Raiders Max Paddock makes a save against his hometown Brandon Wheat Kings' and forward Ridly Greig on April 5. (Keith Hershmiller/WHL)

By Jeff D’Andrea

Paddock heads east

Max joins the Axemen

Jun 10, 2021 | 11:03 AM

A couple months after playing his final WHL game with the Prince Albert Raiders, Max Paddock has found a new hockey home.

The Acadia Axemen announced Paddock’s commitment on Thursday morning on their Twitter account. The Axemen are a USports team from Acadia University in Wolfville, N.S.

Paddock has a number of connections to the Axemen, and said they are some of the biggest reasons why he joined the team.

“For me, the decision was pretty easy when Burnsy [Acadia head coach Darren Burns] reached out to me; first off, my cousin Travis Young played for the Axemen a while back and he had nothing but good things to say about the program. Also knowing that Jordy Stallard, another Brandon, Manitoba native, will help make the transition out east a lot smoother,” Paddock said in the Axemen’s announcement.

Like Paddock, Stallard graduated from the Raiders as an overager. Stallard completed his junior season with the Axemen. The Axemen also feature Christopher Lake’s Loch Morrison, who also played for the Raiders during his WHL career.

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“We believe we have added one of the best goalies in the Canadian Hockey League in Max. He had a great year to finish his junior career and has been a player who has excellent memorial cup experience, carrying the ball when Regina hosted the pressure-filled tournament,” Burns said in a statement. “He comes from an excellent hockey background in terms of family pedigree and has a great reputation as a person and teammate. Everyone knows the goaltending position is the most important in hockey. Max is a major positive addition for our program.”

After the Raiders acquired Paddock at the trade deadline in the 2019-20 season, Paddock played in 34 games. He posted a 13-3-1-2 record with .935 save percentage and 1.67 goals-against average. This season in the Hub Centre in Regina, Paddock had a 7-6-1 record with a .903 save percentage and 2.87 goals-against average.

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panews@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @princealbertnow