St. Stephen Aces

St. Stephen Aces
CitySt. Stephen, New Brunswick
LeagueMaritime Junior Hockey League
DivisionEastLink North (Roger Meek)
Founded2014
Home arenaGarcelon Civic Centre
ColoursNavy blue, green, and light grey
     
Franchise history
2014–2016County Aces
2016–2019St. Stephen Aces
2019–presentFredericton Red Wings

The St. Stephen Aces [1][2] were a Canadian junior ice hockey franchise from St. Stephen, New Brunswick. The team was a member of the Maritime Junior Hockey League and played in the Eastlink North Division. They played their home games in the Garcelon Civic Centre in St. Stephen, New Brunswick.

History

The County Aces were founded in 2014 as an expansion team in the Maritime Junior A Hockey League[3] The Aces were part of the Roger Meek (later renamed the EastLink North) Division and were the Maritime Junior A Hockey League's 12th team, bringing balance to the two divisions (6 teams each).[4]

In their first two seasons, the Aces were one of the top draws at the gate despite their on ice struggles.

After playing their last game in the EastLink North Division Semifinal on March 23, 2019, rumours began to swirl around the future of the franchise in St. Stephen. Ownership kept the fans and community waiting to hear about the future of the team, although people in the community (including Mayor Allan MacEachern) felt the future did not look good for the team.[5] On April 10, 2019, a local group came together, with the support of the town council, to try and purchase the team and keep it in St. Stephen. However, by that time an announcement was set for April 15 in Fredericton, and neither the League nor the team responded to the requests for a meeting.[6]

On April 15, the Maritime Junior A Hockey League announced that the St. Stephen Aces had been sold to Global Centre Ice Inc. of Fredericton. The deal had been pitched to the League in March 2019, and the League had voted at that time in favour of the deal. The team was renamed as Fredericton Junior A Red Wings, with plans to begin play at Fredericton's Grant-Harvey Centre in the Fall of 2019.[7]

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
2014–15 Roger Meek 48 6 40 0 2 14 106 273 12th 12th
2015–16 Eastlink North 48 10 36 2 0 22 124 242 6th 12th
2016–17 50 16 25 6 3 41 183 216 4th 8th
2017–18 50 12 36 0 2 26 112 215 6th 12th
2018–19 50 20 27 3 0 43 138 174 4th 9th

Playoffs

Season Quarter-final Semi-final Final
2014–15 Did not qualify
2015–16 Did not qualify
2016–17 0-4 Miramichi Timberwolves Eliminated
2017–18 Did not qualify
2018–19 0-4 Summerside Western Capitals Eliminated

References

  1. ^ "Quizzes | Free Online Quizzes | PCHquizzes".
  2. ^ "Junior A Hockey headed for Charlotte County | CBC News".
  3. ^ "Wqdy.fm". Archived from the original on 2014-03-10. Retrieved 2014-03-10.
  4. ^ "Maritime Hockey League powered by GOALLINE.ca". themhl.ca. Archived from the original on 2014-03-10.
  5. ^ "St. Stephen mayor baffled by lack of answers from junior hockey team on its future | CTV News Atlantic". atlantic.ctvnews.ca. 9 April 2019. Retrieved 2019-04-15.
  6. ^ "Details scarce on future of St. Stephen hockey club | Globalnews.ca". globalnews.ca. 2019-04-10. Retrieved 2019-04-15.
  7. ^ "St. Stephen Aces hockey team finds new home — as the Fredericton Red Wings - New Brunswick | Globalnews.ca". globalnews.ca. 2019-04-15. Retrieved 2019-04-15.