Filip Vasko fell victim to the numbers' game.
With the Kelowna Rockets carrying four extra forwards as healthy scratches, general manager Bruce Hamilton trimmed that number to three late Wednesday night by trading Vasko to the Red Deer Rebels in exchange for a conditional sixth-round selection in the 2013 WHL bantam draft.
After going scoreless in 52 games last season, finishing with 12 assists, Vasko was off to a better start this fall and had almost matched his rookie point total. Through 19 games this season, Vasko tallied three goals and 10 points, with a plus-7 rating and six penalty minutes.
The move also opens up an import roster spot for Kelowna, with Vasko hailing from Humenne, Slovakia. That leaves the Rockets with only one import, Swedish rookie forward Henrik Nyberg.
Notably, Kelowna owns the WHL rights to Latvian forward Zemgus Girgensons, a first-round NHL draft pick of the Buffalo Sabres currently playing for the AHL's Rochester Americans. Girgensons has only scored one goal and four points, with a plus-1 rating and 10 penalty minutes, in 16 games.
The Rockets (16-8-1-1) are coming off a 3-2 victory over the visiting Tri-City Americans (16-9-1-1) on Wednesday night at Prospera Place, extending Kelowna's home-winning streak to nine games. That's nearing record territory, with Kelowna having won 11 consecutive games on home ice from Nov. 9, 2005 to Jan. 7, 2006.
The Rockets will try to make it 10 straight at home and five in a row overall when they host the Moose Jaw Warriors (10-11-3-4) tonight, 7 p.m. at Prospera Place.