The Raiders beat the Blades 2-1 in the pre-season finale in Warman. (Rob Mahon/paNOW Staff)

By Rob Mahon

Raiders Preseason Wrap

Raiders edge Blades in Warman for preseason finale

Sep 18, 2022 | 8:19 AM

So far in the preseason, the Prince Albert Raiders had shown a flair for the dramatic, saving their best periods for the third in every one of their games. They saw no reason to mess with a good thing in their game on Saturday against Warman.

A goal from Evan Herman early and another from Niall Crocker late was all the Raiders needed for a 2-1 victory over the Saskatoon Blades. Max Hildebrand was steady in net with 20 saves on 21 shots.

“I thought they played extremely hard,” said head coach Jeff Truitt. “We leaned on our older guys and challenged them a little bit, and they certainly responded. I thought Evan Herman was outstanding here tonight. Max Hildebrand was solid. There were a lot of guys that played really well, raising their level from last night.”

Herman wasted no time making his presence felt, scoring off a smart feed from Keaton Sorenson just 44 seconds in. Unfortunately, the Raider’s lead would not survive the period, as Tanner Molendyk went on an end-to-end rush during a delayed penalty and snapped one past Hildebrand.

Penalty troubles, an issue against the Blades the night before, again reared up in the first period as the Raiders spent over 1:20 killing off a 5-on-3. But they killed all the Blades’ chances and settled down as the game went on, beginning to dictate the play with some help from their young defensemen.

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“(Terrell) Goldsmith and (Justice) Christensen have done an outstanding job position-wise and chemistry-wise,” said Truitt. “They’ve really gelled well together and been responsible too. They’re playing beyond their years.”

In the third period, the veteran players provided the last bit of offence the Raiders would need. On the power play, Sloan Stanick worked the puck to the crease and both Crocker and Herman were there to fight for it. Crocker got the last touch, and what proved to be the game-winning goal.

Of course, before the Raiders could earn the win they had to withstand a pushback from the Blades. Saskatoon had its goaltender pulled, but the Raiders kept them almost exclusively to the outside of the offensive zone and killed the clock. In fact, after surrendering 11 shots on goal in the first period, the Raiders gave up just ten for the rest of the game.

With the win, the Raiders wrap up the preseason with a record of 3-1-1, with all three wins coming on the road.

They’ll be back on home ice to start the regular season on Friday, September 23 against this same Blades team. Game time is 7:00.

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rob.mahon@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @RobMahonPxP