The St. Albert Flyers (part of St. Albert Raiders Hockey Club) have just one regulation loss in 31 games this season and are just six games away from potentially having the best season in the AMMHL. (Courtesy of Raiders Hockey)

Sometimes the Alberta Minor Midget Hockey League (AMMHL) can be overlooked due to the other Midget teams operating in the same cities at the same times.

In Alberta, along with Minor Midget, there’s Midget AAA, which hosts a number of top WHL Draft Picks. But many players from the Minor Midget levels go on to successful careers in junior or the professional ranks. The AMMHL is for players 15 and younger as of Dec. 31 each year, while the Midget AAA allows those up to 18 years old.

The AMMHL’s the St. Albert Flyers are giving the league some added notoriety as they’re in the midst of a historically great season.

Northwest of Edmonton in St. Albert, the Flyers are running wild. Through 31 games, the team is 29-1-1 with the league’s best offence and defence. Their lone loss came on Jan. 25 to the fourth-place SSAC United Cycle Bulldogs.

Evan Fradette has a 1.00 goals against average, .954 save percentage and six shutouts, all tops in the league, while Ryley Osland has a 1.65 GAA, .940 save percentage and league-leading 15 wins.

On offence, the Flyers have two players in the top five of scoring: Blake Sydlowski, who sits first in the AMMHL in points and assists with 64, and Stuart Dovey, fifth with with 54 points.

In 2010-11, the Sherwood Park NIC Squires suffered just one regulation loss as they finished 32-1-5. They had 254 goals for and 99 goals against. The Flyers aren’t quite at the offensive output the Squires had; averaging about a goal less. Defensively though the Flyers are allowing less than 1.5 goals per game.

St. Albert’s Midget AAA team, the St. Albert Tire Warehouse Raiders, are sitting second in the Alberta Midget Hockey League and have called upon the Minor Midget Flyers for some help throughout the year, including Flyers leading scorer Sydlowski.

Back in 2009-10, the Flyers had a defenceman by the name of Colton Parayko. He wasn’t the biggest player in Midget, but blossomed, made the Fort McMurray Oil Barons of the AJHL and was then drafted into the NHL a couple of seasons later. He’s now one of the top blueliners on the St. Louis Blues.

While it looks like the Flyers will win the North Division since they have a 10-point lead over the Sherwood Park NIC Squires, the South is more closely contested. The CBHA (Calgary) Blackhawks at 23-4-4 are tied with the Lethbridge Headwater Hurricanes who are 22-1-6 and the only team other than the Flyers with just one loss.