Defenseman for the Moose Jaw Warriors.
"It was just an awesome experience," he'd told the Moose Jaw Times Herald. "When I heard my name I was just so excited. And relieved.. I almost couldn't make it down the stairs.. I'd been sitting down so long [3.5 hrs], my legs were cramping up."
Nathan was particularly excited because it meant joining teammate Brian Sutherby in the Capitals' farm system: "When it was Washington that called my name... that was just awesome. That's a huge bonus. I'd actually talked to Brian about that possibility before."
"I'm very, very happy right now."
Prior to the draft, Nathan brought a lot of international experience to the table, having played on Team Western at the Under-17 challenge and won a gold Medal for Team Canada's Under-18 Challenge at the 2000 Four Nations Cup. He joined the Warriors at the young age of 16, earning the Moose Jaws Defensive Honors of the Year and Asst Captain awards while being 9th in scoring for WHL rookies with 44 pts (9G,35 A).
The following season, Nathan increased his points to 62 (8G, 54A), earning him not only a possible NHL future with the Caps, but also an invitation to play for Team Canada in the WJC. Given five defensive were returning veterans, there was a slim chance for Paetsch to make the team. Nathan's offensive abilities landed him one of the two open spots. While he was used sparingly, the experience was a dream come true:
"It was unbelievable from the start to finish, one of the best experiences of my life," he said while traveling home to Leroy, SK from the WJC. "I didn't play a ton, but going in I knew that was how it was going to be just because of how much experience the team had on defense. I was the seventh defenseman, the guy who wasn't even supposed to make the team, so it was great just to have a chance to play the little I did."
Nathan did have one particularly memorable moment, during Canada's fourth round-robin game vs. Finland. While paired with Medicine Hat's Jay Bouwmeester, he dove and knocked down a shot while goaltender Olivier Michaud was out of the net. He certainly didn't mind playing the role of team 'cheerleader,' particularly during the final game vs. Russia:
"I was just pounding guys on the back and doing whatever I could to keep them going," he said. "It was such an amazing game and to be a part of it even though I didn't play a lot is hard to put into words." Nathan also looks forward to returning to the team as one of three veterans next year.
In the WHL, Nathan has struggled this season along with the Warriors, posting 31 pts (11G, 20A) in 43 games. While these are solid offensive numbers, a glaring statistic is his -11+/- rating. Even though the Tribe started with an 0-6 record (including a 7-1 loss to Regina and later a 10-0 spanking by Brandon), this indicates that another year anchoring the powerplay -where he collects most of his points- and lots of ice time on the blueline will provide much-needed experience for Nathan. Hockeysfuture.com sites him as the Caps' next Calle Johannson, which are pretty large shoes to fill, so it should be no surprise if Paetsch also spends a few years seasoning, particularly adding more of a physical element to his game, in Portland before he sees any full-time NHL action.
Born: March 30, 1983 in Humbolt, SK
Nickname: I/O's - the NSync Boy
Family: the youngest of 2, Nathan's sister is 4yrs older than him.
Favorite team/player: Edmonton Oilers, Rob Blake (thanks Nathan - at least Brian pretends to like the Caps)
Career Highlight: his first NHL exhibition game (a 5-1 loss to the Flyers; Nathan looked like he was going to throw up before the game, but later nicely broke up a 2-on-1)
Off-Ice Inspirations: Nathan has fundraised for the Heart and Stroke Foundation.
What makes him special: Nathan looks a lot like Dubs' little brother.. if she had one.
Quotable quotes:
On whether anyone had ever told him he looks like Lance from NSync: "Umm.. no.." (insert furious blushing here) "Thank God Suds didn't hear you say that."
On his 4-goal game that broke the Warriors scoring slump [a 7-1 win over the East Conf.-leading Swift Current Broncos]: "It's about time."
Moose Jaw Warriors (team site)
Moose Jaw Times Herald (local news)
Hockeysfuture.com (prospect site)
faceoff.com (WHL section)
January: Brian Sutherby