The Red Deer Rebels added size and depth to their forward ranks Tuesday by acquiring local product Diarmuid Kelly from the Kelowna Rockets.

"I watched some recent tape of him and he was one of the best players on the ice," said Rebels GM/coach Brent Sutter.

"We’re excited. He's a character player who's strong defensively and has decent skills."

Another reason Sutter made the move — sending a fourth-round pick in next year’s WHL bantam draft to Kelowna in return — was the fact Kelly is an 18-year-old.

"Prior to the trade we had only two forwards who are 18, (Colby) Armstrong and (Donovan) Rattray. We felt we had to improve ourselves in that age category," said Sutter.

Kelly was impressive in the Rockets' lone game at the Centrium last December, scoring a goal in a 4-2 loss to the Rebels.

The night before he had notched the decisive marker in an upset win over the Calgary Hitmen.

The six-foot-one, 190-pound centre joined the Rockets last season from the Red Deer Optimist Chiefs midgets. He notched six goals and added 10 assists in 50 games with Kelowna.

Kelly suffered a concussion 10 days ago and has yet to appear in a regular-season game this fall.

He's scheduled to arrive in Red Deer late this afternoon and will visit a doctor Thursday to determine when he’ll be ready to return to action.

"If the doctor says he's only a week away, then we'll probably take him with us on our road trip," said Sutter, referring to the Rebels’ five-game East Division jaunt that starts Friday in Swift Current.

Sutter talked to Kelly Tuesday after completing the deal and said he exhibited mixed emotions.

"He's disappointed to be leaving Kelowna but he’s also excited about coming home," said the Rebels' boss.

Following Friday’s game, the Rebels will play in Saskatoon Saturday and in Brandon Monday afternoon.

The remaining games are Oct. 11 in Moose Jaw and Oct. 13 in Prince Albert.

Red Deer's next home game is Oct. 20 versus the Kootenay Ice.