Redden on the Raiders: Scott sets records, “Scotty” comes to Prince Albert

Playoffs are right around the corner, but we still don’t know who the Raiders will face in round one as Medicine Hat and Red Deer continue to battle in the Central Division, while Brandon is still hanging on by a thread. More on that later in the column, but we’ve got a lot to get to this week starting with some impressive performances by the CHL’s Goaltender of the Week, Ian Scott.

Record-setting week for Scott

It was a productive week to say the least for Scott. He posted three straight shutout wins against the Swift Current Broncos and was able to set two new franchise records in the process.

The three shutouts were the sixth, seventh, and eighth of the year for the Calgary native, putting him alone in franchise history for blank slates in a single season. He surpassed the previous record of six, which was shared by Rejean Beauchemin [2003-04] and Luke Siemens [2012-13]. Heading into the third of those games, Scott said it’s an honour to be in the record book.

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“It’s a pretty cool accomplishment. I’ll definitely remember it forever, but it wouldn’t be possible without the team in front of me,” Scott said. “A lot of thanks goes to them and the way they’ve played all season and making this happen.”

With his third consecutive shutout on Sunday, the Toronto Maple Leafs prospect broke a 24-year-old franchise record for consecutive scoreless minutes. From September 22 to 26, 1995, Craig Hordal kept the puck out of the net for the Raiders for 128:32 over the course of three games. Heading into the final weekend of the season, Scott’s streak is now at 180:00.

Injury updates

Following Sunday’s game, there were two players on the mend as Cole Fonstad missed the contest with an injury described as day to day, and Dante Hannoun left in the third period after taking a heavy hit from Broncos captain Tanner Nagel.

On Thursday Marc Habscheid said Fonstad is ready to go and will play this weekend, but Hannoun probably won’t. The coach said he expects the 20-year-old Hannoun to be ready any day.

What to expect this weekend?

With nothing on the line against the Saskatoon Blades, I’ve had some conversations regarding what kind of games we’ll see between the two rival teams as they both prepare for playoffs.

As far as I understand, we won’t be seeing many affiliates in the lineup for Prince Albert, if any, for a couple of reasons. First, most of the players that are signed by the Raiders are still playing with their respective teams. Secondly, Habscheid pointed out that it’s a light schedule and these are the only two games in the 12 days leading up to playoffs, so it’s important for the players to play.

Of all signed players who are currently not on the roster but have played at least a game with the Raiders this year, only forward Cohner Saleski [Mintos] and goaltender Brett Balas [Calgary Canucks, AJHL] are done playing with their respective teams. Nolan Allan and Cole Nagy [Saskatoon Blazers, SMAAAHL] are currently battling the Tisdale Trojans in the second round of playoffs, Evan Herman [Rink Hockey Academy] and Tyson Laventure [OHA Edmonton] are in Penticton at the CSSHL Championships, Konrad Belcourt [Fort McMurray, AJHL] is heading into the second round of playoffs with the Oil Barons against Sherwood Park, and Braydon Clark [Valley West Giants, BCMML] begins playoffs this weekend against the Fraser Valley Thunderbirds.

While this may limit the Raiders options, it doesn’t sound like the team is wanting to sit too many players against the Blades.

From an organizational standpoint, it’s great to see so many players earning valuable playoff experience with their respective teams.

Scoreboard watching

We saw a little bit of separation this week in the race for the final two wildcard spots in the Eastern Conference, with the Raiders preparing to face the second wildcard team in round one.

After a win over Red Deer on Wednesday night, paired with a Rebels loss to Lethbridge on Tuesday, the Medicine Hat Tigers have clinched a playoff spot and currently hold the top wildcard spot in the conference. The Tigers are two points up on Red Deer with two games left against Kootenay and Lethbridge.

Following back-to-back losses, the Rebels sit in the final wildcard spot but hold a four-point margin on Brandon. A single point will earn Red Deer entry into the postseason, and they will also wrap up their regular season against Lethbridge and Kootenay.

As for Brandon, they need the stars to align for a playoff appearance. Following a Wednesday night loss to Moose Jaw, the Wheat Kings will need back-to-back wins over Regina this weekend coupled with two regulation losses from Red Deer to set up a tiebreaker.

Fanfare this weekend

Raider fans have been treated to a special season this year, and there will be a couple opportunities for fans to celebrate the success to this point in the coming days.

Saturday night will be Fan Appreciation Night as the Raiders wrap up the regular season against the Blades at home on Saturday night.

Business manager Michael Scissons expects a near-capacity crowd if not a full sellout and said the fan-designed jerseys that the team will wear should add a fun element to the game. The winning design came from Virden, Manitoba’s Brooks Freeman who won a pair of tickets to the game as well as a customized version of his sweater.

In addition to the sweater, Scissons touched on a large 50/50 jackpot, prizes throughout the night, and most importantly some shiny hardware during a pregame presentation.

“We did win the Scotty Munro Trophy [as WHL regular season champions], and the Commissioner of the WHL Ron Robison will be here Saturday to present that trophy before the game which is just another thing for the fans to enjoy, because that will be an exciting thing for all of us.”

The Raiders will formally put a bow on the regular season Monday night with an awards banquet at the Ches Leach Lounge.

Next week in this space I’ll be looking ahead to night one of playoffs at the Art Hauser Centre, and I can’t wait to get it started!

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trevor.redden@jpbg.ca