Kaiden Guhle tries a wraparound on Oil Kings goalie Sebastian Cossa in the third period. (Andy Devlin/Edmonton Oil Kings)

By Rob Mahon

Cossa Stones Raiders

Late push for Raiders falls short in Edmonton

Nov 20, 2021 | 10:56 AM

For the second game in a row against the Edmonton Oil Kings, the Prince Albert Raiders mounted a valiant comeback effort in the third period, eventually piling up over 40 shots on goal. For the second game in a row, however, it wasn’t enough.

Sebastian Cossa stopped 44 of 47 shots and six different Oil Kings scored, as Edmonton downed Prince Albert 6-3. Hayden Pakkala, Landon Kosior, and Reece Vitelli answered for the Raiders, who surrendered 32 shots on goal.

The Raiders started strong, outshooting the Oil Kings 14-10 in the opening frame, but it was Edmonton who left the period with the 1-0 lead. On the power play, Simon Kubicek (who also opened the scoring the last time these teams met) snuck one through the pads of Carter Serhyenko, one-timing a puck from the middle of the ice after the Oil Kings won a faceoff.

As they had in the previous meeting, the Oil Kings put the pedal down in the second, striking twice quickly. First, Carter Souch was the beneficiary of an odd bounce as the puck popped out of Serhyenko’s glove right to him at the side of the crease. Then, Dylan Guenther went in two-on-one and looked shot all the way, beating Serhyenko short side to make it 3-0 on another man advantage.

It appeared as if the Raiders would halt the Oil Kings’ momentum from there. Pakkala knocked home a power play goal as Nolan Allan let a shot fly that got blocked but dropped right down at his feet. They began to apply more pressure, but the Oil Kings got the momentum back quickly when a puck rolled off Zachary Wilson’s stick in the defensive zone, and Kobe Verbicky snapped one low-blocker to make it 4-1.

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Guenther and Jake Neighbours scored the last goal Serhyenko would allow late in the second, working a three-way passing play that ended with Neighbours finishing it off at the side of the net. Tikhon Chaika replaced him to start the third.

Early in the third, the Raiders got a major shot in the arm when Kosior went on a beautiful rush at four-on-four, splitting the defense and lifting a backhander past the outstretched blocker of Cossa. Then they got a little more momentum when Sloan Stanick, Tyson Laventure, and Vitelli worked a cycle that ended with Vitelli snapping one home from in close.

Back-to-back Raider power plays couldn’t solve Cossa, however, despite piling up shots on goal. Late in the third, the Oil Kings ended their comeback hopes when a strange shot by Jacob Boucher bounced off two Raider players before slipping through Chaika to make it 6-3.

A quick turnaround will help the Raiders forget a frustrating loss as they get back to work tomorrow night against the Red Deer Rebels. The puck drops at 8:00 p.m. Saskatchewan time.

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rob.mahon@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @RobMahonPxP