Ridge Meadows Flames still winning accolades

The Junior B hockey season is over, but the accolades continue to pour in for the Ridge Meadows Flames after a great campaign.

On June 3, the Flames general manager Derek Bedard was named the Pacific Junior Hockey League’s executive of the year.

“It’s surreal to look at the trophy, and see my name next to the last winner from Maple Ridge, which was Ray Stonehouse,” said Bedard. “He was a huge mentor for me – a great resource and a friend.”

Stonehouse was a longtime owner of the Flames, and went on to be president of the PJHL. He passed away in July of 2021.

READ ALSO: PJHL president and former Ridge Meadows team owner Ray Stonehouse passes

The Flames had a fantastic season, as Bedard put together a roster than posted a record of 32-10-1-1, which is the best mark in at least 16 seasons. They lost in the second round of the playoffs to the Langley Trappers, who went on to win the Cyclone Taylor Cup.

Andrew Cheverie was named the Broadcaster of the Year for the PJHL. He offered weekly update videos for the team’s social media pages this year, with game highlights and interviews with players and coaches, giving fans more insight into the Maple Ridge junior hockey squad than ever.

Bedard said his work sets a new the standard.

“It’s next level – nobody in our league is doing what he’s doing,” said Bedard.

Congratulations to Andrew Cheverie of the @ridgemeadowsflames on being voted 2021-22 PJHL Broadcaster of the Year #PJHLBC pic.twitter.com/ncx4GKftme

— PJHL (@ThePJHL) June 1, 2022

Team captain and stalwart defenceman Matt Tyszka has committed to play hockey with Simon Fraser University next season.

The Langley resident has worn the ‘C’ for two seasons, and had 23 points in 37 games last season. Bedard said he often sought the advice of his captain, who was a big part of building a proud culture around the Flames.

“I’m really happy for Matt. He’s been impactful, and to see him get rewarded by being able to continue to play hockey is well deserved,” said Bedard.

The league confirmed Nicholar Amsler was the scoring champion of the PJHL, with 24 goals and 82 points in 44 games.

Unfortunately, the PJHL had scoring errors, and in February when the regular season ended, Amsler was announced as a co-winner with Chilliwack Jet Caleb Garret.

READ ALSO: Amsler gets Flames a share of the PJHL scoring title

However, the league reviewed game video, and found Garret had been awarded points he had not earned on the ice. Garret lost two points, and was rolled back to third in league scoring. That put him beneath two Flames – sniper Ryan Denney finished second in the scoring race, a point back of his teammate Amsler. He had 81 points – including an incredible 47 goals.