The Airdrie Thunder are a Junior "B" Ice Hockey team based in Airdrie , Alberta , Canada . They are members of the North Division of the Heritage Junior B Hockey League (HJHL). They play their home games at Ron Ebbesen Arena.
5-583: The Airdrie Thunder developed an intense rivalry with their former divisional counterparts, the Okotoks Bisons . The Thunder handed the Bisons their only two losses in the 2005–06 season, while the four victories for Okotoks were the only four games the Thunder lost. The Bisons eliminated the Thunder in the league semi-finals. The two rivals also met in the 2005 HJHL finals, with Okotoks again coming out
10-768: A junior "B" ice hockey team based in Okotoks , Alberta , Canada. They are members of the South Division of the Heritage Junior B Hockey League (HJHL). They play their home games at Murray Arena. Founded in 1985, the Bisons were originally known as the Okotoks 85ers and played in the Southern Alberta Junior Hockey League . They moved to the Calgary Junior Hockey League in 1989 – changing to
15-700: The Foothills Bisons one year later – before settling in the Heritage Junior B Hockey League (HJHL) in 1991. The Bison’s have been the most successful franchise in HJHL history, earning 20 League Final Appearances, 17 1st Place Finishes, 14 HJHL Playoff Championships, 10 Provincial Medals and 1 Western Canadian Championship Medal. The program is also seen as one of the best across Canada with recent national rankings of #1 in 2023-24, #2 2022-23 & #4 in 2021-22. The Bison’s were at their all-time high between 2011 and 2014 where they made league history by being
20-827: The Thunder. The Thunder have played in the North Division since 2011–12. In recent years the Thunder have developed a heated rivalry with the Red Deer Vipers . The Vipers and Thunder have now met in three consecutive playoff series. The Thunder knocked off Red Deer in seven games in the 2016 north semi-final. The Vipers have exacted revenge twice since, beating Airdrie in six games in the 2017 north semi-final and 2018 north final. Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, OTL = Overtime Losses, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against, PIM = Penalties in minutes Alberta Jr B Provincial Championships Okotoks Bisons The Okotoks Bisons are
25-617: The victors in a tough five-game series. Despite losing the championship, the Thunder qualified for the Alberta Provincials, held in Calgary but failed to advance to the medal round. Airdrie's best season to date was 1999–2000, when they captured their second league title in four years before going on to win the silver medal at the Alberta Provincial Junior B Hockey Championship , which was also hosted by
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