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First-place showdown in Maple Ridge on Friday night

Flames taking on top team in the PJHL as they face Wolf Pack
Neil Corbett
Neil Corbett
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Maple Ridge’s own Jack Foster led his hometown team in scoring with a goal and two assists, and the first-year Flame now has five goals and 13 points in nine games. (Neil Corbett/The News)

The battle for supremacy in the Pacific Junior Hockey League arrives in Maple Ridge on Friday night, as the hometown Flames take on the North Vancouver Wolf Pack.

The Flames sit atop the Harold Brittain Conference with a record of 13-4-1-0, while the Wolf Pack lead the Tom Shaw Conference with a record of 14-3-0-1. The Pack are two points up on the flames for first overall in the 13-team Junior B league.

The last time these two met, the Wolf Pack won by a score of 1-0. It was an uncharacteristic loss for the Flames, who are averaging five goals per game, and are the highest scoring team in the league.

Ridge is coming off a 4-2 win over the tough Chilliwack Jets last Friday night. Rookie goaltender Cameron Connolly was selected the game’s first star, as he made 29 saves on 31 shots, and also took his team’s Meadow Ridge Collision Hard Hat Award. That was his league-best seventh win on the season.

Jack Foster led the offence with a goal and two assists. Newly acquired Craig Schouten scored his fifth goal in as many games as a Flame, and now has seven points on the season. Reliable Ryan Denney and Zack Lagrange also scored. That gives Denney his 20th goal in 18 games, which is best in the league. He also has 10 assists for 30 points.

Nic Amsler continues to lead the PJHL in scoring with 34 points, including 12 goals, in 18 games. He got on the score sheet with a helper.

The Wolf Pack are led in scoring by a pair of rookies in J.J. Pickell, who has 26 points in 18 games, and David Coyle who has 25 points in 17 games. They are both top 10 in league scoring, and wear jerseys 18 and 19 respectively. They had been looking unbeatable, but come into Maple Ridge having lost two of their last three games.

Friday night’s game will be played at Cam Neely Arena starting at 7:30 p.m.

Have a story tip? Email: ncorbett@mapleridgenews.com
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Neil Corbett

About the Author: Neil Corbett

I have been a journalist for more than 30 years, the past decade with the Maple Ridge-Pitt Meadows News.
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