By Jeff D'Andrea

With good but aging core, will Raiders go all in?

Aug 28, 2016 | 7:13 PM

Is it a do-or-die kind of season for the Prince Albert Raiders?

Much, if not all, of the Raiders’ core will likely be playing their last WHL season this year.

Their entire top forward line, starting goaltender and at least one half of their top D-pairing could be moving on after the 2016-2017 season.

Reid Gardiner and Austin Glover are entering their 20-year-old and final WHL seasons, and Czech forward Simon Stransky is playing his 19-year-old season, meaning the Raiders would need to use a Euro and overage spot to hold on to him next year. Goaltender Rylan Parenteau, who was named as a WHL All-Star last year, is entering his overage season as well. And if defenceman Brendan Guhle doesn’t make the Buffalo Sabres this year, the Sabres second round draft pick most likely will join the organization in some capacity next year.

That doesn’t even include last year’s captain Tim Vanstone, or Kolten Olynek who are both trying to jolt up the depth chart and make the team as 20-year-olds.

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Raiders general manager Curtis Hunt believes his team will be a playoff contender and will be “very competitive” this season. But when asked if he will he put all his eggs in a basket in the hopes of a deep playoff push, Hunt wasn’t ready to make that commitment just yet.

“I don’t know if I’d ever paint myself into that corner,” Hunt said, the second-year Raiders general manager. “Kids change so much in the summer. I think we know what we have in terms of our core, and we’re excited about that group… We know we have this great core and then it’s really about the second-year, third-year guys. Where are they going to be at, how much have they improved?

“Until we get into almost October when we’ve had a chance for the coaches to find chemistry in their lines and find what works to them and find their D-pairs to get into their routines, then we’ll have a better feel of where we’re going to be.”

Obviously, a big part of that Raiders’ core are in their 20-year-old season. Gardiner, Glover, Parenteau, Vanstone and Olynek.

One of the most interesting is Parenteau’s situation. After posting an All-Star season last year, and winning the league’s hardest working award, Parenteau’s return to the Raiders isn’t guaranteed. Right beside him is Ian Scott, one of the best 17-year-old goaltenders in the country and made Team Canada’s twice in the past year for on the Under-18 Ivan Hlinka Memorial Cup and the Under-17 World Hockey Championships.

Curtis Meger is the third on the Raiders’ goaltending depth chart and could be in the picture as well after two seasons at the Midget AAA level with the Regina Pat Canadians.

“We’ve got those two and we’ve got a third in Curtis Meger, who’s had two outstanding Midget AAA seasons,” Hunt said, who added he would be comfortable to start the season with all three. “I think similar to last season, we have great competition and I love competition. I’m hoping that Rylan’s pushed, I’m hoping that Scotty’s pushed and I’m hoping they sort it out amongst themselves and we can move forward.”

NHL Camps

Hunt said the Raiders are currently sending six Raiders to various NHL camps. Brendan Guhle and Vojtech Budik are Buffalo Sabres draft picks and will join their training camp. Reid Gardiner will skate with the Pittsburgh Penguins, Rylan Parenteau will skate with the Vancouver Canucks, Luke Coleman will join the Detroit Red Wings and Simon Stransky will skate with the Boston Bruins. Hunt expects the players will leave in the middle of September. 

Scrimmages

Monday will be a busy day with four main camp scrimmages starting at 8:30 a.m. and ending at 7:15 p.m. Main camp will wrap up on Tuesday with the Green vs. White game at 7 p.m. at the Art Hauser Centre.
 

jdandrea@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @jeff_dandrea