Warriors down Raiders in thriller

Warriors F Noah Gregor scores on Raiders G Rylan Parenteau.

    PRINCE ALBERT - If all games between the Moose Jaw Warriors and the Prince Albert Raiders are going to be as good as this one, here is hoping their opening round WHL playoff series goes the distance to Game 7.

    The Warriors downed the Raiders 3-2 in a thriller in Game 1 on Friday night at the Art Hauser Centre before 2,782 spectators. Both teams engaged in frantic action up and down the ice. Shaw television had to be thanking their lucky stars they decided to broadcast that contest for its entertainment value, and the WHL head office staffers had to felt they hit a jackpot.

    Goaltenders Rylan Parenteau of the Raiders and Zach Sawchenko of the Warriors each stood on their heads making 36 and 32 stops respectively. The consensus among NHL scouts has been that the quality of goaltending on average had been down in the WHL this season, but you wouldn’t have known that the way the series opener between Moose Jaw and Prince Albert played out.

    After a scoreless opening frame, the Raiders drew first blood in Friday’s clash at the 8:17 mark of the second, when Reid Gardiner blasted home a shot on the power play to give the hosts a 1-0 edge.

    The Warriors countered just seconds into their first power play at the 14:17 mark of the frame on a tally from star captain Brayden Point. The Art Hauser Centre crowd that had worked their way into a frenzy had the wind momentarily knocked out of their sails.

    Moose Jaw dealt the home side faithful two more gut shots going ahead 3-1 in the third.

Jesse Lees missed a late chance to tie the game.

    First, Point and linemate Noah Gregor broke in on a two-on-one break, and Point fed a perfect pass across the face of the Raiders goal to Gregor, who knocked home the puck past Parenteau.

    At the 13:51 mark, Gregor potted his second goal of the night on a turnaround shot. The Warriors first unit of Point, Gregor and Dryden Hunt came out against a tired Raiders unit after an icing call on the offensive faceoff that eventually resulted in the third goal. Prince Albert elected to not use a timeout.

    The Warriors weren’t able to enjoy the two-goal cushion for long. Just 34 seconds after they went ahead 3-1, Raiders right-winger Austin Glover knocked home a shot from the left side of the Moose Jaw goal to cut the visitors edge to 3-2. The tally reignited the gathering at the Art Hauser Centre.

    The Raiders proceeded to make a big push in the game’s final moments. With under two minutes to play, overage defenceman Jesse Lees had a golden chance to pick up the equalizer down low, but he fired a shot over top of the Warriors goal.

    In the final seconds of the third, the puck slid over to Gardiner down in the left slot of the Moose Jaw zone, but the veteran, who netted 43 goals in the regular season, fanned on his shot.

Simon Stransky (#23) steals the puck from Dryden Hunt (#29)

    The Warriors were elated at the end of the game to skate away with a victory. The only drawback for them in the contest was losing Russian forward Nikita Popugaev to a right leg injury after he received a hit along the boards in the first period.

    Both clubs also picked up the physical play throwing a handful of good hits each.

    While Prince Albert supports left disappointed about the end result on the scoreboard, Game 1 of the Raiders series against the Warriors was a hit.

    And you know what the best part is? Both teams go at it again in Game 2 on Saturday at 7 p.m. local time at the Art Hauser Centre.

    If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.

Perfect night in Prince Albert

Raiders retire Manson’s number and win

Brendan Guhle, right, gives his No. 4 jersey to Dave Manson, left.

    PRINCE ALBERT - In Hockey Town North, he is “The Man,” and “The Prince Albert Raider.”

    Dave Manson stands as the symbol of everything that is good about Prince Albert’s WHL hockey team. He is to the Raiders what Roger Aldag is to the CFL’s Saskatchewan Roughriders.

    On Friday night before a standing room crowd of 2,852 spectators at the Art Hauser Centre, the Raiders retired Manson’s No. 4 jersey in a pre-game ceremony before they faced and beat the Regina Pats 3-2. It was a long overdue honour for the local product, but the wait might have made the emotion of the night that much more special.

    Growing up in the small Saskatchewan Centre that is called the “Gateway to the North,” Manson endeared himself to the citizens there because he is genuine and has always been a first class person. He also excelled in many sports growing up, and if you look up the back issues of the local Prince Albert Daily Herald at the local library, you can uncover stories of Manson ripping up the local minor football league that existed in his youth or setting records that would stand for over 25 years at high school track and field meets.

    Of course, his story settled around the fact he focused on hockey. He came to the Raiders on a six-game call up during their first season in the WHL in 1982-83, but he wasn’t the best player on the ice. Manson worked hard and improved with great grit and determination.

    The citizens of Prince Albert have always loved their lunch pail characters who brought it every day, and in the following three seasons after the 1982-83 campaign, they developed great pride in watching one of their own reach star status with the Raiders patrolling the blue-line.

Dave Manson shouts out orders from the Raiders' bench.

    In total, Manson played 218 regular season games for the Raiders between 1982 and 1986, recording 24 goals, 72 assists and 666 penalty minutes. After the franchise’s third season in the major junior ranks, Manson helped the Raiders win junior hockey’s ultimate prize in the Memorial Cup in 1985. Also that year, he was selected in the first round and 11^th overall by the Chicago Blackhawks in the NHL Entry Draft.

    Standing 6-foot-2 and weighing 202 pounds, Manson played with great heart and passion, which can still be easily seen when he stands behind the team’s bench these days as an associate coach. The Raiders are a team that is viewed as having a hard working image with a rough and tumble physical edge, and Manson was the living example of that.

    He was also the man who stepped up and took care of business when something underhanded went down on the ice, and those moments really brought the Prince Albert faithful out of their seats. Around hockey, the Raiders are viewed as a franchise where honour still matters and it is likely no one has more honour than Manson.

    If Manson’s story with the Raiders had ended there, he was assured of legendary status in Prince Albert. After his playing days with the Raiders, Manson went on to play in 1,103 career regular season games in the NHL from 1986 to 2002 collecting 102 goals, 288 assists and 2,792 penalty minutes with the Blackhawks, Edmonton Oilers, Winnipeg Jets, Phoenix Coyotes, Montreal Canadiens, Dallas Stars and Toronto Maple Leafs.

Dave Manson's No. 4 in the Art Hauser Centre rafters.

    Having always been a strong family man, Manson returned to the Prince Albert area to settle down after his playing days were finished due to the fact he has numerous family members there. Part way through the 2002-03 campaign, he became an assistant coach with the Raiders, and he has remained a key part of that team since that time. From that moment, his status elevated from legendary to iconic in Prince Albert.

    When he takes up position behind the Raiders bench, he can look into the stands and he seemingly knows all the faces that are in the crowd. It is a regular occurrence for him to walk the halls of the Art Hauser Centre, approach someone who you would think would be a stranger, address them by their first name and have some good-natured conversation with that person.

    Manson has also been a big influence in helping the Raiders players on the ice with their games, and their personal lives. Those that have played under Manson are pretty unanimous in agreeing he was one of their favourite coaches.

    The hometown boy had helped the Raiders win a national title as a player, went on to a great career in the NHL and returned home to be an integral part of the community.

    On Friday night, old friends from both his long ties with the Raiders and his NHL days like good buddy Kelly Buchberger arrived in Prince Albert for his jersey retirement ceremony. If Manson’s family and friends couldn’t be there, like his 24-year-old son Josh who was playing that night with the NHL’s Anaheim Ducks, they sent in moving video tributes.

    Defenceman Brendan Guhle, who will go down as the last Raider to wear No. 4, gave his jersey to Manson and donned a new No. 7 uniform. WHL commissioner Ron Robison presented Manson with the league’s Alumni Achievement Award and the Raiders brass presented him with a silver stick engraved with the names of all the teams he has played on during the festivities.

    When game time rolled around, the Raiders actually had a bit of a slow start, but hit stride when Yorkton midget AAA call up Carson Miller, who just turned 16, scored to give the hosts a 1-0 lead at the 10:28 mark of the first period. The Raiders lunch bucket work ethic got going as standout right-winger Reid Gardiner scored on the power play and rearguard Dalton Yorke potted what would be the game winner.

Brendan Guhle drives a shot on goal wearing his new No. 7 jersey.

    Pats starting netminder Jordan Hollett was chased at the 5:37 mark of the second period turning away nine of 12 shots fired his way. Tyler Brown stopped all 13 shots he faced in relief.

Austin Wagner and Connor Hobbs replied with singles for the Pats (23-23-3-4) in what was an outstanding hockey game.

    Playing with great structure and powered by Rylan Parenteau’s 24 saves in goal, the Raiders were able to clamp things down defensively and close out the victory. It was an effort that was a fitting tribute to Manson.

    The Raiders also improved to 31-18-5-1. Many in junior hockey circles look at the Raiders record this season and say they are overachieving. On the other side of that observation, the Raiders are showing what can be achieved when you play with good focus, hard work and passion, which are the traits Manson brought to his game every day.

    After the contest during a media scrum, Guhle reflected on handing his No. 4 jersey to Manson.

The Raiders celebrate their 3-2 win over the Pats.

    “It was actually really special,” said Guhle. “We actually looked at each other in the eyes, and he actually had little tears in his eyes. Don’t tell him I said that.

    “It was pretty special for me and for him. We’ve known each other both for four years now and him mentoring me and coaching me through the whole process in the WHL. It was a real special moment for both of us.”

    For Manson, he has enjoyed watching the players he has coached grow and mature, and he thought it was cool to receive Guhle’s No. 4 jersey.

    “It is very nice,” said Manson. “It is something for sure I know I will remember.

    “He (Guhle) has been a big part of the Raiders success this year. It was good that he could be a part of that.”

    Now Manson’s No. 4 hangs in the Art Hauser Centre rafters along with Mike Modano’s No. 9.

    However when one thinks of the Prince Albert Raiders, Manson is always the first player that comes to mind.

    If you any comments you would like to pass along about this blog post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.

Gardiner relishes Raiders rise

Reid Gardiner celebrates after scoring a goal for the Raiders.

    Reid Gardiner is having a lot more fun playing in the WHL this season.

    Now in his fourth full season with the Prince Albert Raiders, the 19-year-old right-winger has enjoyed the fact his club is battling amongst the league’s best. As the league wrapped up play to go into the Christmas break, the Raiders have surprised posting a 20-11-2-1 record to sit two points back of the Brandon Wheat Kings (21-11-1-2) for first in the WHL’s East Division and fifth overall in the WHL’s Eastern Conference.

    Actually, the Raiders, who have relied on a strong work ethic and an attention to detail, are only five points shy of first place in the Eastern Conference trailing another surprise team in the Lethbridge Hurricanes (24-11).

    When the season started, the Raiders, who missed the playoffs last season with a 31-37-2-2 mark, were expected to battle for a playoff spot at best. At times, they have sat first overall in the Eastern Conference and the East Division. First place in the East Division was supposed to be conceded to the Wheat Kings, so Gardiner is pretty pleased his team is in the mix.

    “It is obviously a lot more fun,” said Gardiner. “Nobody likes losing obviously. It is not very fun.

    “To kind of be in the top five or six in the east is a pretty good feeling for our group. I think we have a good group. We’ve got a close team, and that has helped kind of propel us kind up in the standings.”

    The Humboldt, Sask., product, who has always had good offensive skill, is also having what might be his best campaign in the league. Having appeared in all of the Raiders 34 games, he has posted 20 goals, 26 assists and so far a career best plus-15 in the plus-minus department.

    In his first two seasons, the Raiders had decent records posting a 37-28-3-4 mark in 2012-13 and a 35-32-3-2 record in 2013-14, when the club needed to down the Red Deer Rebels in a tiebreaking game to make the post-season. The Green, White and Gold were swept out of the post-season in both of those campaigns.

    Gardiner said there has been a better overall atmosphere with the team this season compared to past campaigns that he played with the club.

    “I think just changing the culture of our group and the overall attitude of playing in Prince Albert,” said Gardiner, who is the Raiders scoring leader. “I think back in the late 80s and early 90s it was a kind of a dynasty like team.

    “P.A. is a hockey town. I think lots of guys had a sour taste in their mouths coming into this year after not making playoffs last year. Everybody made a point of working hard over the summer and coming in with the right attitude. Things have worked out thus far.”

Reid Gardiner (#19) breaks up ice with Raiders teammate Vojtech Budik.

    Part of the atmosphere change occurred after Marc Habscheid took over as the team’s head coach about a third of the way into last season, when the Raiders relieved Cory Clouston of those duties. Coming to Prince Albert, Habscheid has a lengthy resume of being a star coach who is best remember for guiding the Kelowna Rockets to a WHL title in 2003 and a Memorial Cup championship as the tournament’s host squad the following campaign. He also guided Canada’s world junior team in 2002-03 as head coach.

    Habscheid said the key to his the Raiders strong start so far is the fact the players have stayed focused on the present.

    “In this league, it is a day to day thing,” said Habscheid. “You look at it overall, and you never want to be satisfied.

    “There are ebbs and flows throughout the season, and you just have to look at realistically and not get too high or too low. Overall, we are OK.”

    The Raiders signed Habscheid to a four year contract extension in the off-season and brought in Curtis Hunt, who was a former player on the clubs 1984-85 Memorial Cup championship  team, as general manager on a four-year contract after former GM Bruno Campese and the club mutually parted ways.

    Habscheid and Hunt have combined with associate coach Dave Manson, who was also a player on the Raiders Memorial Cup winner and a veteran coach with the club, to make the Art Hauser Centre a good place to be for the players. Habscheid, who is a former player with the Saskatoon Blades, and Manson also had lengthy playing careers in the NHL.

    Gardiner said the additions of Habscheid and Hunt have been big for the team.

    “They are willing to put their time in with us and make us better people and players,” said Gardiner. “It is definitely a benefit to us to have former players coaching us, and being a general manager for sure.

    “I think it was a smart move by the organization to sign Marc Habscheid for another four years and Curtis Hunt for four years.”

    The Raiders return to action on Sunday, when they host their archrivals the Blades at 7 p.m. at the Art Hauser Centre.

Blades aim to make second half waves

Right-winger Ryan Graham, right, sets a screen in the offensive zone.

    Connor Gay wanted to maintain a balance of enjoying family time while still having some focus on hockey.

    The overage right-winger wants to push his Saskatoon Blades back into the post-season after a two-year absence. The Blades finished last in the entire WHL each of the past two campaigns after hosting the Memorial Cup in 2013. After the 2013 Memorial Cup wrapped up, the Blades have been going through an extensive rebuild phase.

    They went into the Christmas break of the current campaign with a 13-17-3 record to sit ninth overall in the WHL’s Eastern Conference and two points back of the Edmonton Oil Kings (14-19-3) of the conference’s final playoff berth with three games in hand.

    Gay was pretty aware of the opportunity that was before his club.

    “You have to keep it in the back of your mind,” said Gay, who has 11 goals and 22 assists in 31 games. “If you totally let go from it, you are not going to have a very good start of the second half.

    “It is a time to relax. It is time to let go and have some fun, obviously. You have to be able to come back in the second half and be ready for a tough second half of the season.”

    After jumping out to a 7-4-3 start, the Blades hit a slide starting on Nov. 15. They proceeded to go 3-12 from that date before winning three of their last four contests before the Christmas break.

    With the Blades having the youngest roster in the league, a November skid could have been expected, because that is the time the grind of the season kicks in. That grind is always a challenge for any young player to adjust to.

    Often during the losing stretch, the Blades would give the first goal and not be able to rally.

With that in mind, Saskatoon gained a nice boost after rallying from a 2-0 deficit to beat the league leading and defending WHL champion Kelowna Rockets 5-3 in the last contest before the break on Dec. 19.

    “We didn’t allow it to affect us,” said Blades head coach and general manager Bob Woods. “I thought our older guys kind of took charge and led by example.”

    Gay was happy to see the down stretch come to an end, and he can’t wait to get the second half going.

    “It is definitely frustrating to find a way out of it,” said Gay. “Right now, it is going well.

“We need to have a good Christmas break, have some fun, but when we get back on Boxing Day it is time to get back to work.”

Merry Christmas to everyone

    I hope all the readers out there have a Merry Christmas and a happy new year, and I also a big thank-you to you all for stopping by here to read my posts.

    I hope everyone was able to spend some quality time with friends and family. I have been able to enjoy a couple of sizable family gatherings in the Saskatoon area.

    While it has been for me to live in a centre with a large number of family members, I do miss being in Medicine Hat for the holiday season having lived there for 10 years from 2004 to 2014. One of the highlights was always attending the late night Christmas Eve mass at St. Patrick’s Roman Catholic Church. It always felt like those nights were magical.

    Wherever you are, I hope you all were able to enjoy the annual traditions you partake in over the holiday season. Have a great one.

    If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.

The song in Prince Albert is still "Go Raiders Go"

Reid Gardiner gets set to snipe home a goal for the Raiders.

    PRINCE ALBERT - “The Song in Prince Albert is Go Raiders Go.”

    A tune written in the early 1970s by country singer Russ Gurr still describes “Hockey Town North.” Thru good times and bad, you must never underestimate the passion the small northern Saskatchewan community has for its Raiders hockey club.

    Team founder Reg Martsinkiw said when he would step into the Art Hauser Centre after a long absence he would immediately see at least 10 friends he hadn’t seen in some time, and his heart would warm from the reunion that ensued.

    You step into the Raiders long-time home rink, and the diehards that have gone to games for decades since the team was formed in 1971 are there. Going into the Art Hauser Centre on Saturday during the Raiders 5-2 setback to the Kamloops Blazers you also encounter a number of young families. They are newcomers you didn’t see in the past that were among the 2,610 in attendance at a facility that seats 2,580.

    In small centres like Prince Albert, circuits like the Western Hockey League matter. The importance of a franchise like the Raiders to Prince Albert is equal to the importance the Oilers are to Edmonton, the Flames are to Calgary and the Jets are to Winnipeg at the NHL level.

    The Raiders have averaged 2,299 fans per game through 16 games this season in a centre with a population of just over 35,000. If the same sort of figure translated out for a centre the size of Saskatoon, the WHL Blades would need an arena that would seat close to 20,000 spectators to satisfy an equivalent amount of ticket purchases.

    Raider diehards love to take shots at their big city rivals, so they often love to bring up the fact fans of the “Green and Gold” are more loyal than those of the “Double Blue.” It is no wonder another favourite song that will echo in the Art Hauser Centre is the Guess Who’s “Runnin’ Back to Saskatoon” after the Blades lose following a visit there.

    Raider fans are proud of their team and its history. In their junior A era as a member of the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League, they were a dynasty winning four Centennial Cups as national champions in 1977, 1979, 1981 and 1982.

Associate coach Dave Manson is a "heart and soul" Raider.

    Following the 1982 championship, the Raiders joined the WHL, and after their third season in the major junior ranks in May of 1985, they claimed junior hockey’s ultimate prize in the Memorial Cup. All of that success came under the club’s legendary head coach and general manager Terry Simpson.

    Little Prince Albert proved it could stand out nationally, and the Raiders were the centre of that pride. During those years, the Raiders established a reputation for being a rough and tumble team, but not a bully team. They were a hard working group that played physical, with passion and heart.

    They are also viewed as one of those franchises where honour mattered, and that is exemplified in associate coach Dave Manson, who was a physical blue-liner on the 1985 Memorial Cup winner and went on to a long career in the NHL. 

    In Manson, Prince Albertans see a local product that represents everything good about the city in being honest, genuine, hard-working and tough, and he is super at being sociable with everyone in town. His No. 4 will fittingly be retired in a pre-game ceremony on February 12 in the new year.

    While being known for their toughness, the Raiders also had their pretty aspect seen in players like Mike Modano, who went on to a legendary career in the NHL. They could also make all those picturesque perfect plays you could watch again and again on video highlights.

    Following 1985, the Raiders would continue to make a number of other lengthy forays into the post-season. In 1995, they were a win away from returning to the Memorial Cup tournament dropping Game 7 of the WHL’s Eastern Conference final to the Brandon Wheat Kings. The Blazers, who were the tournament hosts that year, won the Western Conference and ultimately claimed the WHL and Memorial Cup titles.

    The last great venture the Raiders made into the post-season came in 2005, and it has become known locally in Prince Albert as “The Run.”

Rearguard Jesse Lees gets set to drive a shot on goal for the Raiders. 

    That Raider team was filled with a roster of characters who had character like Rejean Beauchemin, Dane Byers, Kyle Chipchura, Jeremy Colliton, Luke Fritshaw, Mike Gauthier, Mike Hellyer, Rick Kozak, Jeff May, Brett Novak, Brent Ottmann, Caine Pearpoint, Evan Schafer, Chris Schlenker and Aki Seitsonen. On top of that, they brought back good dressing room glue guy Justin Cruse, who was traded away early in the season to allow the club to get down to three overage players, before playoffs as an assistant coach.  

    That group was a genuine bunch that was as comfortable interacting in various social situations in the community as they were playing on the ice.

    Hilarious one-liners often filled dressing room and bus conversations and the sense of humour those players had was shared with the community, which made them feel that much more human.

    They eliminated the Blades and the Medicine Hat Tigers before bowing out in a tough seven game Eastern Conference final series to the Wheat Kings.

    Fans in Prince Albert can still see images of Chipchura’s big plays, Schlenker’s huge hits and Beauchemin’s acrobatic one arm save against Kieran Block of the Tigers, which was a TSN highlight of the night.

    If you saw video and pictures of the crowd the Winnipeg Jets had during their NHL playoffs games last season, the Art Hauser Centre was a smaller version of that in 2005. Opponents were playing against the Raiders and their fans, and it felt like you were battling against a crusade. The fans were out to support “their boys” and the passion and warmth was evident.

    Back then, it was thought that run would spark another golden age for Raider hockey. That ultimately didn’t come to pass.

    Since 2005, the Raiders have missed the post-season five times excluding 2009, when they faced the Edmonton Oil Kings in a standings tiebreaking game, and have only posted a winning record twice.

Austin Glover brings the puck up ice for the Raiders.

    For the Raiders fans, the pride took a hit, and sometimes the passion manifested itself in over the top criticism of management, players and staff.

    Another blow to the psyche came last season, when the Raiders were forced to trade star forward Leon Draisaitl to the Kelowna Rockets, when he was assigned back to the major junior ranks by the NHL’s Oilers. Some took that chain events to mean that little Prince Albert – a place where junior hockey matters – was going to be relegated to some sort of second tier outpost in the major junior ranks.

    Even as that went down, the winds of change were starting to blow. The Raiders brought in standout veteran bench boss Marc Habscheid as head coach halfway through last season and signed him through the end of the 2018-19 campaign in the off-season.

    Also in the off-season, they brought in Curtis Hunt, who played defence on the 1985 Memorial Cup winner, as general manager on a four-year contract. Hunt had been the head coach and general manager of the Fort McMurray Oil Barons of the Alberta Junior Hockey League last season, and he is a solid hockey person who has coached nine seasons in the WHL between the Moose Jaw Warriors and Regina Pats.

    The North Battleford product is a perfect fit to oversee the operations of the Raiders, and he should always have a role in some form in the WHL.

    With Kelly Guard, who was a former goaltending star with the Rockets, on board as an assistant coach, Terry Lange as a strength and conditioning coach and Mark Odnokon on as a skills coach, the Raiders are sound in both the coaching and front office ranks.

    Still, expectations were not high going into this season, but the Raiders have bolted out to an 18-10-2-1 start to sit second in the WHL’s East Division. They have gone through short stretches where they have sat on top of the Eastern Conference standings.

    Even in Saturday’s loss to the Blazers, the Raiders compete level was high. They led 1-0 and 2-1. When the Blazers went up 3-2 early in the third, the Raiders mounted a huge push back that forced Kamloops netminder Connor Ingram make a number of huge saves. The Blazers netted their insurance goal off a turnover during a short stretch of four-on-four play.

    The fans at the Art Hauser Centre were engaged, and the cheers were the loudest every time the Raiders threw a big hit. The spectators weren’t in the neighbour of being as loud as those playoff crowds in 2005, but you get the feeling they could jump back up to that level.

Raiders captain Tim Vanstone celebrates a goal by his team.

    At the moment, there are skeptics saying that the Raiders are overachieving. They might not remain near the top of the standings, but making playoffs would still be judged a success.

With that in mind, Simpson, when pressed, will admit he had some teams that overachieved and did some great things.

    Habscheid is a star coach, who can help players and teams overachieve. If the Raiders keep bringing a strong work ethic and playing with lots of passion and heart, they just might do some great things again.

    If the players keep displaying those traits, the fans will be there in a big way, and opposing teams might want to think twice about what post-season visits to the Art Hauser Centre will be like. In a small centre, it seems like everyone has to be “all in” to make a major junior franchise work, and while there may be disagreements in the community, citizens in Prince Albert have always rallied around the Raiders.

    For the fans, the dream will always be alive like in 1985.

    They are just waiting for the moment and the stage to show Canada once again that the song in Prince Albert is and will always be “Go Raiders Go.”

    If you have comments you would like to pass along about this blog post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.

Blazers surge past Raiders

Blazers goalie Connor Ingram turns away the hard charging Raiders.

    PRINCE ALBERT - The Kamloops Blazers played the role of Grinch on the Prince Albert Raiders Teddy Bear Toss night.

    Right-winger Deven Sideroff had two huge goals, which included the game winner early in the third period, and an assist, while captain Matt Needham had four helpers as the Blazers downed the Raiders 5-2 in WHL action on Saturday at the Art Hauser Centre. The two clubs were tied 1-1 after the first period and 2-2 after the second frame before the Blazers surged to victory before a fairly packed house of 2,610 spectators.

    “It wasn’t our best effort obviously,” said Raiders right-winger Reid Gardner. “We never want to lose in front of our home fans here in P.A., especially on a Saturday night.

    “It is our only game against Kamloops this year, and we wanted to give them our best. I don’t think we gave them our best, which is disappointing for our group.”

    Things started well for the Raiders, when overage rearguard Jesse Lees fired home a shot through a screen to give the hosts a 1-0 edge. That goal caused a shower of stuffed animals to be thrown on to the ice surface as part of the Raiders Teddy Bear Toss promotion.

    The Blazers tied things up just over four minutes later as Garrett Pilon netted his eighth of the season.

    The visitors controlled play in the second, but the Raiders jumped back out in front 2-1, when Gardiner sniped his 20^th of the season top corner on Blazers netminder Connor Ingram.

    Kamloops evened the score at 2-2, when Sideroff slid home a bad angle power-play goal that took an odd turn of direction past Raiders netminder Rylan Parenteau. Just 79 seconds into the third, Sideroff scored again on the power play to give the Blazers a 3-2 lead.

Raiders winger Sean Montgomery cleans up after the teddy bear goal.

    “I thought we worked hard,” said Raiders head coach Marc Habscheid. “We just missed that little edge.

    “We hit posts. We hit crossbars. It seemed like we would go right and the puck would go left. It just wasn’t our night.”

    Blazers centre Matt Revel scored during four-on-four action right before the Raiders were about to head to the power play with 5:19 left to play in the third. Collin Shirley scored into an empty net to pick up his 20^th goal of the season to round out the scoring in the contest putting Kamloops up 5-2.

    The Raiders controlled a lot of the play in the third outshooting the Blazers 14-8. The hosts also had four chances on the power play in that stanza, but couldn’t put the puck past Ingram.

Ingram made a number of huge stops in the third, especially from close in, to back the visitors to victory.

    “To have those four power plays and not generate a whole lot was disappointing,” said Gardner. “We have tried to work on our power play the last two or three weeks.

    “I think we just need to watch more video, and put a little more thought into it.”

    Ingram made 28 saves to help the Blazers improve to 14-10-3-1.

    Parenteau turned away 28 of 32 shots to take the loss in goal for the Raiders, who fell to 18-10-2-1.

The Blazers celebrate a Deven Sideroff goal.

    Prince Albert entered Saturday’s action tied for first place in the WHL’s East Division with the Brandon Wheat Kings. Optimism was running high in Prince Albert for the Raiders, who haven’t won a playoff series since 2005 when they advanced to the Eastern Conference championship series. Since that run, the Raiders have posted a winning record only twice and missed the playoffs five times not including when they participated in a standings tiebreaking game in 2009.

    “It is a good league,” said Habscheid. “I think our guys were trying.

    “It is just they didn’t have that jump in their step. We have a day off tomorrow, a good practice on Monday and be ready for Tuesday.

    “It is a long year. You get games like that. Some games, you have that jump and you are always on the right side of the puck, and tonight we weren’t.”

    The Raiders host the resurgent Lethbridge Hurricanes on Tuesday. The Blazers travel to Regina on Tuesday to take on the Pats.

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