HONOURING THE VOICE OF THE TIGERS
Medicine Hat AB — On Saturday, April 2nd the Medicine Hat Tigers honoured the legendary voice of the Tigers Bob Ridley in a touching pre-game ceremony and banner unveiling to help celebrate not only the 4000 game milestone that Ridley reached last season, but to also celebrate an incredible career that has spanned more than five decades and helped create countless Tigers fans and lifetimes of memories.
Ridley had famously missed only one game in 51 seasons of Tigers hockey before having to undergo treatment this fall. With the help of his medical team, which includes former Tigers player Dr. Blair St. Martin, as well as the support of his family, he announced he would be returning to the Broadcast booth, fittingly named in his honour, for the Tigers final regular season home game which will take place on April 15th. With that game, Ridley will have announced at least one game in every single season of the Tigers existence, which is now 52 seasons and counting.
Ridley said the he experienced a lot of emotional moments throughout the evening, with the banner being the icing on the proverbial cake. “It’s something I wasn’t expecting, I had no idea it was happening. It’s something that doesn’t happen everyday to anybody and I feel very fortunate to have that honour bestowed upon me.”
The Tigers organization felt it was a fitting tribute to immortalize Bob in the rafters alongside other Tigers legends, Lanny McDonald and Tom Lysiak. Tigers General Manager and Head Coach Willie Desjardins says “Talk to any person that’s been associated with this team and say the name “Rids” and they’ll smile. He’s been such a big part of this team, this city. When he called the game he brought it to life. It was more than just a game. It’s wonderful to see his banner in the rafters with those guys.”
Also on hand for Saturday’s event was the Commissioner of the Western Hockey League, Ron Robison. “Bob [exemplifies] what junior hockey is all about behind the scenes. You have to love the game, spending countless hours doing multiple jobs and no one has made a bigger commitment to this franchise over the years than Bob Ridley.” Robison said at the event, “It is a remarkable, one of a kind story that I’m sure one day will be a blockbuster Netflix movie.”
February 2021
Last February the Western Hockey League announced a new award in Bob’s honour. The Bob Ridley Award for Media Excellence is presented annually to a distinguished member of the Radio, TV or Print journalism industry in recognition of outstanding contributions to sports journalism in the WHL, with the first award being presented to of course, Bob Ridley himself.
