Evan Smith's line with Ben Harvey and Connor Howe were one of the highlights of the Raiders offence Sunday night as the Raiders won 3-1 over the Saskatoon Blades. (Image Credit: Steve Hiscock/Saskatoon Blades)

By Nick Nielsen

Raiders win 3-1

Raiders earn payback over Blades in second half of weekend series

Feb 2, 2026 | 10:13 AM

With 20 games left to play on the season and already a chance to clinch a spot in the playoffs, the Prince Albert Raiders sputtered in the weekend opener on Saturday with the Saskatoon Blades. For the Sunday rematch in Saskatoon, the Raiders came out with a renewed motivation and poured pressure on to take the 3-1 win with an empty netter.

The Raiders played with the lines a little bit for Sunday’s game, but the one line that stayed together was the group of Connor Howe, Evan Smith, and Ben Harvey and they broke open the scoring early. At 5:34, Smith sent the puck out of his zone to Brock Cripps going up the left side of centre, and he dumped the puck in around the boards to Harvey going up the right wing. Howe didn’t pick up an assist on the play, but he did make a check that helped Harvey get the puck free. Harvey danced off the wall around three defenders before ripping a backhand under the bar for his fourth of the year.

Special teams got tested in the back half of the second period. First it was the Raiders penalty kill which fended off about 1:30 of a 5-on-3 kill. After that, the Raiders had an unsuccessful first crack at the power play, and the Blades got one more at the end of the period that carried into the second.

Both the Raiders Steele Bass and Blades Evan Gardner started in goal for the second straight night, and both looked solid through the first period.

After 1: Raiders 1 – 1 Blades, shots 12-9 Raiders

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The Raiders quickly killed the penalty in the start of the second, and both teams came out strong, but the Blades found their way on the scoreboard. After the Raiders had a great a 2-on-1 chance, the puck came around the left wall out to centre and gave Dustin Willhoft the puck on a 2-on-1 chance with fellow German David Lewandowski. Willhoft fed Lewandowski, and he fired to the back of the net at 11:54.

At the end of the second period, it was time for the Raiders to get a chance at a 5-on-3 after Tyler Parr ran over the Raiders goaltender and Rowan Calvert grappeled a Raider to the ground on the same play. That meant a full 2:00 of 5-on-3 to finish the period with less than thirty seconds carrying over into the third, and the Raiders put on a ton of pressure, but couldn’t solve Evan Gardener.

After 2: Raiders 1 – 1 Blades, shots 13-13, 25-22 Raiders overall

The third period saw the Raiders turn things up a notch offensively, but Evan Gardener was determined to give the Blades a chance as he made save after save. At the other end, Steele Bass wasn’t tested often, but he was tested early when the Germans attacked again. Willhoft and Lewandowski on a 2-on-1 again, but this time Bass got across for a key save early in the period.

The Raiders penalty kill was 4/4 headed into the third period, and halfway through their power play got to make the difference with their fourth opportunity. At 11:50, Daxon Rudolph at the right point played the puck up the right wall for Max Heise, and Heise made a great pass through traffic to Aiden Oiring. Gardener had stopped Oiring on a couple chances earlier in the night, but this time Oiring fired quickly for the go ahead goal and his 22nd of the season.

At the 18:28, the Blades had pulled Gardener and the Raiders went to work trying to get the puck under control in their own zone. The loose puck eventually came to the left wall, and Braeden Cootes tracked it down. He had pressure coming, so without hesitation he quickly spun and let the puck go, hitting the empty net from 170 feet away for his 15th of the year.

FINAL: Raiders 3 – 1 Blades, shots 23-5 Raiders, 48-27 Raiders overall

In just his second start against a team in a playoff spot, Steele Bass put together his best game as a Raider. With 26 saves on 27 shots, good for a 0.962 save percentage, Bass had a few key saves including a breakaway from Rowan Calvert in the second, and then the earlier mentioned stop on the 2-on-1 later that period. His record improves to 8-1-0.

With Daxon Rudolph picking up an assist on the Aiden Oiring goal, the two of them will continue to stay tied at the top of the Raiders scoring race. Oiring has 22G-33A-55P, and Rudolph has 21G-34A-55P.

The Raiders are now just one win away from clinching a playoff spot, and could even claim that spot before they play their next game if the Red Deer Rebels lose on Tuesday. The Raiders still have 20 games left on the season, and they will play their next four in a row at home starting with the Calgary Hitmen on Wednesday.

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nick.nielsen@pattisonmedia.com