Pats new defenceman has one tall story to tell
For John Paddock, Aaron Hyman was a trade-deadline pickup in more ways than one.
Not long after consummating the deal, the Regina Pats’ head coach and general manager met the 19-year-old defenceman at the airport.
“I was actually pretty shocked,” said Hyman, who was acquired from the Seattle Thunderbirds on Jan. 10. “It’s not every team that sends their head coach to pick you up, so that was a pretty cool thing to see . ... It says a lot about his character and who he is as a person.”
After Paddock and the six-footfive, 221-pound Hyman left the terminal, they headed for his new billet home.
“There was a little bit of joking, because he’s so tall and the room he spends most of his time in is not really for taller people,” Paddock noted.
“There’s a couple of beams in my basement that are a little bit lower than 6-5,” Hyman added. “I’d be walking around, just to get used to it, and I’d bonk my head here and there.
“It’s all good now. My billet mom put up these neon sticky-pad notes on some of the beams so I can see if I’m going to run into them.
“The whole billet situation has worked out really well. I love it here. It has been great so far.”
Hyman has every reason to enjoy Regina. After all, he is the only member of the current Pats team who has celebrated a league championship at the Brandt Centre.
On May 15, Hyman and Keegan Kolesar drew assists on Alexander True’s overtime goal, which gave Seattle a 4-3 victory over the host Pats and ended the WHL final in six games.
“I was skating to the bench, actually, and saw it go in,” Hyman recalled. “I just blacked out after that.”
Even so, he has precise, cherished memories of that evening at the Brandt Centre.
“I’ll never forget that far corner over there, where I hoisted the Ed Chynoweth Cup,” Hyman said, pointing to the east side of the ice surface.
“That was a pretty special moment . ... I’ve got really good memories here, but Regina wasn’t an easy team to beat.”
Hyman, a fourth-year WHLer, spent 1½ seasons with his hometown Calgary Hitmen before being traded to Seattle. He had one goal, six assists and 25 penalty minutes in 26 games with the 2017-18 Thunderbirds before being traded to Regina for defenceman Owen Williams, 17, and a second-round pick in the 2019 bantam draft.
“Russ (Farwell, Seattle’s GM) described him as a big guy who can move around the ice pretty well,” Paddock said before Wednesday’s home date with the Saskatoon Blades. “He’s not a real physical player, but no physicalness bothers him, which is exactly what it is. He can play against the other team’s best players so, to me, that’s a pretty good player.”
The deal ensured that Hyman will play in his second consecutive Memorial Cup. The Pats are the host team for the 2018 CHL championship tournament (May 17-27, Brandt Centre).
“When I found out I was traded here, I was really happy,” Hyman said. “They have a good squad here and another opportunity to win the championship and hopefully a Memorial Cup.”