Weekend Preview: Raiders set for game in Moose Jaw, home game with Swift Current

On special teams, the Raiders still boast the fifth-ranked power play in the league at 28.9 per cent, and the penalty kill is still right in the middle of the league at 11th, operating at 77.1 per cent.

In scoring, the Raiders now have three players at the 60 point mark. Aiden Oiring still leads this season with with 26G-35A-61P. The other two to hit 60 are Brandon Gorzynski with 25G-35A-60P and Daxon Rudolph with 24G-36A-60P. Rounding out the top four is Max Heise with 24G-29A-53P.

Scoring streaks:

Linden Burrett has 2G-2A in his last three games
Both Gorzynski and Alisher Sarkenov have 1G-2A in their last two games
Ben Harvey has 2G-0A in his last two games
Rudolph has 1G-1A in his last two games
Both Oiring and Benett Kelly have 0G-2A in their last two games

Finally on to the goaltending matchup, Michal Orsulak is coming off a win at the WHL Prospects Game with a record of 20-4-3 on the year, a 0.900 save percentage, a 2.42 goals against average, and two shutouts on the year. Behind him is Steele Bass with a record of 9-2-1, a 0.910 save percentage, a 1.91 goals against average, and two shutouts on the year.

Friday @ Moose Jaw

This is the second time this week the Raiders will meet the Warriors and the fifth time of six this season. The Raiders are undefeated in all four matchups this year, 6-4 on Nov. 1 in Prince Albert, 3-2 in a shootout on Jan. 22 in Moose Jaw, again in Moose Jaw 4-3 on Jan. 27, and then earlier this week 6-1 on Feb 16.

The Warriors are searching for a win after losing their last three games. There was the Monday loss in Prince Albert 6-1, and then two straight losses to Regina 5-2 at home and 4-2 in Regina. Their last point came in a 4-3 overtime loss to Brandon on Feb. 10, but have since lost their last five games in regulation. Their last win was on Feb. 4, 5-3 over Swift Current.

The Warriors are fighting for their playoff lives as they sit in ninth place in the Eastern Conference, one point back of the Red Deer Rebels. The Warriors have a record of 19-29-5-2 on the year.

As for special teams, the Warriors powerplay is in the top half of the league at 26.6 per cent, good for ninth. The penalty kill, however, has not helped them much as they sit second last at 69.9 per cent.

Leading the Warriors in scoring is Landen McFadden with 27G-33A-60P. Pavel McKenzie sits second with 16G-40A-56P, then Aiden Ziprick sits third with 15G-31A-46P. There’s a steeper drop off to fourth with Ethan Semeniuk at 12G-25A-37P.

Scoring streaks:

Nolan Paquette has 0G-2A in his last two games

Between the pipes, the Warriors have a tandem lead by Chase Wutzke. The Warriors starter has a record of 11-19-3-1 this season, a 0.903 save percentage, a 3.39 goals against average, and one shutout this year.

Kyle Jones has been backing him up, with a record of 6-11-2-1, a 0.864 save percentage, and a 4.87 goals against average.

Saturday vs. Swift Current

This is the eighth and final time this season the Raiders will take on the Swift Current Broncos, and the Raiders have won all seven matchups so far this season.

First the Raiders won at home Oct. 24, 4-0, then Oct. 25 in Swift Current 5-0. The Raiders won again in Swift Current Dec. 12, 7-4, then again in Swift Current 7-1 on Dec. 27, and then at home Dec. 29, 8-0. The Raiders won again at home Jan. 9, 6-1, and finally the most recent game on Jan. 23 where the Raiders won in Swift Current, 6-1.

Recently, the Broncos has lost three straight shootouts. On Monday, they lost in Regina 7-6 in the shootout, then 4-3 at home against Brandon on Saturday, and a Friday 6-5 loss in Saskatoon. Before that, the Broncos won 3-1 over Calgary to create a four game point streak.

In the standings, the Broncos are sitting last in the league with a record of 13-35-3-3. With 14 games left on the year, the Broncos are 14 points out of a playoff spot.

Looking at special teams, the Broncos powerplay is in the bottom half of the league at 18.2 per cent, good for 19th in the league. The penalty kill however is ranked last in the league at 68.1 per cent.

Leading the Broncos is Hudson Darby with 14G-22A-36P, while Trae Wilke sits second with 17G-17A-34P, Anthony Wilson sits third with 12G-19A-31P, and Brendan Rudolph takes the fourth spot with 14G-14A-28P.

Scoring streaks:

Trae Johnson has 4G-3A in his last five games
Carter Moen has 2G-5A in his last four games
Anthony Wilson has 0G-4A in his last four games
Wilke has 4G-3A in his last three games

Finally on to the Broncos goaltenders, Aiden Eskit is the leader for the Broncos with a record of 2-12-1-1, a 0.868 save percentage, and a 5.07 goals against average.

From there, the backup situation is a little different. The Broncos have Archer Cooke with a record of 3-7-2-2, a 0.882 save percentage, and a 3.99 goals against average. The Broncos also signed former Raider Dimitri Fortin, but he seems to have gone back to the Calgary Canucks of the AJHL before playing a game for the Broncos.

The Raiders will look to clinch the East Division starting Friday when they head on the road to take on the Moose Jaw Warriors, and then they return home to take on the Swift Current Broncos on Saturday. Puck drops at 7:00 p.m. for both games, and you can listen to the pregame show at 6:30 p.m. on Brandt Raider Radio and 900 CKBI.

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nick.nielsen@pattisonmedia.com

by Nick Nielsen

Weekend Preview: Raiders set for game in Moose Jaw, home game with Swift Current

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