Fredericton Red Wings

The Fredericton Junior Red Wings are a Canadian junior ice hockey franchise from Fredericton, New Brunswick. The team is a member of the Maritime Junior A Hockey League and plays in the EastLink North Division. They play their home games at the Grant-Harvey Centre in Fredericton, New Brunswick.

Fredericton Red Wings
CityFredericton, New Brunswick
LeagueMaritime Junior A Hockey League
DivisionEastLink North
Founded2014
Operated2019-Present
Home arenaGrant-Harvey Centre
ColoursRed and white
   
Owner(s)Global Centre Ice Inc.
General managerBrent Grant
Head coachBrian Casey
CaptainRyan O'Toole
Websitefrederictonredwings.com
Franchise history
2014-2016County Aces
2016-2019St. Stephen Aces
2019-presentFredericton Red Wings

History

The County Aces were founded in 2014 as an expansion team in the Maritime Junior A Hockey League. The Aces played their home games at the Garcelon Civic Centre in St. Stephen, New Brunswick. In 2016 the team changed their name to the St. Stephen Aces.[1]

The Rebirth of a Tradition

In March 2019, the MHL was approached by Global Centre Ice Inc. of Fredericton, to make a pitch for the purchase of the St. Stephen franchise. The team had been struggling financially for three years prior to the 2018–19 season, and the owners had made the difficult decision to sell the team.[2][3] The MHL was impressed by the pitch made by Global Centre Ice Inc., and approved the sale of the team prior to the end of the Aces' playoff run that year.[2] On April 15, the team and the League made the official announcement of the move, and announced that the team, named the Fredericton Red Wings, would begin play in the 2019–2020 season, with the announcement accompanied by the slogan "A Rebirth of a Hockey Tradition".[3]

Center Ice at the Grant-Harvey Centre before the Fredericton Red Wings first home exhibition game, September 1, 2019

The Fredericton Red Wings name has a history in the Fredericton junior hockey scene dating back to the 1960s, with a number of Red Wings teams playing in Fredericton. The team which is the inspiration for the name of the new Junior team was in operation from 1976 until the team folded when New Brunswick Junior Hockey League ceased operations in 1983.[4] That team captured three consecutive titles from 1976–77 to 1978–79, and was coached to the NB Junior Championship title in 1978-79 by former NHL player and Fredericton native Buster Harvey (who was with the team as coach from 1978 to 1981).[5] Coincidentally, the Grant-Harvey Centre, where the current Junior Red Wings play their home games, is named after Buster Harvey and former NHL player and Fredericton native Danny Grant.[6]

On May 31, 2019, Global Centre Ice announced the hiring of Brian Casey as the first head coach of the Fredericton Red Wings. Casey has extensive hockey experience, including time playing for the Saint-Jean Lynx of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, the Acadia Axemen, and Team Canada, with whom he won a Spengler Cup. He also played ten seasons of professional hockey in Slovakia, Austria, and Denmark before turning to coaching. He has helped coach the Grand Falls-Windsor Cataracts and St. Francis Xavier X-Men, and has been head coach of the King's Edgehill U18 Boys team for the past two years.[7][8]

On June 15, 2019, Red Wings management attended their first ever MHL Entry Draft, held in Edmundston, New Brunswick. With the 4th overall pick the Wings took forward Neil MacLean of the Cape Breton West Islanders, making him the first player drafted by the team since their move to Fredericton.[9]

On August 8, 2019, the Red Wings introduced their mascot on Facebook.[10] An anthropomorphic phoenix named "Wingnut", his number (#19) is a reference to the Red Wings inaugural season. The choice of a phoenix is a reference both to the team name (Red Wings) and the idea that the current team has risen from the ashes of the original Red Wings team in Fredericton. The name was chosen from fan suggestions made on the various social media platforms used by the team.

The Red Wings began their inaugural season on September 12, 2019 in New Glasgow against the Pictou County Crushers, a game which they lost 3–1. Prior to their first game it was announced on Instagram that Evan White (#27) would be the first Captain of the Red Wings, with Tyler Browning (#25) and Brady Patterson (#37) as assistant Captains.[11] The Wings first win came on September 13 in Berwick, where they beat the Valley Wildcats 5–0. Their home opener was on September 20, 2019.[12][13] The Red Wings defeated the Grand Falls Rapids 5–1, with Fredericton native Jack Grant (#34) making 36 saves to earn him first star of the game.[14]

On October 14 (Thanksgiving), former NHL player, team mentor, and co-namesake of the Grant-Harvey Centre, Danny Grant died at the age of 73. He had been one of the reasons for choosing the Red Wings nickname once again when the team moved to Fredericton. His legacy as a local boy who reach the 50 goals in a season milestone made him someone for the players to look up to. For the remainder of the 2019–20 season, the Red Wings will wear a helmet sticker featuring Grant's #21 and the Wings logo.[15]

Two franchise records were set by the Red Wings in one game against the Miramichi Timberwolves on January 9, 2020. The Red Wings went into the third period of the game down 3–2, then exploded for 7 unanswered goals, winning the game 9–3, setting a record for their most goals in a game, as well as having two players - Declan MacEachern (#12), and Noah Cauchi (#14) - scoring hat tricks.[16][17] Around the same time, leading up to the 2020 MHL trade deadline, the Red Wings traded away their first captain, Evan White, and one of their original assistant captains, Tyler Browning. As a result, Ryan O'Toole (#16) was named the Red Wings second captain in their history, with Olle Akermark (#23) becoming an assistant captain, an announcement they made on Facebook.[18][19]

The Red Wings finished their inaugural season in Fredericton in 4th place in the Eastlink North Division and 6th place overall.[20] They were set to face the Summerside Western Capitals in the first round of the 2020 Canadian Tire Cup Playoffs, but on March 12 the MHL Board of Governors voted to suspend the start of the playoffs.[21] The following day, the league announced that they were cancelling the 2020 playoffs to protect players and fans from the Coronavirus Pandemic, thus ending the Red Wings inaugural season in Fredericton.[22]

The Coronavirus Pandemic

The 2020-21 Season was in question for many months, but with the creation of the Atlantic Bubble in July, the League tentatively announced plans for a 52-game season. However, after creating and receiving approval for their Return to Play Plan, the MHL announced that the season would be played, beginning on October 30th instead of the 2nd, and would be a shortened 44-game season.[23] The exhibition schedule was released on September 18, and included information on how fans would be able to attend games in person, with the official schedule being released on October 22.[24][25] This schedule reduced the number of games to 40 and subdivided each division into two mini-divisions. This was done to help with Coronavirus concerns and to help maintain rivalries. Fredericton was placed in mini-division #1 of the Eastlink North division, along with the Edmundston Blizzard and Grand Falls Rapids. As part of this realignment, each team in the division would play 16 games in their mini-division, 12 against the other mini-division in their division, and 12 against the opposite division, although these games were not to be played until the end of January.[25] Fredericton began their pre-season on September 27 with a 6-2 win over the Amherst Ramblers.[26] They began the season on October 30th with a 2-1 overtime loss to the Edmundston Blizzard.[27]

On November 26, the New Brunswick government announced they were pulling out of the Atlantic Bubble and, at the same time, they were moving Health Zone 3 (which includes Fredericton) back to the Orange Phase of Covid-19 Recovery. This was done due to a surge in active cases in Fredericton and the rest of Health Zone 3. With Newfoundland and Labrador and Prince Edward Island having pulled out of the Atlantic Bubble three days earlier, the Bubble effectively ended.[28] As a result of the return to the Orange phase for Fredericton, the Red Wings were required by the government to suspend play until the zone returned to the Yellow phase. Therefore, they announced the postponement of four games, from November 28 to December 10.[29] Following the return to Yellow phase on December 7, they were able to play the game on December 10 as scheduled, only having to make up the other three games at a later date.[30][31] On January 5, the New Brunswick government transitioned all zones back to the Orange recovery phase as 27 new cases were announced in one day (the highest total for one day in the province to that date).[32] As such, all New Brunswick teams, including the Red Wings were forced to temporarily pause their season, until the province returned to Yellow phase.[33]

Season-by-Season record

Regular season

Legend: OTL=Overtime loss, SOL=Shootout loss

Season Division Games Won Lost OTL SOL Points Goals
For		 Goals
Against		 Standing
Division MHL
2019–20 Eastlink North 52281941611761614th6th
2020-21 Eastlink North

(Mini-Division 1)

 13 5 7 1 0 11 40 56 3rd † 9th

† The 2020-21 Season was played during the Coronavirus Pandemic. The Standing in the division for this year reflects the teams place in the Mini-division within the Eastlink North Division.

Playoffs
SeasonQuarter-finalSemi-finalFinal
2019–20 Playoffs cancelled due to the Coronavirus Pandemic
2020-21

Team Captains
  • Evan White, 2019-20 (traded during the season)
  • Ryan O'Toole, 2020–Present

References
  1. "Junior A Hockey Headed for Charlotte County | CBC". www.cbc.ca. 2014-04-09. Retrieved 2019-04-15.
  2. Hunt, Bill (2019-04-24). "Red Wings hope Olauson makes move to Fredericton". The Daily Gleaner.
  3. "St. Stephen Aces to Relocate to Fredericton, N.B. for 2019-20 Season | Maritime Junior A Hockey League". www.themhl.ca. 2019-04-15. Retrieved 2019-04-15.
  4. Fitzsimmons, Ernie (2016). History of Hockey in Fredericton: Part Four - 1981-1999. Fredericton: Author. p. 50. ISBN 9781553961307.
  5. Fitzsimmons, Ernie (2013). History of Hockey in Fredericton: Part Three - 1970-1981. Fredericton: Author. pp. 194–5. ISBN 9781553961307.
  6. "Grant Harvey Centre". Fredericton Tourism. 2016-06-13. Retrieved 2019-04-26.
  7. "Red Wings name Brian Casey as Head Coach". www.themhl.ca. Retrieved 2019-06-01.
  8. "Fredericton Red Wings name new head coach". www.iheartradio.ca. Retrieved 2019-06-01.
  9. "MHL Conducts Entry Draft in Edmundston, N.B." www.themhl.ca. Retrieved 2019-07-03.
  10. "WELCOME WINGNUT❗️❗️❗️THE PHEONIX HAS... - Fredericton Red Wings". Facebook. Retrieved 2019-09-21.
  11. "Fredericton Red Wings on Instagram: "You're looking at the Red Wing Leadership group❗️ #27 Evan White : C #25 Tyler Browning : A #37 Brady Patterson : A Congrats boys❗️…"". Instagram. Retrieved 2019-09-14.
  12. "Junior A Hockey returns to Fredericton - and St. Stephen mourns loss of team | cbc.ca". cbc.ca. 2019-04-16. Retrieved 2019-04-24.
  13. "MHL releases 2019-20 regular season schedule". themhl.ca. 2019-07-03. Retrieved 2019-07-08.
  14. The MHL (September 20, 2019). "Game Summary - Grand Falls versus Fredericton". The MHL. Retrieved September 20, 2019.
  15. The Fredericton Red Wings (October 15, 2019). "A New Brunswick Legend - Danny Grant". Fredericton Red Wings. Retrieved October 26, 2019.
  16. Hunt, Bill (January 11, 2020). "Wings leave T-Wolves for roadkill". The Daily Gleaner.
  17. "Wings Set Two Franchise Records With Huge Win Over 'Wolves". www.frederictonredwings.com. Retrieved 2020-01-12.
  18. Hunt, Bill (January 11, 2020). "O'Toole takes over as Red Wings Captain". The Daily Gleaner.
  19. "Fredericton Red Wings congratulate our new captain". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 2020-01-12.
  20. The MHL (March 11, 2020). "2019-2020 MHL Regular Season Team Stats". The MHL. Archived from the original on August 19, 2013. Retrieved March 11, 2020.
  21. The MHL (March 12, 2020). "Updated MHL statement on COVID-19". The MHL. Retrieved March 25, 2020.
  22. The MHL (March 13, 2020). "MHL cancels 2019-20 Canadian Tire Cup playoffs due to COVID-19 concerns". The MHL. Retrieved March 25, 2020.
  23. "MHL Moves Start of 2020-21 Season to October 30th". www.themhl.ca. Retrieved 2021-01-05.
  24. "MHL returns to the ice with the 2020-21 Exhibition Season". www.themhl.ca. Retrieved 2021-01-05.
  25. "MHL announces 40-game regular season for 2020-21". www.themhl.ca. Retrieved 2021-01-05.
  26. "Game Report". lscluster.hockeytech.com. Retrieved 2021-01-05.
  27. "Game Report". lscluster.hockeytech.com. Retrieved 2021-01-05.
  28. "N.B. pulls out of Atlantic bubble; Fredericton region moving to orange phase". Atlantic. 2020-11-26. Retrieved 2021-01-05.
  29. "Fredericton postpones four games due to NB COVID-19 restrictions". www.themhl.ca. Retrieved 2021-01-05.
  30. "N.B. COVID-19 roundup: 4 new cases, Moncton, Fredericton areas to return to yellow tonight | CBC News". CBC. Retrieved 2021-01-05.
  31. "Grand Falls/Fredericton rescheduled". www.themhl.ca. Retrieved 2021-01-05.
  32. "N.B. COVID-19 roundup: Entire province back to orange, new cases hit record high of 27 | CBC News". CBC. Retrieved 2021-01-05.
  33. "MHL teams in N.B. pause schedules". www.themhl.ca. Retrieved 2021-01-05.
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