The Raiders were dropped by the ICE at the Art Hauser Centre on Dec. 30. They'll be looking to exact revenge with a pair of games in Winnipeg this weekend. (Jeff D'Andrea/paNOW Staff)

By Trevor Redden

Redden on the Raiders

Redden on the Raiders: Top Prospects announced, Belarusians return, Culling joins the club

Jan 3, 2020 | 12:19 PM

The Prince Albert Raiders are facing the most adversity they’ve seen in some time, currently mired in a six-game losing skid dating back to before the Christmas break.

On the surface, you might think the team has lost their groove, because there’s no way you can lose six games in a row by accident.

I’m not saying it’s accidental, and there are plenty of areas the team needs to improve, but a look at the underlying numbers tells you the club has deserved a better fate in this stretch.

In four losses since the Christmas break, Prince Albert has outshot their opponents (Saskatoon twice, Winnipeg, and Regina) 128-68, an average of 32-17 per game. The Raiders have scored just eight goals on those 128 shots, a conversion rate of 6.3 per cent, and have allowed 14 goals against, putting the opposition’s combined scoring rate at 20.6 per cent, or a goal approximately every five shots. Accounting for one empty net goal in Saskatoon, that comes down to 19.4 per cent.

Of course, goaltending has been an easy target, and rightfully so at times, but it’s much more than that.

International Spotlight

P.A.'s Howe one of 4 Sask. born players named to Canada's World Junior roster

13h ago

National

Ottawa to remove 30% investment cap for Canadian pension funds

16h ago

Budget woes

Golf and curling centre faces grim season without financial boost

20h ago

The Raiders are currently ninth in the WHL in goals for with 130 on the season. Nothing spectacular, but this is clearly not a team that has had major issues putting the puck in the back of the net. Unless every player received a new wrong-handed stick for Christmas, there is no reason to believe the scoring touch won’t come back sooner or later.

At the other end of the rink, the Raiders have allowed the sixth-fewest goals league-wide. I don’t care how good your defensive players and system are, you don’t find yourself in the top quarter of the league with poor goaltending. Both Boston Bilous and Carter Serhyenko have had some tough games lately, but don’t forget that they’ve led this team to 20 wins in the first half of the season.

There are always areas to improve, and each player up and down the lineup is searching for a way they can help the team right now, but I don’t see any reason why these losing ways should continue.

Raiding the Top Prospects Game

Prior to Christmas, both Kaiden Guhle and Ozzy Wiesblatt were named to the upcoming Kubota CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game, an annual showcase of the top 40 draft-eligible players from across the CHL.

A former first-overall pick in the WHL bantam draft, Guhle has been a highly touted prospect for years, but is still excited at the opportunity in front of him.

“It’s awesome to get to be a part of that game,” Guhle said. “It was a goal I set out for myself at the start of the year and I’m excited to represent my team and the city of Prince Albert. It will be a lot of fun.”

As for Wiesblatt, he came in slightly more under the radar as a second-round draft pick, but his play as a rookie quickly put him in the limelight both in Prince Albert and across the hockey world. Wiesblatt finished with 39 points in 64 regular season games last year, second-most among 16-year-old behind Vancouver’s Justin Sourdif.

Wiesblatt acknowledged it’s been beneficial to him to be a part of a successful organization.

“It’s obviously a huge honour [to be selected to the game], but I can say for both myself and Kaiden that our teammates are a huge part of it, so a lot of credit is due to them. We’re surrounded by a really good coaching staff and organization so we’re really lucky,” Wiesblatt said.

Guhle pointed out it’s even more special for the two of them to be able to experience the event together. Just like the two were a part of Canada’s Hlinka Gretzky Cup team this summer, and both took part in the Under-17 Challenge last fall.

“It’s awesome to get to go out there with him. He’s an unreal player and a good buddy of mine, so to get him to come with me, it’s really awesome to get to do that,” Guhle said.

The nationally televised game will take place Thursday, Jan. 16 in Hamilton, Ont.

Belarussians return to Prince Albert

On Dec. 27, Aliaksei Protas and Ilya Usau returned to the Raider lineup after missing six games earlier in the month to represent Belarus at the Division 1A World Junior Championships in Minsk.

Belarus finished second in the tournament, one point back of first-place Austria who will be promoted to the World Junior Championships in Edmonton and Red Deer next December.

Despite the disappointing result, Protas said it was a great opportunity to play at home.

“It was a big honour to represent the country in front of our fans,” Protas said. “It was a really good crowd every game so we tried to bring our best, but we lost so we’re looking forward to our next tournament.”

Usau echoed his teammate’s comments, relishing the opportunity to play in his home city.

“It was a huge honour and a great experience. There were good teams there and good players, and playing at home was excellent,” Usau said.

“There were a lot of people there cheering loud for us, and a lot of family and close friends, it’s just unfortunate that we couldn’t win.”

Protas also acknowledged the support they received across the Atlantic Ocean from Prince Albert during the tournament.

“We saw [the tweet], thank you to them. We’re so happy to have Raider fans supporting us all the way over there, we’re so happy for them.”

The two have provided a spark to the Raider lineup since returning to Prince Albert, combining for 13 points in four games.

Culling moves north

On the first day back from the Christmas break, the Raiders made a swap with the Swift Current Broncos, sending 2001-born forward Cole Nagy to the Broncos in exchange for 2001-born forward Matthew Culling.

Culling produced 21 points as a 17-year-old with the Broncos last year, and said he’s excited to join the Raiders based on what he’s seen as an opponent over the last year and a half.

“They’re a super hard-working team, we saw that last year. It’s a quick team with lots of speed, and I think that fits in well with my game so I’m happy to be here now,” Culling said.

Culling is a former teammate of Eric Pearce, with the two winning a Saskatchewan Midget AAA Hockey League championship with the Regina Pat Canadians in the 2016-17 season, advancing all the way to the Telus Cup.

Manitoba time

The Raiders are on the road this weekend for three games in three days in the Keystone province starting Friday night in Brandon [7:30 puck drop, 7:00 pre-game on CKBI].

After the tilt with the Wheat Kings, the Raiders will continue moving east for back-to-back showdowns with the Winnipeg ICE on Saturday [7:30 puck drop, 7:00 pre-game on CKBI] and Sunday [6:00 puck drop, 5:30 pre-game on CKBI].

Prince Albert enters the weekend two points back of the ICE for first place in the East Division, and eight points up on Brandon.

–

trevor.redden@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @Trevor_Redden