Photo: Kelowna Rockets
Calder Vargas
Officially, Kalder Varga is the newest member of the Kelowna Rockets.
The 15-year-old forward, from Geneva, Illinois, has signed a standard WHL scholarship and development agreement.
He was the seventh player to be selected in the US Priority Draft earlier this year.
It’s no surprise that Varga chose to sign with the Rockets—his father, John, spent four years with the franchise when they were both located in Tacoma from 1991-1995.
Since his father played in the league, Varga was able to get into the WHL draft even though his home state, Illinois, is outside the league’s drafting zone.
“It is an absolute honor to sign with such a fine organization as the Kelowna Rockets,” Varga said. I can’t wait to start working hard on and off the ice to become a rocket. I can’t wait to visit Kelowna this summer. It is called home in the near future.
“I would like to thank the Hamilton family and the scouting staff for their confidence in me. I look forward to contributing to the team’s success.”
Varga will attend training camp later this summer, but is not eligible to play for the team full-time until the 2024-25 season.
He spent the 2022-23 season with the Chicago Mission Bantam 14U AAA team that took second place in the Tier 1 National Championship this past March. He will represent Central District and Illinois at the US National Camp in Rochester, New York this July.
