The Fredericton Red Wings want to be imbedded in their community.
With that in mind, the Red Wings’ ownership group is reaching out to community youth to begin the 2009 Junior Wings program.
Fredericton is preparing for its first season in the junior A Maritime Hockey League, playing its games out of the gleaming Grant*Harvey Centre.
The Red Wings mark the return for junior A brand in the city after more than four decades away from the MHL level of play.
Fredericton president Roger Shannon said it’s a perfect combination to introduce players born in 2009 to have a chance to wear the Junior Red Wings logo outside of their own minor hockey affiliation for the 2019-20 season.
Shannon was instrumental in the creation of the highly-successful VReds Prospects academy, a program launched 20 years ago. That program boasts 33 National Hockey League draft picks and a plethora of university and junior players.
‘Launching a youth development program under the umbrella of the junior Fredericton Red Wings is a natural fit,’ said Shannon, busy preparing for the inaugural MHL season. ‘We anticipate attracting plenty of young hockey players who come to the games with their families. Our junior A players are anywhere from 16 to 21 and they are not far removed from playing youth hockey. We think it’s going to be a very nice fit and look forward to the response. We’ve already generated plenty of interest.’
The Varsity Reds Prospects remains a thriving youth hockey entity in collaboration with USPORTS perennial powerhouse and reigning national university champion University of New Brunswick Reds.
There is plenty of room for both, said Shannon. In fact, the newly-minted Junior Red Wings will combine with the established Varsity Reds Prospects on Labour Day Monday at the Aitken University Centre.
‘We cannot say enough about the opportunity for children to be a part of the Red Wings and hopefully they will follow our team in the MHL and watch them play for our big team,’ said Shannon. ‘It’s not our intention at all to take away from the Varsity Reds Prospects program. We’re going to combine the two programs. It will allow for development of even more young players who will have increased opportunities. We believe it’s going to be win-win for young players and their parents and families.’
Much of the practices and games are on holidays or during the off-season so programs won’t interfere with regular teams throughout the season.
For further information and the opportunity to get on the ice Sept. 2 with the new Junior Wings program, contact ferdistheword67@gmail.com to confirm your spot and$50 e- transfers to 2009vreds@gmail.com
