Switzer steals 2-1 Game 3 OT victory for Tigers over Raiders

Medicine Hat leads WHL Eastern Conference final 2-1

Jordan Switzer (#31) and Carter Casey celebrate an OT win.

MEDICINE HAT, Alta. – So how good was Jordan Switzer?

The sophomore netminder for the Medicine Hat Tigers stole an overtime victory for his team in Game 3 of the WHL Eastern Conference Championship Series on Tuesday night at Co-op Place. Switzer had a spectacular outing making 37 saves as the Tigers downed the visiting Prince Albert Raiders 2-1 in extra time to the delight of most of the 5,204 spectators outside of a noticeable contingent of Raiders supporters.

With the win, the Tigers take a 2-1 lead in the best-of-seven series. Game 4 is set for Wednesday at 7 p.m. at Co-op Place.

Legendary Tigers head coach Willie Desjardins admitted it might be accurate to say Switzer’s heroics on Tuesday were up there with Kevin Nastiuk’s work in the team’s run to a WHL title win in 2004, Matt Keetley’s performances in Medicine Hat’s 2007 WHL championship victory run and Harrison Meneghin’s work helping the Tigers take the WHL title last season.

Jordan Switzer (#31) stops Raiders D Linden Burrett. 

“We didn’t know we’d need that at the start, but once it got started, we knew we were going to need something big,” said Desjardins. “He (Switzer) was big.

“That was as good a performance as I’ve seen for a long time. It was the perfect time to have it.”

Switzer was excited to hear about the high praise about his work from his bench boss along with being mentioned in a name drop of legendary Tigers netminders from the past two-and-a-half decades.

Jordan Switzer made 37 saves to backstop the Tigers to victory.

“That is cool,” said Switzer. “He (Desjardins) has seen a lot of goalies play in his time, so to be in that conversation is pretty cool.”

With that said, Switzer said his team really did have to slug out Tuesday’s contest as the Raiders came in with a lot of jump and came at the host side in waves. He was pleased his club found a way to persevere.

“I think it was good for us,” said Switzer. “We stuck with it the whole way.

“We never got down on each other. Obviously, we found a way to win in the end, which was really good.”

Daxon Rudolph scored to give the Raiders a 1-0 lead.

The two club’s entered overtime locked in 1-1 tie after the Raiders played what might have been their best period of the contest holding a 10-2 edge in shots on goal for the third stanza. After 60 minutes, the Raiders held a 37-19 edge in shots on goal and played sizable stretches of time in Medicine Hat’s zone.

The rug was then pulled out from under the Raiders at the 4:07 mark of overtime. At that moment, Tigers 20-year-old star centre Andrew Basha took a shot from the point that changed direction on a deflection from star left-winger Liam Ruck.

Raiders star 18-year-old rookie import netminder Michal Orsulak stopped that shot, and the puck rebounded to sit beside the left post of the Prince Albert goal. Ruck collected the puck and tucked it into the Prince Albert net to give the Tigers their 2-1 victory.

Aiden Oiring had bad luck on some prime scoring chances.

Raiders head coach Ryan McDonald admitted Tuesday’s contest might be the story of the one that got away for his squad.

“I really liked our game,” said McDonald. “I thought we executed quite well.

“We had some really good looks that didn’t end up in the back of the net. I really liked our start, liked our pace, liked our hunt, liked our pucks to the paint and guys just didn’t get rewarded for it.”

Just seconds into the contest, Raiders star 20-year-old centre Aiden Oiring found himself alone in front of the Medicine Hat. He put on a deke, but slid a shot just wide of the left post.

That ultimately foreshadowed Oiring’s night as he would end up with about four other golden scoring opportunities and would be unable to find the back of the net.

Michal Orsulak made 19 saves in goal for the Raiders.

““O” (Oiring) brings a 200-foot game,” said McDonald. “He is a dog in the faceoff circle.

“He plays both sides of the puck from the penalty kill to the power play. He gets jobs on the defensive side plus the offensive side, and again, that is where he was earning his chances right inside the dots and you know those grade-A look situations. He got pucks off his stick and just didn’t get rewarded for them tonight.”

With 4:27 remaining in the first, the Raiders did break through on the scoreboard. Star defenceman Daxon Rudolph zipped into the left faceoff dot and his initial shot was stopped. He followed his shot and picked his own rebound close in and tucked home his sixth of the post-season to put the Raiders in front 1-0.

Kade Stengrim had the equalizer for the Tigers on Tuesday.

The Tigers evened the score at 1-1 with 3:53 remaining in the second, while working on the power play. Tigers 18-year-old standout rookie left-winger Kade Stengrim fired home a shot from the point through a screen for the equalizer.

About 5:40 into the third, the Raiders had a golden opportunity to go ahead. While holding pressure inside the Medicine Hat zone, Switzer got accidentally knocked out of his net by one of his own defencemen.

The Raider got the puck to captain Justice Christensen at the left point, who unloaded one of his “juice bombs” to what looked like an empty cage. Tigers import defenceman Veeti Vaisanen was able to get over to block the shot to allow the contest to remain tied.

Max Heise jets up ice for the Raiders.

As the rest of the third progressed, Oiring was stoned on two prime mid range chances and Raiders 18-year-old import left-winger Alisher Sarkenov was denied in close.

That set the stage for Ruck to come away with his winner in overtime. Orsulak turned away 19 shots to take the setback in net for the Raiders.

“It is nice to get it done,” said Ruck. “We know that wasn’t our best game as a group.

“Obviously, it shows a lot of character to find a way to get that win.”

During the regular season, the Raiders topped the Eastern Conference, claimed the East Division title and finished second overall in the WHL with a 52-10-5-1 mark. They were rated fourth in the final CHL Top 10 Rankings.

Veeti Vaisanen had a big shot block for the Tigers.

The Tigers, who are the defending WHL champions, finished second in the Eastern Conference, captured the Central Division title and finished third overall in the WHL during the regular season with a 50-10-5-3 mark. They were rated fifth in the final CHL Top 10 Rankings.

The Raiders and Tigers met four times in the 2025-26 regular season. Each side claimed two regulation time wins including one victory at home and one the road. Each side scored 16 goals in those four head-to-head contests.

When the dust settled in Tuesday’s contest, Desjardins said his squad was able to come up with a steal of a victory.

“I think they outplayed us tonight for sure,” said Desjardins. “We hung in there.

“I think that is a big thing sometimes. You just have to find a way to win. Our guys battled hard.

The Tigers celebrate an OT winner from Liam Ruck.

“They got in shooting lanes and lots of stuff. “Switzie” Switzer was really good in net. We were fortunate to get that one, but we got her.”

In looking towards Game 4, McDonald said his Raiders just get back to the grind and work towards pulling even in the series.

“This is hockey, and that is why you are in playoffs,” said McDonald. “It is a seven-game series for a reason.

“We’ll take our time, reflect on it and wipe the slate clean and get ready to get back to work tomorrow.”

Desjardins would like to see his squad assert a little more control of the contest when the two sides meet in Game 4.

“We know it is going to be a hard game,” said Desjardins. “We’re going to have to be ready to go a little bit better than we were tonight.”

Liam Ruck (#12) gives a stick tap thanks to fans along the glass.

NOTE – While the Tigers and Raiders continue to battle in the Eastern Conference final, the Everett Silvertips are waiting to see which one of those two clubs will be their foe in the WHL Championship Series. On Tuesday in Penticton, the Silvertips downed the host Vees 4-2 in Game 4 of the Western Conference Championship Series. With the win, the Silvertips sweep the best-of-seven set 4-0 to advance to the WHL final for the first time since 2018. Everett fell in that WHL Championship Series in six games to the Swift Current Broncos.

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