Photo credit: Contributed

By Regan Bartel

Rockets select Calgary product

‘I am really excited. I’m pumped’ – Owen Hayden

May 10, 2024 | 7:00 AM

His teammates call him ‘Stretch’.  

Sounds only fitting considering Owen Hayden, the newest member of the Kelowna Rockets is just 15 years old, yet the teenager stands 6 foot 6 inches tall and plays hockey, not basketball. 

“Everybody always asks me, ‘Why are you so big’?” he told RocketFAN. “I always tell them it is the milkshakes.”

Hayden’s dad (Stephen) and mom (Joanne), who are originally from Saint John New Brunswick, own the iconic Peters’ Drive-In restaurant in Calgary, which is famous for its burgers and milkshakes. The franchise, which first opened its doors in 1964, has two other locations in Edmonton and Red Deer.

“I am a big Oreo Milkshake guy, I love those.”

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Tipping the scales at close to 190 pounds, moving across the ice doesn’t seem to be an issue for a player whose skating and footspeed get better by the day.

“I have always been head and shoulders over everyone else growing up,” he continued with a chuckle. “I’ve always been large. My mom didn’t love giving birth to me.”

Calgary born and raised, the defenseman was chosen in the first round, 9th overall by the organization in Thursday’s WHL Prospects Draft. The team elected to trade down, sending the 4th overall pick to Prince Albert for 9th spot, plus a third-round selection and a fifth-round pick in next year’s draft. 

“I went into school to write a test and then I came home and watched the draft on the computer,” Hayden outlined the minutes leading up to his selection. “It was a little hard to concentrate when you have math homework, but I think I have made the right choice and I am really excited to get to Kelowna.”  

The well-spoken defender is represented by Shane Jackson, the same agent as former Kelowna Rockets forward Blake Comeau.  

“All along I wanted to play for Kelowna,” he continued about choosing the Western Hockey League years prior to becoming draft eligible. “My brother [Nicholas] is going out there for school [UBCO], so it is going to be great.” 

Hayden also follows in the footsteps of Nick Merkley, the last Calgary-based player the Rockets chose in the WHL draft, when the smooth skating forward was taken 9th overall in 2012.  

“Kelowna is a great organization. They have developed some really good players like Shea Weber and Tyler Myers. I am really excited to come, and Kelowna is a great city. It seems awesome.” 

When asked about evaluating his own game, and describing his style of play, Hayden points to a past and a current defensemen with similar physical attributes. 

“There are two guys that I am somewhere in between,” he said. “Chris Pronger (6’6) with his physical presence and then Owen Power (6’6) who is a little more offensive. Getting up in the play, getting shots and getting points.  I would say somewhere between those two.” 

The grade nine student excels in the classroom too, where pulling off a 90 percent average is commonplace. The hope is his hockey IQ is also off the charts to defend a goal while holding the lead or quarterbacking the power play when the team is looking to tie the score. 

“Obviously it is nice to get drafted,” he said. “Literally twenty minutes after I started shooting pucks again. 

“It starts right away, getting as good as you can. I want to be ready for fall camp. That is what my goal is.”