Hockey community honoring teen goalie who died from cancer
Champlin Park Rebels hockey teams will be playing for much more than wins this season as they dedicate their season to a teammate gone too soon.
Not long before his passing, the boy’s hockey team shared a celebratory post on social media for Max Akerson’s 16th birthday. Three days later, on Tuesday, the team posted a tribute for the teen who was set to be a goalie for the Rebels.
Akerson died from liver cancer.
“It’s been pretty hard for all of us, I think we’ve been handling it in our own way,” Landon Nguyen, who played hockey with Akerson for years, said.
“Max has always been a good friend, kind, funny, [his] laugh was contagious, not a single thing wrong with him … [he] didn’t deserve it,” Nguyen added.
Nguyen said they’re using #playformax this season.
Also, a memorial has been growing outside the Champlin Ice Forum and families have been leaving a hockey stick outside — some sharing posts on social media with #sticksoutformax.
The Rebels’ Dec. 5 rivalry game against the Andover Huskies at the Ice Forum will be an ‘orange out’ in honor of Max, where people are asked to wear orange.