Woodside targets backup goalie job
When Carter Woodside answered his phone, it didn’t take long to realize that opportunity was knocking.
The 17-year-old goaltender was informed on Aug. 20 that the Regina Pats had acquired his WHL rights from the Kootenay Ice for a conditional eighth-round pick in the 2019 bantam draft.
After the initial “shock” wore off, Woodside recognized that the move was a good thing for his career.
“At first I was kind of: ‘Is this real?’ ” he recalled. “And then it kind of sunk in after a while. I was excited for the opportunity.”
Woodside was brought in to compete for Regina’s vacant backup job behind Max Paddock.
At the very least he’s expected to give the team some depth at a key position and hopefully push for a full-time job down the road.
“There were quite a few guys in Kootenay that were already signed so when I heard the news I was pretty excited,” said Woodside, who’s competing with veteran Kyle Dumba and undrafted rookie Matthew Pesenti for Regina’s No. 2 job.
“That’s why I came here. It was my goal to hopefully back up Max. I’m not sure how it’s going to go or if it’s going to happen or what they’re thinking, but I’ll try and put my best foot forward and see what happens.”
Woodside took the next logical step Friday when he signed a standard WHL player agreement with Regina. That opens the door for him to see action in the WHL pre-season, which commenced Friday night against the Swift Current Broncos.
The Pats will also play host to the Moose Jaw Warriors on Saturday (7 p.m., Brandt Centre).
“We need to see these guys in games and see how they do and how they compete against teams other than ourselves,” said head coach Dave Struch.
“He’s in a good position, as all of these guys are. All we ask is these guys do their best and the rest will take care of itself.”
Woodside spent last season with the midget AAA Prince Albert Mintos, going 15-5-0 with a 2.53 GAA and a .900 save percentage. If he doesn’t earn a spot in Regina, he could rejoin the Mintos for his final season of midget eligibility or perhaps join the Humboldt Broncos, who hold his junior A rights.
Ironically, the Broncos called up Woodside for a handful of SJHL games last season while Jacob Wassermann was serving as an emergency backup with the Pats.
Wassermann had been expected to earn Regina’s No. 2 job this season but he was paralyzed from the waist down in the Broncos’ bus crash on April 6.
A total of 16 people lost their lives in the accident, among them starting goalie Parker Tobin.
Woodside served as his backup for a few games and even saw some mop-up duty in one contest.
“It was pretty surreal when I heard (about the accident),” said Woodside. “I saw it on TV. I didn’t believe it at first. I knew all of them. I wasn’t super close to any of them but it still hit home, obviously. Looking back on it, it’s still pretty fresh.”
Although his time with the club was brief, Woodside has great things to say about former head coach and GM Darcy Haugan, who was one of the victims in the crash.
“Him and (assistant) Mark Cross were great guys, probably the best coaches I’ve been a part of other than my Mintos coach (Ken Morrison),” said Woodside.
“They had kind of the same traits where they give respect if you earn it. (They’re) players’ coaches.”
Since he went to camp with the Pats instead of the Broncos this year, Woodside isn’t sure where he stands on the SJHL club’s depth chart or if he might still be in the plans.
Given all that has happened in Humboldt, he’s not sure what it would be like to go back.
“Maybe at the beginning (it would be strange),” added the native of Asquith.
“But I feel like the team this year is going to be playing for all those guys.
“It would be pretty special to be a part of that too.”