(Niki Burkishaw/ Red Deer Vipers)

By rdnewsNOW staff

Tied for first

Red Deer Vipers stay hot with five straight wins

Oct 9, 2025 | 3:26 PM

The Red Deer Vipers are off to a hot start to begin the 2025-26 Heritage Junior B Hockey League (HJHL) season.

With a 5-1 record, the Vipers are tied for first place in the North Division with the Sylvan Lake Wranglers.

Red Deer’s only loss came at the hands of the Wranglers in the season opener in Sylvan Lake. The defending champions defeated the Vipers 4-1.

Since then, the Vipers have won five in a row that started with an 8-2 victory over the Cochrane Generals in Red Deer on Sept. 20.

Most recently, they defeated the Ponoka Stampeders in back-to-back games, including a 12-3 victory on Friday, Oct. 3, followed by a 7-3 win the next night.

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In the 12-goal victory, eight different players found the back of the net, including a five-point night and a hat trick for forward Mason Hastings.

“I certainly didn’t love our start in that hockey game,” said Vipers’ Director of Hockey Operations, Brady Sim. “I think we came out flat. I think we were expecting the game to come a little bit easier than it was at first… when you look up at the scoreboard and you find yourself in a place you probably don’t want to be, tied 1-1 midway through the first period, it’s probably a bit of a kick in the pants.”

Forward Brodie Van Riper had six points, including two goals and four assists and forward Mason Hammerback scored two goals.

“We certainly found our stride as the game went on. I don’t think we gave them much, if anything,” Sim added. “These games are hard sometimes, but the boys deserve credit; they played our way until the end.”

In the 7-3 victory last Saturday, the Vipers were led offensively by defenceman Mason Sabasch and forward Jagger Ringdahl, who had two goals each. Captain Keaton MacKenzie-Clermont also finished with three assists.

“It was basically a mirror image of Friday. [I] Liked our start, but we seemed to get away from our game as it went on,” Sim said. “We just started doing things too much as individuals, and at times it felt like we were letting them off the mat.”

This weekend, the Vipers will return to action when they host the High River Flyers on Saturday at 8 p.m. at Servus Arena.