After a week off, the Flames look as though they didn't skip a beat. To stick with musical analogies, it is clear that they actually picked up their tempo.
After defeating the tough Abbotsford Pilots last week, the Flames were able to squash the Port Moody Panthers, along with their three game win streak, five to nothing. With the win, the Flames have now won three of their last four games, outscoring their opponents by a total of 16-9. Almost doubling the opposition in goals for.
Tonight the Flames saw five different goal scoring contributors. The scorers, in order, are as follows: Strelezki (PP), Alder (PP), Howell, Rendle, and Crompton. Not to mention a trio of assists from number eighteen, Boston Colley. It is great to see scoring by committee. There have been a few players that have stood out a little more than the rest, but this is a four line team, and that was proven tonight.
There are two major points that jump out from the game against the Panthers.
1) 100% On the Penalty Kill
The Flames went faced seven occasions of killing off a disadvantage. On all seven penalty kills, the Flames successfully killed it off. One of which was also a five-on-three deficit. If it didn't take hours on end to re watch every game this season, I would rewind and tally how many blocked shots the Flames have this season. It seems like there are at least ten blocked shots a game, and that's a minimal estimate. To go seven for seven chances killed off at any level of hockey is impressive. Coach Jamie Fiset added that "When on the penalty kill, I'm not scared or notice a difference in game play."
If this trend of perfect (or at least close to perfect) penalty killing continues, the Flames have a deadly weapon in their possession.
2) SHUTOUT!
Mr. Kurt Klimek should be more than proud of his performance tonight. Stopping close to thirty shots, facing said penalty kills, and tending a team that lead the momentum for almost the entirety of sixty minutes are not easy things to do. He's agile, he stands tall in the net, even though he stands short at around five feet seven inches on a good day, and he knows how to play his position. Kurt is a feisty guy at times, but as I've referenced previously, sometimes that equals an over empowerment of passion. I'm a superstitious person, and I zipped my lips when saying the word shutout, but when that final buzzer went, it felt great to express my excitement for Klimek's accomplishment. When Kurt is on, he is on, and tonight he flicked the switch, proving why he deserves to be in that net for the Ridge Meadows Flames.
The Flames have a busy week, as they are back on the ice tomorrow night in North Vancouver to take on the Wolf Pack, and look to put a stop to their seven game winning streak.
Ridge Meadows also take on the Sockeyes Thursday at Richmond Arena.
Feel free to dress up if you are visiting the Cam Neely for the next home game, as it will be Halloween Night hockey action against the Grandview Steelers.
The week has a lot to hold, but after the win tonight the Flames jump from fifth to second place in the Harold Brittain Conference, and look to gain some ground on the first place Langley Knights.
Adding Fuel to the Flames,
Tyler Lippingwell
Saturday 25 October 2014
Sunday 19 October 2014
Making the Home Crowd Happy
WEEK IN REVIEW:
After a comeback trailing two goals, the Flames crawled back to tie a game with the Mission City Outlaws, but the rally wasn't enough as Mission finished off the Flames 4-2
Friday, October 17th, the Ridge Meadows Flames played host to third place Abbotsford Pilots of the Harold Brittain Conference.
The first period was all Flames all the time, seeing a goal from seasoned PJHL veteran Grant Rostvig. Tallying an assist on the goal was affiliated player Marshall Skapski. Skapski has ties with the Medicine Hat Tigers of the WHL, so before he gets snagged up by the junior team, look for him to dawn the Flames uniform a few more times, as he was extremely impressive Friday. The Pilots were quick to capitalize as they tied the game with a goal of their own. The first period saw lots of penalties, but again, Flames did seemingly have the Pilots on their heels throughout the first twenty minutes of play.
It was the opposite in the second period as the Pilots controlled puck possession in the second. With their play, they scored an early power play goal to take the lead. What the Flames were able to do though was capitalize on one of the many opportunities they had in the second, as Andrew Strelezki got his name etched into the score sheet to tie the game at two goals a side.
The third period was a completely back and forth battle. The Flames took three penalties, and the Pilots took four themselves. That extra penalty, draining the penalty killers, may have been the dagger to down the visiting Abbotsford team. The Flames did not score on a power play, but they did score deep into the third period. Captain Danny Wilson showed the crowd why he has the "C" on his chest, as he created room through the middle and sniped the rubber top shelf to claim the lead, and the eventual 3-2 victory for the Flames.
Two straight weeks the Flames have impressed fans, coaches and the opposition with their play at home, and is a sweet sight for many. If the Flames continue their winning ways at home, that will only do positive things to their confidence and team moral. With the win the Flames jump from fifth to a tie for second place in the Harold Brittain conference standings.
As the game ended, I made my way to the locker room to chat with the coaches, but before I could get there, Joe Olson stopped me to see if he'd be mentioned in the weekly blog. And without hesitation, I told him we can chat and throw in some comments.
Here is the full conversation Joe and I had:
Joe Olson Post Game Interview: Friday, October 17th 2014
Olson has been a proven leader on this Flames team, and we still haven't seen the best of him in terms of this season. When you are surrounded by team mates like Olson there is no reason to complain, he leads by example and makes others around him feel welcome.
Next week, Ridge Meadows' only game is against the Port Moody Panthers, and that one will be at home on Friday night. Puck drop is at 7:30 as the Flames look to earn more points and take sole possession of second place.
Adding Fuel to the Flames,
Tyler Lippingwell
After a comeback trailing two goals, the Flames crawled back to tie a game with the Mission City Outlaws, but the rally wasn't enough as Mission finished off the Flames 4-2
Friday, October 17th, the Ridge Meadows Flames played host to third place Abbotsford Pilots of the Harold Brittain Conference.
The first period was all Flames all the time, seeing a goal from seasoned PJHL veteran Grant Rostvig. Tallying an assist on the goal was affiliated player Marshall Skapski. Skapski has ties with the Medicine Hat Tigers of the WHL, so before he gets snagged up by the junior team, look for him to dawn the Flames uniform a few more times, as he was extremely impressive Friday. The Pilots were quick to capitalize as they tied the game with a goal of their own. The first period saw lots of penalties, but again, Flames did seemingly have the Pilots on their heels throughout the first twenty minutes of play.
It was the opposite in the second period as the Pilots controlled puck possession in the second. With their play, they scored an early power play goal to take the lead. What the Flames were able to do though was capitalize on one of the many opportunities they had in the second, as Andrew Strelezki got his name etched into the score sheet to tie the game at two goals a side.
The third period was a completely back and forth battle. The Flames took three penalties, and the Pilots took four themselves. That extra penalty, draining the penalty killers, may have been the dagger to down the visiting Abbotsford team. The Flames did not score on a power play, but they did score deep into the third period. Captain Danny Wilson showed the crowd why he has the "C" on his chest, as he created room through the middle and sniped the rubber top shelf to claim the lead, and the eventual 3-2 victory for the Flames.
Two straight weeks the Flames have impressed fans, coaches and the opposition with their play at home, and is a sweet sight for many. If the Flames continue their winning ways at home, that will only do positive things to their confidence and team moral. With the win the Flames jump from fifth to a tie for second place in the Harold Brittain conference standings.
As the game ended, I made my way to the locker room to chat with the coaches, but before I could get there, Joe Olson stopped me to see if he'd be mentioned in the weekly blog. And without hesitation, I told him we can chat and throw in some comments.
Here is the full conversation Joe and I had:
Joe Olson Post Game Interview: Friday, October 17th 2014
Olson has been a proven leader on this Flames team, and we still haven't seen the best of him in terms of this season. When you are surrounded by team mates like Olson there is no reason to complain, he leads by example and makes others around him feel welcome.
Next week, Ridge Meadows' only game is against the Port Moody Panthers, and that one will be at home on Friday night. Puck drop is at 7:30 as the Flames look to earn more points and take sole possession of second place.
Adding Fuel to the Flames,
Tyler Lippingwell
Saturday 11 October 2014
The Sweet Sound of a Goal Horn
In the most back and forth game of the year, the Ridge Meadows Flames were able to put the nail in the coffin of this game in double over time. The final score being 6-5 over the Aldergrove Kodiaks
The Flames had goals from four different players tonight and assists from six different skaters, the scoring is proving to be by committee.
One thing that was truly noticeable in tonight's game is organization. Whether it be structured offencive breakouts or plays from the back end, the Flames seemed to have a tough time structuring it all together. When the puck is put in play, there lies no issues, it is simply a matter of collectivity of the team starting out a play.
Looking at what the Flames did well tonight, aside form getting the "W", they played a full, energetic sixty minute game. Now sure there were times were the Aldergrove Kodiaks outplayed the Flames, but that would be an embarrassment for the Kodiaks if they couldn't win a single battle on the ice. The Flames found a way to outplay and out skate the Kodiaks the majority of the game, and that's what mattered.
Looking at the beginning of the third period, the flames lead disintegrated faster than ice melting on a summer's day. But what highlighted the third period was the Flames fire to jump back into the game. Unlike what Flames fans have seen all season, they did not give up on this bout. After going down 5-3, Ridge Meadows pounced back with two quick goals from veterans Danny Wilson and Dale Howell who both scored two goals in this game, This impressed me because this had unfortunately become a trend this season, for the Flames to play an incredible forty minutes and then a tired final twenty. Tonight proved that the Flames are a hungry team willing to fight to stay within reach of the win the whole way through.
This was a huge stepping stone in the Flames season, it is still early, but it brings them closer to .500 hockey and within reach of the Harold Brittain Conference lead. It brought huge confidence boosters to at least three players on the team, those being Bradley Crompton, Dale Howell, and Grant Rostvig, all for very similar, yet different reasons. Crompton was acquired by the Flames a few weeks ago, and tonight was his first goal as a Flame. Always special and important to get that goal scoring monkey off your back. As for Dale Howell, he is Mr. Assist, as shown last year, but tonight he was able to put his first pair of goals in the net this season, which will give him more confidence to shoot, rather than always passing. And last, but most certainly not least, Mr. Confidence Grant Rostvig. Every time the gritty assistant captain heads to the broadcast booth for an interview, I tend to always ask him who's scoring the next goal for the Flames, and he always answers with himself. Well tonight he didn't score the next goal, but he DID in fact score the most important goal. That being the game winner in double overtime. Knowing the feeling I had when I called the goal is nothing at all in comparison to the feeling he must have had when he scored the darn thing. Not only was it an important goal, but it was a beauty of a goal.
Nothing like finishing a game off on a breakaway, beautifully stick handling the puck past the goalies pads.
Rostvig mentioned in the intermission interview that the way the Flames have been playing as of late, it simply doesn't get much worse. Tonight is proof that this game was a leap in the right direction for the rest of the Flames season.
Next stop, Mission City tomorrow night.
After that, Flames host the Abbotsford Pilots at the Cam Neely Arena Friday, October 17th. Puck drop is 7:30!
Saturday 4 October 2014
Back to the Drawing Board
WEEK IN REVIEW:
Flames lose in a 9-3 game to the Langley Knights at the George Preston Arena, one that the Flames were competitive on the scoreboard until the beginning of the third period.
And well tonight, the Flames can say the same,
Ridge Meadows dropped tonight`s game, October 3rd, in a final score of 6-1 against the impressive Richmond Sockeyes. On six goals the Sockeyes got scoring from five different players, and that`s only goals, when it comes to assists, it was a combination of six players. Once again in the 2014-2015 season, teams, and fans around the league should look for this team to finish just as strongly as they did last year.
As for the Flames, well, it`s like a skipping record. The team has been able to stay in games for 40 minutes and then as soon as the final twenty minutes are to be played, the passion just seems to fade. As a fan in the stands, you likely become frustrated with the finished product after the full sixty minutes has expired, but imagine how the coaching staff and roster feel. They don`t WANT to lose these games, nobody trains or plays to lose.
One thing that both head coach Jamie Fiset, and veteran defenseman Cameron Alder attributed the possible losses to are the lack of determination in games where the team knows, not that they can win, but SHOULD win. The Flames are a competitive team, and do all have passion for the game, otherwise none of them would be where they are. But any athlete has felt what coach Fiset and his player are describing. When you see on the schedule that the Los Angeles Kings are headed to Edmonton to face the Oilers, there is nothing else that anyone expects other than a Kings demolishing of the Oil. And this is why I can understand why this is being said. It is not necessarily an excuse that the team should fall back on, but it can become something that these young men can learn from, Especially when facing either a stronger team or weaker team, no matter what point it is in the season,
You have to battle hard in practice as if it were a game. You have to train in the gym visualising that you are going to be stronger than your opponent, beating him out along the boards deep in their end, It`s a passion that should burn within all your being when a part of a team, or even anything in life that you are passionate about.
I mentioned in the broadcast a specific player tonight that I feel shows passion and emotion night in and night out. That man is Boston Colley. When it is his turn to hit that ice he skates hard every shift, he battles in the corner any chance he gets, and he scores goals because he wants to be a winner. Now tonight the example that I used was that he was involved in a scuffle nearing the end of the game. He was sent off to the dressing room with approximately 8-10 minutes remaining in the game as the Flames were trailing 5-1. That brought up a thought: Was Boston being physical because he was angry or upset, or was he being physical because he is extremely passionate and sometimes it shows a little more than others. As a witness I can confirm this isn`t the only time and it likely wont be the last time that Boston gets into with an opponent.
Now I went with the latter of the two options and I am sticking with my guns. Boston was a mid season pick up last year for the Flames, and I was not sure what to expect of him. Last year he finished fifth in team scoring with twenty-one points in 28 games played. And this year he has three points in seven games played. Of course super early in the season, but looking to soar past his last year totals. When I see a guy stick out like he has, maybe not as much offence as he could have added, but the way he breaks out along the wing and gets open to force the opposing defences to change their game, I can smell that passion from a mile away.
This ties everything together. If every player performed every game as if it were the most important game of their life, to the extent they know they can play, then the Flames wouldn`t be facing the predicament that they feel they are in right now.
The Flames now have a week off to regroup, and recoup after what has happened in the last week of their schedule, and they look to turn things around for their home crowd in one week from today. The Flames look ahead to play the Aldergrove Kodiaks at Cam Neely Arena October 10th.
Two final things:
1) I will be looking to start interviewing players to contribute to my blog, whether it be game talk, or life talk, So in honour of that, I want you to help pick the first person to come on the blog. To make it more fun let`s integrate social media. To pick who you want to be in, tweet the players number with the hashtag #flamesblog to the flames official twitter account and I will tally them up by the end of the week.
(Example: 99 #flamesblog @flamesjunior)
Full Flames roster at ridgemeadowsflames.com
2) The Flames are giving away a trip for two to VIVA LAS VEGAS! Make sure you fill out your ballots at the Flames home games . Winner will be drawn on Friday, February 13th 2015. (Must be 21 years old to enter)
Adding Fuel to the Flames,
Tyler Lippingwell
Flames lose in a 9-3 game to the Langley Knights at the George Preston Arena, one that the Flames were competitive on the scoreboard until the beginning of the third period.
And well tonight, the Flames can say the same,
Ridge Meadows dropped tonight`s game, October 3rd, in a final score of 6-1 against the impressive Richmond Sockeyes. On six goals the Sockeyes got scoring from five different players, and that`s only goals, when it comes to assists, it was a combination of six players. Once again in the 2014-2015 season, teams, and fans around the league should look for this team to finish just as strongly as they did last year.
As for the Flames, well, it`s like a skipping record. The team has been able to stay in games for 40 minutes and then as soon as the final twenty minutes are to be played, the passion just seems to fade. As a fan in the stands, you likely become frustrated with the finished product after the full sixty minutes has expired, but imagine how the coaching staff and roster feel. They don`t WANT to lose these games, nobody trains or plays to lose.
One thing that both head coach Jamie Fiset, and veteran defenseman Cameron Alder attributed the possible losses to are the lack of determination in games where the team knows, not that they can win, but SHOULD win. The Flames are a competitive team, and do all have passion for the game, otherwise none of them would be where they are. But any athlete has felt what coach Fiset and his player are describing. When you see on the schedule that the Los Angeles Kings are headed to Edmonton to face the Oilers, there is nothing else that anyone expects other than a Kings demolishing of the Oil. And this is why I can understand why this is being said. It is not necessarily an excuse that the team should fall back on, but it can become something that these young men can learn from, Especially when facing either a stronger team or weaker team, no matter what point it is in the season,
You have to battle hard in practice as if it were a game. You have to train in the gym visualising that you are going to be stronger than your opponent, beating him out along the boards deep in their end, It`s a passion that should burn within all your being when a part of a team, or even anything in life that you are passionate about.
I mentioned in the broadcast a specific player tonight that I feel shows passion and emotion night in and night out. That man is Boston Colley. When it is his turn to hit that ice he skates hard every shift, he battles in the corner any chance he gets, and he scores goals because he wants to be a winner. Now tonight the example that I used was that he was involved in a scuffle nearing the end of the game. He was sent off to the dressing room with approximately 8-10 minutes remaining in the game as the Flames were trailing 5-1. That brought up a thought: Was Boston being physical because he was angry or upset, or was he being physical because he is extremely passionate and sometimes it shows a little more than others. As a witness I can confirm this isn`t the only time and it likely wont be the last time that Boston gets into with an opponent.
Now I went with the latter of the two options and I am sticking with my guns. Boston was a mid season pick up last year for the Flames, and I was not sure what to expect of him. Last year he finished fifth in team scoring with twenty-one points in 28 games played. And this year he has three points in seven games played. Of course super early in the season, but looking to soar past his last year totals. When I see a guy stick out like he has, maybe not as much offence as he could have added, but the way he breaks out along the wing and gets open to force the opposing defences to change their game, I can smell that passion from a mile away.
This ties everything together. If every player performed every game as if it were the most important game of their life, to the extent they know they can play, then the Flames wouldn`t be facing the predicament that they feel they are in right now.
The Flames now have a week off to regroup, and recoup after what has happened in the last week of their schedule, and they look to turn things around for their home crowd in one week from today. The Flames look ahead to play the Aldergrove Kodiaks at Cam Neely Arena October 10th.
Two final things:
1) I will be looking to start interviewing players to contribute to my blog, whether it be game talk, or life talk, So in honour of that, I want you to help pick the first person to come on the blog. To make it more fun let`s integrate social media. To pick who you want to be in, tweet the players number with the hashtag #flamesblog to the flames official twitter account and I will tally them up by the end of the week.
(Example: 99 #flamesblog @flamesjunior)
Full Flames roster at ridgemeadowsflames.com
2) The Flames are giving away a trip for two to VIVA LAS VEGAS! Make sure you fill out your ballots at the Flames home games . Winner will be drawn on Friday, February 13th 2015. (Must be 21 years old to enter)
Adding Fuel to the Flames,
Tyler Lippingwell
Saturday 27 September 2014
Put it in the Past
WEEK IN REVIEW:
Sunday September 21: Ridge Meadows defeated the Grandview Steelers 3-2 from a late effort from Grant Rostvig.
For Mission City Outlaw players and fans, this is one to remember, but for the Flames side, it is quite the opposite.
The first period was filled with Flames penalties, as they went down real early. As myself and my colour commentator Bill Reims attested to throughout the game, the left hand boards must have been cursed because the Flames were recipients to about 6 or 7 odd bounces off of said boards. This lead to the first two goals, and more to come, from the Outlaws.
The Flames left the first much less harmed than they could have been, this was due in part of the solid penalty kill and the stand out play form Kurt Klimek. It just turned out not to be Kurt's day. Ending the period 2-0 in favour of the Outlaws.
The Flames lit up in the second though as they controlled most of the play and even scoring an absolutely beautiful goal from number eighteen and Hard Hat award winner, Boston Colley. This was scored on the tail end of a power play, and was the highlight of the second for the Flames. Heading into the third, the Flames now only sdown one, with the score at 2-1.
Cue the third period dramatics. The Flames began on the power play, sounds promising, right? Wrong. The Outlaws somehow picked up 3 goals within one minute and twenty seconds. With more odd bounces and one bad give away, the Flames all of a sudden found themselves down four goals. The Outlaws went on to add one more to put the cherry on top of their away win.
After the fourth goal, head coach Jamie Fiset had to pull Klimek to attempt to save his confidence, because it is not a fun place to be in, stranded in that net, hoping you are going to crawl back to normality. Kurt should know though that what happened tonight at Cam Neely Arena can only be turned into a learning experience, and not to keep his chin down, but to look for the positives.
In a game where the Flames out shot their opponents by a large margin, it should have never been a 6-1 final. There were mistakes made in this game, that had many things factoring in to the final tally. In both of my interviews this evening, Jordan Rendle and Andrew Castagna mentioned the veteran presence in the room this season, and that may play a part in getting this teams chin off the ground after the devastating loss.
There is not much I can say as bystander to watching the game, and nothing that coach Jamie or his staff can give away to say what may or may not help this team, but there are things that need to be looked at when it comes to this Flames team. Whether that be line mixing, shuffling players, or new practice regiments, I trust that it will be reached in a positive manner.
The season is very young, only 6 games have been played and there is a long ladder to climb for every single team in the PJHL. The Flames have potential to be a number one team in this league, it is simply a question of whether or not this team will gel when it has to and when times get tough, this team can pull it together. Tonight is a night to put in the past, and becomes a learning experience for the fans, players, and coaching staff.
The Flames have a few days to recuperate as they do not play until Thursday night against the newly revamped Langley Knights at George Preston Arena.
Adding Fuel to the Flames,
Tyler Lipingwell
Sunday September 21: Ridge Meadows defeated the Grandview Steelers 3-2 from a late effort from Grant Rostvig.
For Mission City Outlaw players and fans, this is one to remember, but for the Flames side, it is quite the opposite.
The first period was filled with Flames penalties, as they went down real early. As myself and my colour commentator Bill Reims attested to throughout the game, the left hand boards must have been cursed because the Flames were recipients to about 6 or 7 odd bounces off of said boards. This lead to the first two goals, and more to come, from the Outlaws.
The Flames left the first much less harmed than they could have been, this was due in part of the solid penalty kill and the stand out play form Kurt Klimek. It just turned out not to be Kurt's day. Ending the period 2-0 in favour of the Outlaws.
The Flames lit up in the second though as they controlled most of the play and even scoring an absolutely beautiful goal from number eighteen and Hard Hat award winner, Boston Colley. This was scored on the tail end of a power play, and was the highlight of the second for the Flames. Heading into the third, the Flames now only sdown one, with the score at 2-1.
Cue the third period dramatics. The Flames began on the power play, sounds promising, right? Wrong. The Outlaws somehow picked up 3 goals within one minute and twenty seconds. With more odd bounces and one bad give away, the Flames all of a sudden found themselves down four goals. The Outlaws went on to add one more to put the cherry on top of their away win.
After the fourth goal, head coach Jamie Fiset had to pull Klimek to attempt to save his confidence, because it is not a fun place to be in, stranded in that net, hoping you are going to crawl back to normality. Kurt should know though that what happened tonight at Cam Neely Arena can only be turned into a learning experience, and not to keep his chin down, but to look for the positives.
In a game where the Flames out shot their opponents by a large margin, it should have never been a 6-1 final. There were mistakes made in this game, that had many things factoring in to the final tally. In both of my interviews this evening, Jordan Rendle and Andrew Castagna mentioned the veteran presence in the room this season, and that may play a part in getting this teams chin off the ground after the devastating loss.
There is not much I can say as bystander to watching the game, and nothing that coach Jamie or his staff can give away to say what may or may not help this team, but there are things that need to be looked at when it comes to this Flames team. Whether that be line mixing, shuffling players, or new practice regiments, I trust that it will be reached in a positive manner.
The season is very young, only 6 games have been played and there is a long ladder to climb for every single team in the PJHL. The Flames have potential to be a number one team in this league, it is simply a question of whether or not this team will gel when it has to and when times get tough, this team can pull it together. Tonight is a night to put in the past, and becomes a learning experience for the fans, players, and coaching staff.
The Flames have a few days to recuperate as they do not play until Thursday night against the newly revamped Langley Knights at George Preston Arena.
Adding Fuel to the Flames,
Tyler Lipingwell
Saturday 13 September 2014
2014/2015 Home Opener
"Hello, and welcome to a new season for your Junior B Ridge Meadows Flames Hockey team!"
Feels good to hear, doesn't it?
Well it felt even better to say during the first broadcast and home opener for the flames. For those that don't know already, I am the voice of the Ridge Meadows Flames, providing play-by-play commentary which is brought to you from fast hockey services. My name is Tyler Lippingwell, this is my second year as part of the flames broadcast team. Last year I provided some camera service, but mainly was on the mic, doing colour commentary with Rick Garrison who provided play-by-play. I wouldn't be in this position this year if it were not for him, so I would like to say thank you to Rick.
Enough about me, the reason I am starting this blog is to provide more coverage on the small town team, Ridge Meadows Flames. The Flames held their home opener tonight at Cam Neely Arena playing host to the newly revamped Langley Knights,
There were pregame festivities held, for the ninth year in a row, in the form of a tailgate party. With the purchase of a ticket, fans received free pop and a hot dog, also games for the kids to play and even a mascot, Hat-Trick the Beaver! And not to forget the 7th man of the night, Dayne Meier.
Before hitting the ice, the flames had two red carpets rolled out, parallel to one another placed with minor hockey players, who welcomed the flames line up onto the ice as the new roster was announced in front of the crowd. We then also saw a ceremonial puck drop from former captain of the flames, Travis Oddy. Oddy served two years with the flames and felt honoured to join the team in dropping the puck at the home opener. I was fortunate enough to have Travis also join me in the broadcast booth as he provided colour commentary for the evening. It was great getting the opportunity to chat about seasons past and have him be able to make references to players styles throughout the game. As head coach Jamie Fiset says, Travis was such a great influence on the team that he has a "lifetime pass" to visit and give the guys a hard time.
As for game play, the flames were more than ready to begin this season. The Knights started off the scoring this game, but lead did not past long as the first goal of the season was netted by number 3, Cameron Alder who found the back of the net via five hole on the Langley Knights goal tender. It was a beautiful way to start off that scoring sheet for the boys. Later in the first period newly named captain for the flames, Danny Wilson, picked up his first of the season to put the flames up 2-1. That goal was assisted by Flames vets Grant Rostvig and Andrew Castagna. The first period was quite evenly matched, could have said that the ice was tilted a little towards Flames starting goaltender Tyler Read, as the Knights were able to tie it up before the period expired, but that was no sign of what was to come from the Flames
The second did not provide much in terms of scoring, but we did start to see some sparks as the intensity picked up. The Flames were the only team that provided offence that lead to a goal, which came from Boston Colley. Colley will be a leader on the team this year, this is his second year on the team and we can expect some explosive offence from him. His goal was assisted by rookie defenceman Ben Chipman who didn't have a single bad shift in his PJHL debut. He was all over the ice making a big impact, collecting two assists along the way. Also chipping in on the lone second period goal was face off superstar Nick Maydaniuk
We saw four goals scored by the Ridge Meadows Flames in the third period, giving them a huge cushioned lead, and of course, a win. The third period saw a second goal by Danny Wilson, one from Michael Bell, but the two that stood out were the first and last of the period, from rookie Andrew Strelezki.
To put it lightly, in the third period, the Flames got hot.
What a welcoming into the PJHL, as Andrew Strelezki is a rookie this season. If you did not know that, and saw the way this kid played tonight, you wouldn't believe that this was his first year in the league. This boy can skate, pass, shoot, dangle, and of course, score, Coach Jamie Fiset couldn't ask for a better rookie if he tried. Strelezki was placed on a line tonight with Dale Howell, who was the breakout rookie from last year for the Flames, along with another rookie stud, Nik Ponak. Throughout the whole night, this line may have got the most ice time, and rightfully so due to the fact that they were clicking when things needed to happen. If this line is a sign of things to come, Flames fans, strap yourselves in for the ride of a lifetime. Travis Oddy forewarned me before the game that both of these boys were going to shine, and shine they did.
Coach Jamie Fiset mentioned to me days ago that he thinks he want to win a home opener, so hes going to make it this year. He said so due to the fact that the Flames have not won a home opener since at least the 2008 season. And for those of you counting at home, that is almost ten seasons without providing the home crowd with a victory in the opener.With the 7-2 victory, the Flames can skate into Port Moody tomrrow with some confidence, and hopefully pull off win to upset the fans of Port Moody to ruin their own home opener.
The Flames were full of rookie weapons last year and that is what helped them push into the playoffs, only to lose to Abbotsford in 5 games in the first round. If today's performance by the entire team is a sign of things to come, I am extremely excited for the future of this Flames team
Upcoming Schedule:
Saturday, September 13 vs Port Moody Panthers
Wednesday, September 17 vs Aldergrove Kodiaks
Next Home Game: Firday, Spetember 19 vs North Vancouver Wolf Pack
Adding fuel to the Flames,
Tyler Lippingwell
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