Victoria Royals make big swing at head of Jan. 9 swap cut-of between teams by bringing in two 20-year-old forwards
The makings are there for another chaotic WHL trade deadline.
The 2023 deadline felt frenzied, featuring swaps like the Kamloops Blazers sending four players and 10 WHL Draft selections to the Everett Silvertips for defenceman Olen Zellweger and centre Ryan Hofer, and the Winnipeg Ice dealing four players and four draft picks — including three first rounders — to the Vancouver Giants for centre Zack Ostapchuk.
Something similar could be in store this time around. There’s a plethora of marquee talents in play, including the Team Canada world junior defence trio of Tanner Molendyk of the Saskatoon Blades, Caden Price of the Kelowna Rockets and Sawyer Mynio of the Seattle Thunderbirds.
As a signed 19-year-old Washington Capitals draft pick, Cristall is expected to play minor pro next season. Molendyk, Price and Mynio are all in similar spots with their NHL clubs.
The trade deadline is Thursday, Jan. 9 at 5 p.m.
Further adding to the plot here is the fact that Kelowna has one of the longest-standing general managers in the country in Bruce Hamilton. Hamilton, 67, has been in charge of player personnel with the Rockets since they were in Tacoma in the 1990s. He’s also the principle owner of the club, so it’s not like he has someone above him to answer to.
You put all that together and his panic threshold with this should be first-rate.
“We are listening, and nothing has got my attention enough to get really excited. If we don’t get the opportunity to get the parts we want, we won’t do it and will stay with what we’ve got,” Hamilton told Kelowna play-by-play man Regan Bartel when he asked about the deadline last weekend.
You would expect a GM to say that, and chances are it’s just a bluff. Then again, if there’s one guy with both the experience and gumption to hold his ground and try something else later, it would be Hamilton.
“I would say at best it’s a bunch of tire kickers right now,” he also told Bartel. “There will be no discount on what we are trying to move out.”
Hamilton ideally would want to bring in 2006- and 2007-born players in any trade, supplementing his 18- and 19-year-old groups next season. The difficulty is that players of that age are likely key to their teams’ playoff run this current season.
Hamilton could wind up stockpiling picks with trades and then dealing them at the draft next summer for players who can help him next year.
Molendyk’s Blades (20-11-2-2) are second in the Eastern Conference, but they proved themselves sellers on Thursday, dealing 20-year-old forward Brandon Lisowsky to the Victoria Royals for forward Tanner Scott, 20, and two second-round draft picks. Victoria also sent a fifth rounder to the Blades.
Teams are permitted three 20-year-olds on their roster.
Lisowsky was second in Saskatoon scoring, with 22 goals and 43 points in 29 games.
These teams near the top of the standings trading out their top talent is a new phenomenon. It’s the result of massive swaps the past few years and teams feeling the need to package up draft picks in deals after the league brought in rules to keep clubs from trading away younger players.
Saskatoon has been to the WHL Eastern Conference final the past two springs and has spent heavily in trade to get there. They don’t have a first-round pick in the next two WHL Drafts, and they have just one selection in the first six rounds of 2026.
The Wild moved to Washington State ahead of last season from Winnipeg, and the Ice had spent heavily in trade for two lengthy playoff runs in their last two seasons there.
Wenatchee is still looking to replenish their draft pick cupboard, though, considering they dealt 20-year-old goalie Daniel Hauser to the Calgary Hitmen on Thursday for three players and two draft picks. Wenatchee had also traded 20-year-old winger Kent Isogai to the Royals on Wednesday night for two players and three draft picks.
Isogai has 15 goals and 38 points in 28 games with Wenatchee. Lisowsky is the top scorer on the Victoria roster now, while Isogai is fourth.
Victoria (18-11-3-4) started Thursday at fourth in the West, five points behind the third-place Spokane Chiefs (24-12-0-0) and one up on the fifth-place Portland Winterhawks (20-13-2-0). Spokane was visiting Portland on Thursday night. The Winterhawks have a game in hand on both Spoken and Victoria.
The Wild (13-17-3-1) hold down the eighth and final playoff spot in the West, one point up on the Rockets (13-17-2-1) and the Blazers (13-18-3-0). Kelowna has a game in hand on both those teams.
The Thunderbirds (11-22-2-1) are in the cellar in the 11-team loop, five points out of a playoff spot.
The Vancouver Giants (17-14-4-0) are seventh in the West, eight points up on Wenatchee with an extra game played. The Giants are looking at improving defensively ahead of the deadline.