EDMONTON, AB – ‘His name is Maximus Decimus Wanner, and he will have his vengeance – in this season or the next.’
Only two of those names are his real ones, but if Edmonton’s 2021 seventh-round selection were to swap places with actor Russell Crowe in the 2000 blockbuster film ‘Gladiator’, you’d still be plenty entertained.
“I kind of just leave it up to whomever. I like Maximus or Max,” he said. “I’ve got a lot of nicknames, but Maximus is a fun name, so I don't mind.
“I think [my parents] wanted to name me Maximillian, but maybe they just saw ‘Gladiator’ one too many times.”
The Moose Jaw Warriors blueliner was born almost three years after the film’s release but has the name to match his dominant defence-first approach that’s allowed him to ascend from a late-round selection in 2021 to prime-prospect status within the Oilers organization.
“Right now, I think it's just my ability to play defence, lock the game down and be a physical presence out there,” Wanner said when describing his on-ice identity. “But also, move the puck quickly to get it into the forwards' hands.
“Everybody wants to play both sides, but I'm a defensive defenseman first and I make a pass and I join the rush when it's necessary. It's not my go-to and I would say I am more defensive than offensive, but I can play both.”