TRADE: Rockets acquire forward Hayden Paupanekis and five draft picks from Spokane Chiefs for forward Andrew Cristall
The Kelowna Rockets announced today that they have acquired forward 2007-born forward Hayden Paupanekis, two first round selections in 2025 and 2027, a second round pick in 2026, a third round pick in 2025 and a 2026 sixth round selection in the WHL Prospects Draft from the Spokane Chiefs in exchange for 2005-born forward Andrew Cristall.
“First of all, he’s one of the best players that’s ever played for the Rockets. This was probably Lorne Frey’s last big pick for us and what a player he turned out to be,” said Rockets President and General Manager Bruce Hamilton about Cristall.
“He’s going to go on and have a great career. He sadly didn’t get the chance for the World Junior team and unfortunately, he’s going to come up a little short for the all-time points record for our organization, but he was a solid, solid player for us and more importantly, just a wonderful young man that we were lucky to have here for four years. He’s drafted and signed by Washington, so he’ll be playing professionally next year so it was an opportunity for us to acquire a lot of assets.”
But with Andrew, I can’t remember a player other than maybe Jamie Benn or Leon Draisaitl that controlled the game like he did. So, it’s a loss for our team but he gets the chance to play for the Memorial Cup this year with Spokane and he gives them a big offensive boost.”
“We wish Andrew all the best and thank him for his contributions both on and off the ice to the Rockets organization.”
Cristall was Kelowna’s first selection at eighth overall in the 2020 WHL Prospects Draft. Since being drafted by the Rockets, Cristall has played in 219 regular season games along with 20 playoff games. He’s recorded 135 goals, 205 assists for 340 points and a career plus/minus of plus 84. He’s also added five goals and 20 points in 20 postseason games.
Cristall ranks second all-time in Rockets history in both career points and assists behind Brett McLean, while also ranking first in team history amongst players who have played more than 100 games with a point-per-game average of 1.55. He was also named the Rockets Top Scorer last season while also being named the Most Valuable Player at the conclusion of the 2022-23 season.
Over the course of this season, Cristall has been one of the top point producers in the Western Hockey League since being returned from the Washington Capitals of the NHL. The second-round property of the Capitals has played in 28 games this season, scoring 26 goals while adding 34 assists which ranks him within the top five of WHL leading scorers. Cristall also has a +22.
Internationally, Cristall has represented Canada on two separate occasions. He won bronze with Canada at the 2022-23 Under-18 Hockey Championships in the spring while also winning gold with Canada at the 2022-23 Hlinka-Gretzky Cup, where he tallied two goals and six points in seven games.
Paupanekis is in his second full season in the Western Hockey League, suiting up in 39 games this season where he’s scored 11 goals and added 13 assists for 24 points. The 17-year-old from Winnipeg, Manitoba has played in 101 regular season games, scoring 21 goals and 44 points. He’s also scored two goals in four playoff games.
“We got a great young player (Paupanekis) coming back,” Hamilton said about the newest acquisition.
“We got the opportunity to help stock the cupboard with these draft picks that will allow us the chance to be active in the spring and summer. Paupanekis will play in our top six, he’s a big guy out Winnipeg that we are really excited about getting. He’s the player we wanted in the trade, and I think he and the picks we got are going to translate into real good players for us in the near future.”
Kelowna will now prepare for a pair of games this weekend when they host the Prince George Cougars on January 10th before travelling to Vancouver the following evening to take on the Vancouver Giants. Puck drop for Friday’s home game will go at 7:05 PM.
Tickets can be purchased online at selectyourtickets.com, by calling Select Your Tickets at 250-762-5050 or by visiting the Select Your Tickets box office at the Prospera Place box office. The box office is open 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Monday through Friday and opens at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday home game days.
