MEET THE API TEAM
The passionate people behind hockey's most innovative analytics platform.
Erik Cagnina
Founder and CEO
Erik and his wife have lived in Columbus, Ohio for the last 25 years after growing up in Cleveland. He has 30+ years of experience as a finance professional and has spent the last 20 years working for the Ohio Public Employee Retirement System as a fixed-income portfolio manager specializing in securitized debt.
Erik is a huge fan of his hometown Blue Jackets and Crew as well as the Cleveland Guardindians, Browns, and Cavs. He plays adult league hockey, is a lifelong runner and cyclist, and manages multiple fantasy baseball and football teams. He also enjoys traveling, cooking, and reading.
Erik holds a BS in Finance from Miami (OH) University, an MBA from Weatherhead School of Business, and is a CFA charterholder.
Shawn Rogers
Business Operations
Shawn lives in Daytona Beach, Florida with his wife and two adopted retired racing greyhounds. His business career included 20 years at NASCAR in Florida and North Carolina leading business operations and technology development. Key technological innovations created and led by Shawn include the Air Titan track drying system, the Automated Pit Road Officiating System and the Optical Inspection Station. After NASCAR Shawn led multiple high performance motorsports companies including Kooks Headers and Exhaust and Schultz Engineered Products.
Shawn is an avid sports viewing fan and enjoys participating in many sports as a participant. Shawn holds a BSBA in Economics from the University of Florida and an MBA from the University of Central Florida.
Max Warnecke
Sales and Marketing
Max Warnecke is a service professional, entrepreneur, and former NCAA Division I athlete. As a member of Troy University’s Track & Field program he competed in javelin and long jump. After college Max went on to work regional sales in New York City for Prism Medical Products, honing his data driven sales approach.
Warnecke founded and operates his own commercial pool maintenance business and maintains a strong foundation in environmental science and data-driven research. His fieldwork and data analysis in freshwater mussel population surveys identified critically endangered species previously unreported in Alabama’s waterways. Max combines athletic discipline, entrepreneurial initiative, and analytical skills to bring a rare mix of resilience, technical knowledge, and problem-solving to our team at API.
Marek Taškár
Research and Analytics
Marek is Slovakia, javelin thrower on international and NCAA Division I level, currently pursuing a doctoral degree at Clemson University, where he is deeply engaged in advanced academic research. With an avid passion for hockey, he seamlessly integrates his scholarly expertise with his enthusiasm for the sport. Marek’s research focuses on leveraging data analytics to generate actionable insights, which he applies to enhance in-game strategies for coaching staff, thereby contributing significantly to the team’s performance and tactical development.
Mario Cubinek
Consultant for European Affairs
Mario lives in Nitra, Slovakia. Alongside his long-term career in gastronomy business, he has been hockey enthusiast for a long time and been consulting for the past three years as a consultant for European affairs with Athletic Performance Insight. He completed high school in Information Systems and Services and earned his bachelor’s degree at Constantine the Philosopher University in Nitra.
In his free time, he is passionate about sports and modern technologies, which he naturally integrates into his professional work.