The rowdy atmosphere inside the Art Hauser Centre will be on display this weekend as Rogers Sportsnet will be televising the first three games between Prince Albert and Saskatoon. (Jeff D'Andrea/paNOW Staff)

By Trevor Redden

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After being at or near the top of the national rankings all season long, the Prince Albert Raiders will remain in the national spotlight this weekend.

Rogers’ Sportsnet has announced that the first three games of the Raiders’ round two series against Saskatoon will be nationally televised from coast to coast.

Business Manager Michael Scissons said that Rogers’ decision to come to Prince Albert is a testament to what the organization has been able to do all year.

“To be on Sportsnet is just a tremendous accomplishment for the organization, as well as a great showcase for our organization, the city of Prince Albert, and the Western Hockey League,” Scissons said.

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For those wanting to be a part of the action in the building, Scissons said there are still around 200 standing room tickets available for Sunday night, while Friday’s game officially sold out on Tuesday. He noted that all actual seats in the building were bought up within half an hour of when they went on sale last Friday.

This is the first time since 2005 that the Raiders have reached the second round of the WHL playoffs, and Scissons said the continued success has been great for the organization.

“Not only from a financial standpoint, but I think what we need to talk about as well is just the fandom that’s around Prince Albert, which is happening everywhere. The longer the boys play, the more it gets crazed up a little bit. We’re seeing signs and people are decorating their house and their cars, and it’s just been fantastic. We just want to see that continue here for as long as we can possibly have it,” he said.

For those attending this weekend’s games, there will be plenty of activities for fans to enjoy outside of the playoff hockey. Lakeland Ford will provide fans with games and giveaways on Friday, while Lake Country Co-op is holding a pre-game barbecue in the parking lot on Sunday afternoon ahead of the 6 p.m. puck drop. Both games will also feature a guaranteed take home 50/50 prize of $10,000.

Once the series shifts back to Saskatoon for game three on Tuesday, fans will have the option to hop on a bus to take in the game. The bus will leave the Art Hauser Centre at 5 p.m. on Tuesday and Wednesday, bringing fans to and from the SaskTel Centre in Saskatoon. For adults, the cost is $55 and for children, it’s $30. This includes transportation, refreshments on the bus, and a game ticket.

As raucous as the Art Hauser Centre will be this weekend, Scissons also expects the Raiders to have a strong presence in Saskatoon as well.

“You’ll be sitting with other Raider fans, making a whole lot of noise in that building that’s not really used to having much noise, so it will be great to have some Raider noise in that place,” he said.

“They’ve got those great lights outside of that building now too, and I think if we can go down there and pick up a couple wins, they should be lighting it up green outside because we’ll be painting it green on the inside too.”

If you’re the superstitious type and don’t want to switch up your routine, you can still catch all the action on CKBI as Marty Ring and I will be broadcasting each game throughout the playoffs, including a comprehensive pre-game show beginning an hour before puck drop each night.

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trevor.redden@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @Trevor_Redden