Photo credit: Allen Douglas

By Regan Bartel

17-year-old d-man with roots in Kelowna

Mittelsteadt happy to be with the Kelowna Rockets

Jan 9, 2023 | 6:00 AM

It is a homecoming of sorts for newly acquired defenseman Ethan Mittelsteadt.

The 17-year-old was obtained Saturday morning in a WHL trade with the Seattle Thunderbirds along with forward Ty Hurley, and a crucial 1st round prospects pick in 2024 for captain Colton Dach.

Mittelsteadt calls Victoria home but was actually born in Kelowna.

“My parents had season tickets for the Rockets for a long time”, Mittelsteadt told RocketFAN. “I have seen many Rockets games and it is kind of coming full circle and I am looking forward to my time here.”

A fifth-round prospect selection of the T-Birds in 2020, Mittelsteadt caught the eye of WHL scouts while playing on Vancouver Island.

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“I played minor hockey in Kelowna until I was 10 years old and then I moved out to Victoria where I played with the Racquet Club Kings and the Victoria Admirals and then last season I was with the Westshore Wolves and the Thunderbirds, sort of half and half.”

The personable Mittelsteadt admits he was surprised at the trade, learning of it while with the T-Birds, a day after beating the Regina Pats 6-0 on an Eastern Conference road trip.

“It was a little unexpected”, Mittelsteadt admitted when asked if the trade caught him off guard. “I am excited about this new opportunity. I want to thank everyone in Seattle for a great time there, but I am really looking forward to this next chapter with this great organization.”

Mittelsteadt has just three goals in 41 games in the Western Hockey, which is a clear indicator that he won’t be a power play specialist or a massive point producer, at least not yet.

“I think I am a two-way defenseman”, Mittelsteadt said. “I can contribute at both ends of the ice. I like to use my skating and grit to my advantage, and any chance I have to jump up in the rush or take advantage offensively, that is what I plan to do”.

One of Mittelsteadt’s three career goals came this season when he scored against the Rockets, as a member of the T-Birds, in a game December 30th at Prospera Place.

In fact, all three of his goals have come on the road.

“That is funny”, when RocketFAN pointed out that fact to him. “Hopefully I get a few [goals] at Prospera Place and on the road this year.”

Making his debut Saturday night for his new team against the Kamloops Blazers, Mittelsteadt admits it made the transition a little easier jumping to a new team with fellow teammate Ty Hurley.

“It is nice to be with Ty, but the guys here seem great and I think I will gel into the room perfectly”.

The Rockets now have nine-2005 born players on the roster, with Mittelsteadt joining Andrew Cristall, Caden Price, Grady Lenton, Marek Rocak, Jackson Romeril, Ethan Neutens, Will Munro and Marcus Pacheco.

“[Andrew] Cristall is a great player. He has proved it against Seattle when I was on that team and I’ve seen the highlites, so I am looking to help him and help the team and see if we can do something special with this age group here.”

Head Coach Kris Mallette says both Mittelsteadt and Hurley should be nice additions to the team.

“He [Mittelsteadt] comes from a program where they know how to teach their players. They play a certain way, so I don’t expect anything different.”

“Both see the trade – big picture. Coming in and playing some big minutes is very exciting for both of them,” Mallette concluded.