Niall Crocker, Justice Christensen, and Aiden Oiring after being named the leadership group for the Raiders 2024-25 season. (Mike Scissons/Prince Albert Raiders)

By Nick Nielsen

Oiring and Crocker assistants

Raiders name Christensen 49th captain in franchise history

Sep 18, 2024 | 5:13 PM

The buzz around Prince Albert leading into the first game of the season on Friday is mounting, but one question that no longer needs answering is who will lead the Raiders on the ice this season. Before practice on Wednesday, the Raiders announced Justice Christensen as the team’s captain and Aiden Oiring and Niall Crocker as the assistant captains.

For Christensen, he’s entering his third season with the Raiders after originally going undrafted in the 2022 WHL Draft. He earned his way on to the team through hustle and determination, and will now proudly wear the ‘C’ as the 49th captain in team history. He said that it was amazing just to get the chance to make the team back in 2022, and to now be the captain is amazing.

“It was super special to make the team and then it’s just kind of my nature. I like to lead by example and I’m very vocal and I think the coaches picked up on that. So to be named captain today, it means a lot.”

When asked what his teammates reaction was like, Christensen said the atmosphere was fairly typical of the Raiders group in showing their support for their fellow teammate.

“They were all just congratulating me, it was really special. They were all really happy for me.”

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This isn’t the first time Christensen has worn the ‘C’ on his sweater before. During his final year of U15 with the Red Deer Northstar Chiefs and in his lone year with the Yale Hockey Academy, Christensen was named captain during both seasons. Still, wearing the ‘C’ for the Raiders is a special honour on its own.

“I was the captain in my second year of bantam (U15) in Red Deer and when I went to Yale Hockey Academy for my second year of midget (U18), but it’s extra special to do it here in Prince Albert.”

Moving to the assistant captains, Crocker enters the season as one of the team’s three 20-year-olds this year, and he’s also the longest tenured Raider going into his fifth season with the team. With 221 regular season games under his belt already, Crocker is on pace to finish in the top 10 in games played all time with the Raiders if he manages to play in the full 68 game season. Crocker returns to the team from Ottawa Senators camp and should be ready to go for the start of the Raiders season.

Finally Aiden Oiring, the Raider that has been with the team the shortest amount of time compared to his other two captains. Acquired from the Winnipeg Ice during the 2022-23 season, Oiring went from 5G-3A-8P in 26 games with the Ice for an average of 0.31 points per game to 7G-16A-23P with the Raiders during the same year for an average of 0.74, and he continued to grow his offensive game with 21G-29A-50P last year as an 18-year-old.

During the preseason, Oiring was clearly a leader on the ice with the way he carried the play and run the powerplay with younger players like Daxon Rudolph at the top of the blueline.

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nick.nielsen@pattisonmedia.com