Birbraer was born in Ust-Kamenogorsk, Kazakhstan, where he lived until the age of 14, and is Jewish.[1][2][3] His family lived under a non-Jewish sounding surname in those years due to severe local anti-Semitism, and he was not told that he was Jewish until his parents decided to move to Israel.[4][5][6] Although he had played schoolboy hockey in Russia, he assumed that he would have to give up the ice when he was 14 and his family immigrated to Israel, until he discovered an indoor rink in Tel Aviv where he played in a junior league. He had lived in Israel for only 8 months when his coach, Paul Rosen, persuaded him to try out for a Canadian league with the result that he spent 2 years playing Tier 2 hockey in Ontario, where Rosen was his legal guardian. He then joined the Ontario Provincial Junior A Hockey League.[5][4]
^"Professional Hockey Review: 2010–11; European Hockey League". Jewish Sports Review. 8 (87): 8–9. September–October 2011.
^Kalchman, Lois (May 5, 2000). "Max Birbraer's strange journey ; Overlooked player now seen as top prospect for NHL". Toronto Star. ProQuest438138965.
^ abFishler, Stan (April 2, 2002). "Max Birbraer: Rising Hockey Star, Aspiring Bar Mitzvah Boy". The Forward. ProQuest367760578.
^ abMaloney, Tom (June 21, 2000). "An unlikely rise to attention for Israeli talent: Max Birbraer's road to an NHL draft: bizarre, made-for-TV story". National Post (Canada). ProQuest329757130.
^"My incredible Journey: Cardiff Devils rising star Max Birbraer served time in jail and the Israeli Army before he was 20, but ice hockey got him through it all". South Wales Echo. October 13, 2010. ProQuest757683768.
^Phillips, Terry (August 25, 2007). "Imports set to provide Devils with a boost". South Wales Echo. ProQuest342227002.
^ abOakes, Michael (August 12, 2014). "Max Birbraer eyes a Grand Slam with Telford". Daily Star (London). ProQuest1552738794.
^Phillips, Terry (December 3, 2009). "Birbraer's double as Devils take a thriller". South Wales Echo. ProQuest342347356.