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| Tayem Gislason (#5) battles Tyler Parr for the puck. |
When the
Raiders left the junior A ranks of the SJHL for the major junior ranks joining
the WHL in 1982, their rivalry with the Blades immediately formed. The fact the
two centres were about 135 kilometres apart on Highway 11 made the feud a
natural one.
In the
Raiders first ever WHL regular season game played in 1982, they fell 7-6 in
overtime to the Blades. That proved to be enough of a spark to allow the
Raiders rivalry with the Blade to become one of the greatest in major junior
hockey.
Due to the
coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic that had gripped the world, the Raiders and
Blades would go a little over 20 months without playing any head-to-head
clashes in front of fans.
This column of mine appeared in the Prince Albert Daily Herald. To read the full article, feel free to click the link right here.
