Niall Crocker makes a pass against the Blades in Game 3 on Wednesday night in Prince Albert. (Mark Peterson/Prince Albert Raiders)

By Logan Lehmann

Gameday preview

Raiders look to extend series in must-win Game 5 in Saskatoon

Apr 5, 2024 | 12:17 PM

The Prince Albert Raiders (1-2-1-0) are hoping to keep their playoff run, and season, alive on Friday night as their first-round series against the rival Saskatoon Blades (3-1-0-0) shifts back to the SaskTel Centre for Game 5.

The Raiders enter Game 5 with their backs against the wall and need a win to see another day while the Blades have an opportunity to advance to round two with a victory.

The series began a little over a week ago on Thursday in Saskatoon that saw Prince Albert stun the league with a 4-3 win in Game 1. Since then, the series has been all Blue and Gold as the Blades have gone on to win Games 2, 3, and 4.

With the Raiders down in the series, P.A. will need to overcome a 3-1 deficit if they want to move on to round two.

Although a daunting task, the feat was last seen in the WHL Playoffs back in 2022 when the Seattle Thunderbirds clawed their way back against the Portland Winterhawks to take the series in the second round. The Thunderbirds would eventually beat Kamloops in the Western Final before meeting Edmonton in the WHL Finals where the Oil Kings went on to win the Ed Chynoweth Cup.

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If the Raiders manage to pull out a victory in front of a hostile Saskatoon crowd on Friday, the series will head back to Hockeytown North a day later on Saturday as Game 6 is set for 7:00 p.m. at the Art Hauser Centre. If the P.A. also wins that, a series-deciding Game 7 will take place on Monday night at 7:00 p.m. inside the SaskTel Centre.

More information about Friday’s contest.

Who to Watch

2024 NHL Draft prospect Ryder Ritchie continues to turn heads with his impressive first-round performance thus far. Through the first four contests, the Kelowna product has six points split evenly (3g, 3a) and tallied P.A.’s lone marker during Wednesday’s Game 4 loss. The 17-year-old finished the regular season sixth in team scoring, with 19 goals and 25 assists in 47 games.

Forward Aiden Oiring picked up an assist during P.A.’s Game 4 defeat to add to his playoff totals on Wednesday. With the helper, the Calgary native is now up to three points in the postseason as he scored in Game 1 and again in Game 3. Against Saskatoon this year in both the regular season and playoffs, the 18-year-old has four goals and five assists in 14 games.

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loganc.lehmann@pattisonmedia.com

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