Brampton acquires Carson Rehkopf in splashy trade

The Steelheads acquire a big fish in exchange for 10 draft picks.

The Brampton Steelheads brought home a big fish today after completing a trade with the Kitchener Rangers for 2005-born Carson Rehkopf. 

"We are thrilled to add Carson to our lineup," said Brampton Steelheads Head Coach and GM James Richmond. "He's one of the top players in the OHL and undoubtedly will help our team get to where we want to go."

However, acquiring the star forward comes at a steep price. Going the other way is a total of ten draft picks. The picks include a 2025 2nd (PBO), 2026 2nd (GUE), 2027 2nd (BRAM), 2025 3rd (KIT), 2025 3rd (PBO), 2028 3rd (BRAM), 2025 4th (LDN), 2026 4th (PBO), 2027 4th (BRAM) and finally 2026 7th (BRAM).

To put that in a more easily digestible form, there are three second-round picks, three third-round picks, a trio of fourth-round picks and finally a singular seventh-round pick for good measure.

Though the price was steep, Rehkopf is a proven scorer and an elite player. The Seattle Kraken selected Rehkopf 50th overall in the second round of the 2023 NHL Entry Draft. 

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Last season, Rehkopf led the Rangers in points with 95 points in 60 games. He finished ninth in OHL scoring. Additionally, he is a proven 50-goal scorer having fired 52 pucks into the back of the net last season. Only North Bay's Anthony Romani scored more goals last season. 

This trade illustrates two teams moving in opposite directions. The Steelheads add a big-time player to the top of their roster. Containing Rehkoppf, Porter Martone, Luke Misa and Angus McDonell will be a terrifying prospect for the rest of the league. It seems likely that this signals Brampton will be all in to try and bring home a championship next season.

Kitchener on the other hand seems to have committed themselves to a rebuild. With the large number of picks they acquired in this deal, they will be able to build a robust lineup that will be able to grow and compete for years to come. Alternatively, many of these picks could be used to complete trades further down the line.

This mutually beneficial trade is certainly a big splash for both teams. This is certainly the biggest trade to occur so far this offseason.

The Steelheads look increasingly like they will be one of the biggest fish in the pond next season. Meanwhile, Kitchener made a prudent decision that looked to the future rather than focusing on trying to win now.