Ridley forced to miss start of Tigers season
By Medicine Hat News on September 28, 2021.
Tigers’ fans will hear a new voice on the radio to start the season. Bob Ridley, the voice of the Medicine Hat Tigers for their entirety in the WHL, announced Monday he would not be on the radio call for the start of the season. In a tweet, he said he is currently taking radiation treatment in Lethbridge and would not be covering the team. Ridley called his 4,000th career WHL game earlier this year and was honoured by the Western Hockey League with the ‘Bob Ridley Award for Media Excellence’. This award, in Ridley’s name, will be awarded annually to a distinguished member of the radio, television, and print journalism industry in recognition of outstanding contributions to sports journalism and the WHL. Ridley called the Tigers WHL Championships in 1973, 1987, 1988, 2004 and 2007, and was on the call of the club’s two national titles at the Memorial Cup in 1987 and 1988. In 1995, he was the recipient of the Medicine Hat Civic Recognition Sports Award. In 2005, Ridley was named the recipient of the Alberta Sports Hall of Fame Bell Memorial Award, and he was also presented with the Alberta Centennial Award by the Government of Alberta. In 2006, Ridley was recognized with the WHL Distinguished Service Award. The Tigers sent out a tweet Monday as well saying, “Bob, it won’t be the same without you… but please know that you’ll be in the hearts and minds of every one of us.” While he is away with treatment, Scott Roblin of CHAT TV will be taking over the call. He said via Twitter Monday, “It’s been a dream of mine to return to play by play and I can’t thank Bob enough for putting his trust in me.” The Tigers season gets underway Friday night in Swift Current before they return home Saturday to face the Broncos again. Puck drops 7 p.m. at Co-op Place on Saturday. 9-8
