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By Ian Gustafson

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Red Deer’s Kohen Lodge describes ‘surreal moment’ suiting up for Rebels

Oct 28, 2025 | 3:08 PM

Red Deer’s Kohen Lodge said it was a surreal moment to suit up for his hometown Rebels.

The 17-year-old forward made his debut at the Centrium on Saturday in a 2-1 loss to the Calgary Hitmen, a day after he was traded to the club by the Saskatoon Blades.

“To come home and be around the team I grew up watching and thought were NHL players growing up, it’s pretty cool to come back and have that experience,” he said.

Lodge found out he was traded while he was in Everett, Washington, preparing for a game with his Blades teammates while on a road trip through the U.S. The next day, he was on a plane back home to Red Deer.

“It was pretty crazy but cool,” Lodge explained. “I was blindsided by it. I had no idea it was coming, but once I got to think about it, I was really excited to come here for a fresh opportunity and start a new chapter with the Rebels.”

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Lodge is the son of longtime Rebels skills and development coach Erik Lodge, who got to break the news to his son after Rebels owner Brent Sutter had informed Erik of the trade.

As a youngster, Lodge remembers heading to the rink with his dad on off days, and the two of them would work on his game at the Centrium.

“I wouldn’t be here without him… From a hockey standpoint and what he knows about the game,” Lodge said. “He’s helped me a lot through my career.”

So far, he said, his new teammates have been very welcoming and he’s excited to get to know them more and play alongside them.

He grew up watching former Rebels such as Arshdeep Bains and Ben King, who were major role models for him to look up to. He even watched Rebels captain Talon Brigley over the last four years, and now he’s playing alongside him.

“Learning how to be a professional and taking the way they looked at the game, and always being ready every day. You can’t take a day off, so I learned a lot from those guys,” he said.

Lodge played 36 games in Saskatoon over two seasons and in that time had four goals and three assists for seven points.

This season, he’s played eight games with the Blades and recorded one assist.

“I feel like my play style is more Red Deer Rebels hockey. The way I play is hard and physical. The team’s great here and I feel like we have good things coming,” he added.

“I thought I played well [in Saskatoon]. Obviously, there wasn’t much opportunity there that I got, but when I was in, I thought I played well.”

Lodge was traded to the Rebels as a packaged deal with a conditional fifth-round pick in the 2028 WHL Prospects Draft in exchange for defenceman Derek Thurston.

Rebels assistant coach Clayton Jardine said his first impression of Lodge is that he’s a complete player.

“The big word that comes to mind for me is compete, and compete is contagious too. His teammates see that he’s competing out there, and he’s doing the little details. Playing the right way is contagious, and hopefully it filters throughout our lineup,” Jardine said.

“I think he’s kind of a Swiss Army knife. He can play up and down the lineup… With every new player, it’s kind of figuring out who he fits best with, but you might see him on the third line, second line, or on the power play and penalty kill. He’s going to get an opportunity to try out for pretty much everywhere.”