dustin Brown, he selected 23 as a jersey number. He ended his squirt season playing for Sandy Gasseau and Mathieu Schneider.