With their sixth selection at the 2021 NHL Entry Draft, the Edmonton Oilers have drafted (D) Maximus Wanner with the 212th overall pick.
With their only pick in the seventh round, the Edmonton Oilers chose right-shot defenceman Max Wanner from the Moose Jaw Warriors. Wanner, a native of Estevan, Saskatchewan, has spent the past two years with the Moose Jaw Warriors U18 AAA before making the full-time jump to the Western Hockey League this past season. Described as a shutdown player with good athleticism, the 6’3” defender will be looking to take the next step in his career in his first full season with the Moose Jaw Warriors. A long-term project to be sure, Wanner will spend at least another year in the WHL, which will provide him with some much-needed time for development before he makes the leap to the next level.
In 17 games played with the Warriors in 2021, Wanner registered no goals and four assists to go along with 12 PIMs and a +2 rating.
WHO IS MAX WANNER?
Now that we know Wanner is the sixth pick for the Oilers at this year’s draft, I scoured the Internet to scrape together what I could about the type of player he is to try so that we all have a better idea of what we have here:
“Defenseman Max Wanner of the Moose Jaw Warriors, who played much of his minor hockey in Estevan before moving to Moose Jaw to play for several higher level teams, has been ranked 223rd among North American Skaters. Wanner just finished his second abbreviated season with the Warriors.
The 6-foot-3 181-pound defenseman played for both the Warriors and the AAA Warriors this year. He put up four goals and an assist in just five games for the AAA Warriors before the WHL season began. Then, in 17 games in the WHL hub city in Regina, he had four assists, 12 PIM, and finished plus-two.
After finishing out his U15 AA career in Estevan, Wanner moved to the Moose Jaw-based Prairie Hockey Academy, where he played two seasons before joining the AAA Warriors in 2019-20. He was a standout in the AAA ranks with 22 points in 35 games in his first regular season, eight points in eight playoff games, and six points in four games at the prestigious Macs Tournament.
That same season, he got his first taste of two levels of junior hockey, including a game with the Estevan Bruins. He also played five games with the WHL’s Warriors that season, putting up an assist.” -Discover Estevan
PRE-DRAFT RANKINGS
WANNER’S CAREER SO FAR
| SEASON | TEAM | LEAGUE | GP | G | A | TP | PIM | +/- | PGP | G | A | TP | PIM | +/- |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2015-16 | Estevan Bruins U15 AA | SAAHL U15 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||||||
2016-17 | Estevan Bruins U15 AA | SAAHL U15 | 30 | 4 | 7 | 11 | 41 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
2017-18 | Prairie Hockey Academy U16 Prep | Independent Jr | 39 | 9 | 16 | 25 | 52 | |||||||
2018-19 | Prairie Hockey Academy | CSSHL U16 | 35 | 6 | 8 | 14 | 26 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | ||
2019-20 | Moose Jaw Warriors U18 AAA | SMAAAHL | 35 | 5 | 17 | 22 | 28 | 6 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 2 | ||
Moose Jaw Warriors | WHL | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |||||||
Estevan Bruins | SJHL | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||||||
2020-21 | Moose Jaw Warriors U18 AAA | SMAAAHL | 5 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 4 | |||||||
Moose Jaw Warriors | WHL | 17 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 12 | 2 |
