Raiders forward Krzysztof Macias passes the puck away from a Warriors attacker on Dec. 30, 2023. (Mark Peterson/Prince Albert Raiders)

By Logan Lehmann

Narrow defeat

Warriors extend Raiders skid to three to close out 2023

Dec 30, 2023 | 11:29 PM

The Prince Albert Raiders ran out of turtle power during their final game of 2023 on Saturday night.

Sporting Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle themed jerseys in support of the Children’s Miracle Network, the Raiders welcomed the Moose Jaw Warriors to the Art Hauser Centre and dropped a closely contested game, 2-1.

The loss is the third in a row for P.A. as the team also fell to .500 entering the New Year.

With Moose Jaw missing some of their big names because of the World Juniors tournament in Sweden, Raiders head coach Jeff Truitt said it’s not an excuse to play like it’s going to be a cakewalk.

“It doesn’t matter if they’re in or they’re out, you got to find a way to win,” he said.

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“I think we had too many passengers and I thought we had guys who cheated in some areas,” Truitt continued. “The first period I don’t have a problem with. But in the second – when it’s 1-0, you need to build and you need to score and we needed to score and generate more quality opportunities. When there’s battles and a little adversity, you can’t cheat on things and I thought some of our guys cheated in some areas tonight which opened up things for them. 2-1, we tried to battle back but didn’t get it done. We need a lot more push from a lot more guys. We need everyone on board.”

Easton Kovacs had the lone marker for the Raiders while Niall Crocker picked up the assist.

Cumberland House product Pavel McKenzie along with Brayden Schuurman tallied goals for the Warriors while Atley Calvert and Ethan Semeniuk were credited with the helpers.

Max Hildebrand got the nod for P.A. in net, making 23 stops as the Raiders dropped to 17-17-0-2 on the campaign.

Jackson Unger roamed the crease for Moose Jaw and was near perfect with 25 saves to help the Warriors improve to 20-14-0-2 this season.

COMPLETE BOX SCORE

The goose egg was broken late in the first period with the Raiders getting on the board first. Crocker carried the puck down the side boards and dropped the puck off at the blueline for Kovacs, who one-timed home his fourth of the season with 47 seconds remaining in the frame.

The lead didn’t last long into the second period when McKenzie lit the lamp just over five minutes in to knot the score at 1-1.

Moose Jaw took the lead a short time later when Schuurman fired a shot that beat Hildebrand high glove side to make it 2-1.

Fast forward to late in the third period, when the Raiders pulled the goalie for the extra man in an attempt to tie the game but their efforts fell short as the Warriors hung on.

The Raiders will be back at the Art Hauser Centre on Tuesday night for the team’s skills competition before they head to Moose Jaw for a rematch with the Warriors on Friday night.

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loganc.lehmann@pattisonmedia.com