Maddix McCagherty draws a penalty during a partial breakaway as the Raiders battled to a 8-5 victory over the Tigers. (Randy Feere/Medicine Hat Tigers)

By Nick Nielsen

Raiders win 8-5

Raiders tame Tigers to end 19 game winning streak

Jan 18, 2026 | 1:11 AM

With a win on Friday in Lethbridge despite a bit of a lackluster effort, the Prince Albert Raiders needed their A-game Saturday when they took on the Medicine Hat Tigers. The game saw the offence continue to grow throughout the game, but Max Heise’s second hat trick of the year helped the Raiders earn an 8-5 win that snapped the Tigers 19-game winning streak.

The Raiders opened the scoring at that 5:18 mark while cycling the puck in the offensive zone. Maddix McCagherty earned his first point of a big night when he won the puck out of the left side corner and sent it back to the point for Justice Christensen. He sent the puck across the line for Daxon Rudolph, and he fired a shot intentionally wide trying to get a bounce out front, but instead Rudolph’s shot came off the back wall and off the back of the goaltender, earning Rudolph his 20th of the season.

With the Raiders on the first powerplay of the game however, the Tigers scored shorthanded. The Raiders won the draw back but Liam Ruck quickly stole the puck and went up ice on a 2-on-0 with his brother Markus. Liam to Markus, then back to Liam who found the back of the net to tie the game at 8:43.

After 1: Raiders 1 – 1 Tigers, shots 10-9 Raiders

With Aiden Oiring in the box for an offsetting penalty with Josh Van Mulligan at the end of the first, the second period started 4-on-4. The Tigers pressed early, but Justice Christensen had a key block that stopped a goal and got the puck to Braeden Cootes, who then sent it ahead for Daxon Rudolph streaking up the right wall. Rudolph cut to the middle while entering the zone, but his shot was blocked. Max Heise found the rebound, and he potted it for his first of the night and 20th of the season just 34 seconds into the period.

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From there the Raiders went on a run. At the 11:42 mark, Linden Burrett collected the puck at his own blueline and fired it up ice through the middle for Evan Smith. He crossed the blueline and made a great drop pass for Maddix McCagherty, and McCagherty then toedragged into the middle for a better shooting angle and fired for his 12th of the season and first of the game.

At the 15:10 mark, the Raiders scored again. Matyas Man played the puck ahead for Jonah Sivertson entering down the right wall, and Sivertson sent a great pass to the slot for Max Heise cutting in. Heise played the puck off the outside of his skate and to the tip of his stick, and he tucked it fivehole for his second of the night and 21st of the season.

Before the end of the period, the Tigers were starting to take the momentum and they found a goal with 15 seconds left. Jonas Woo tried a shot from the middle of the slot, but a good stick from Evan Smith stuffed the shot. Woo found the puck again quickly however, and his second shot snuck through traffic for to cut into the Raider lead at 19:45.

After 2: Raiders 4 – 2 Tigers, 13-11 Raiders, 23-18 Raiders overall

Down by two, the Tigers weren’t ready to let their winning streak die just yet and they worked to tie it up. At the 4:46 mark, Noah Davidson brought the puck in on a 2-on-1 with Kade Stengrim, and Davidson fired but the puck was stopped and came out the other side for Stengrim. He reached back for the puck, then spun towards his forehand to beat the outstretched pad of Michal Orsulak, and the Tigers were within one.

Then at 11:22, the Tigers tied it. After shot was blocked and came out to the right point for Josh Van Mulligan, and he faked a shot before sending it across the ice for a wide open Markus Ruck who fired a wrists shot to tie the game.

That started a back and forth sequence, and at 12:56 the Raiders took the lead back. From the middle of the blueline, Daxon Rudolph sent the puck to the goal line for Riley Boychuk. He stood to the left of the net with Alisher Sarkenov in front, but by the time Boychuk sent the pass, Sarkenov was crosschecked down to the ice and the puck went off of his face and into the back of the net for Sarkenov’s 10th of the season.

Then at 13:34, the Tigers tied it again at five. From the left wall, former Lethbridge Hurricane Luke Cozens found a lane through a Raiders defender trying to block the shot, and Cozens fired to tie the game with less than seven minutes left. Right after the goal, Brayden Dube was called for a phantom hooking call, but the Raiders penalty kill got the job done.

At the 17:26 mark of the third, the Raiders broke the tie for the final time. Benett Kelly sent a pass up ice for Maddix McCagherty on a 2-on-1 with Max Heise. McCagherty from the left found Heise streaking to the backdoor, and Heise tipped it in for his second hat trick of the season and his 22nd of the year.

Heise and McCagherty weren’t done though as the Tigers pulled the goaltender, and Heise helped turn the puck over just inside his own blueline before sending out to centre for McCagherty, and he walked over the blueline and sent in a backhand at 18:05 for McCagherty’s second of the night and 13th of the year.

The Tigers pulled the goalie again, and again Heise had a big shot block but didn’t get credit for an assist as Braeden Cootes found the loose puck and cleared it down the ice for the empty net and his 12th of the season at 19:30.

FINAL: Raiders 8 – 5 Tigers, shots 14-9 Tigers, 34-32 Tigers overall

With the win, the Raiders snap the Tigers 19 game win streak that dates all the way back to the first matchup of the season November 21st, which includes the first two matchups with the Raiders during that month.

For the second time this season, Alisher Sarkenov scored a goal using his face. Sarkenov said after the game that Boychuk’s pass went in off of his nose, but he said he was fine.

The Raiders went 0/3 on the powerplay during the night. After a stretch that saw the Raiders score at least one powerplay goal in nine straight games and go 51% during that stretch, the Raiders now have one powerplay goal in their last four games.

Justice Christensen’s blocked shot that lead to a goal in the second clearly put him in some discomfort, but he played the rest of the second period as he normally would. In the third period however, the Raiders captain only saw two shifts, once on a penalty kill, and once near the end of the game when the Tigers had their goaltender pulled.

The Raiders have Sunday and Monday off before another busy four games in five nights stretch starting on Tuesday at home against the Victoria Royals.