Michal Orsulak had to make some sharp saves on an early powerplay in the third period, but the Raiders held their ground to win 4-3. (Image Credit: Andy Devlin/Edmonton Oil Kings)

By Nick Nielsen

Raiders win 4-3

Raiders hold on for gutsy win over Oil Kings

Mar 8, 2026 | 10:03 PM

After splitting the first two games in their three game Alberta road trip, the Prince Albert Raiders looked to finish the three games in three nights stretch against the Edmonton Oil Kings. The Raiders dominated the second period before going into survival mode near the end of the third, but survive they did and came away with a 4-3 win.

The first period took a while to get going, but once it did it really got going. The Oil Kings opened the scoring and took their only lead of the game when Landon Hanson entered the zone with the puck on the right side with Jaxon Fuder a step behind him in the middle. Hanson fed Fuder in the slot, but instead of shooting Fuder gave it right back to Hanson who fired to give the Oil Kings the lead at 12:41.

It took the Raiders 45 seconds to answer and tie the game. At 13:26 right after Riley Boychuk wired a onetimer off the post, Brandon Gorzynski picked up the rebound in the corner and played the puck back to the line for Justice Christensen at the right point, and Christensen sent the puck across the line to Daxon Rudolph on the left. Rudolph made a move around a stickless defender into the middle of the slot, and Rudolph ripped a wrist shot off the post and in for his 27th of the season.

After finishing the play for the first goal, Daxon Rudolph started the play on the second one with a breakout pass that gave Maddix McCagherty room to walk into the offensive zone on the left wall. Once he reached the hashmarks, McCagherty dropped the puck back for Justice Christensen, and from the top of the left circle he fired for his 16th of the season at 16:05.

Then at the 17:45, the Oil Kings tied it. The Oil Kings dumped the puck in deep and two forwards went on the forecheck below the goal line while three Raiders followed them to try and take it away. Instead, the Oil Kings won the race and Kayden Stroeder found the third man in, Lukas Sawchyn, alone in the slot who fired it to tie the game.

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After 1: Raiders 2 – 2 Oil Kings, shots 8-4 Raiders

With a powerplay to start the second, the Raiders found their powerplay tally 28 seconds into the period. All five guys on the ice had a hand in this one as Brock Cripps and Daxon Rudolph went back and forth with the puck at the blueline as they looked to be setting up an attack from the left. With the defenders shifting that way, Cripps found Boychuk at the right point, then he ticked it to the corner for Aiden Oiring, who tacked it to the slot for Max Heise, and he toed the onetimer into the back of the net fo rhis 26th of the season.

Then something rare happend: the Raiders scored a shorthanded goal. At the 3:29 mark, the Raiders had dumped the puck into the Oil Kings zone and as they tried to exit, they sent a pass up the wall that was taken away by Linden Burrett at the right side of the blueline. Four sets of Oil Kings eyes all focused on Burrett and started to close in, but that left a passing lane to Aiden Oiring sneaking into the slot behind, and Oiring buried his 28th of the season on a backhand.

After 2: Raiders 4 – 2 Oil Kings, shots 9-8 Oil Kings, 16-13 Raiders overall

The Oil Kings started the third period with a full 2:00 powerplay, and things got a little wild when Michal Orsulak had to make three great saves back to back to back. The Oil Kings got a shot in tight and Orsulak made the save, but the rebound set up a onetimer from the left side that Orsulak got across to make the save. The second rebound came out to the middle, and Orsulak sprawled right to make another save before the Raiders finally cleared the puck.

From there the Oil Kings had the momentum, and at 8:55 Carter Sotheran stole a pass from the Raiders at centre and entered down the right side on the rush. Sotheran dropped the puck back on the wall and drove the net, and after a onetimer from the slot Sotheran found the rebound and tapped it in to make it a one goal game.

The Raiders were in survival mode a little after that with a few consecutive shifts where they could only clear the puck out to centre to get a change, but by the time they had fresh skaters on the ice the Oil Kings were already coming back on the attack. Still, the Raiders managed to fend them off, and by the time the goaltender was pulled the Raiders had started to fight back to earn the win.

FINAL: Raiders 4 – 3 Oil Kings, shots 11-7 Oil Kings, 24-23 Oil Kings overall

With a goal and an assist on the night, Daxon Rudolph is the first Raider to reach the 70 point mark on the season. His 27th goal of the year also places him one goal shy of Josh Morrissey’s record for most goals in a season by a Raiders defenceman. Morrissey set the record in 2013-14 with 28 goals, and 73 points on the season. Rudolph’s 70 points is the 11th most by a Raiders defenceman in a season, or sixth in the WHL era. Rudolph has five games left to break Morrissey’s record.

Aiden Oiring and Justice Christensen also picked up a goal and an assist on the night. Oiring’s shorthanded goal gives him the team lead with 28, and it’s his second shorthanded goal of the season, and third of the year for the Raiders.

Max Heise also seems to have found his scoring touch once more. With a goal tonight, that’s two goals in the last three games after going without a goal for 16 games. Still, Heise’s 26 goals this season has him fourth on the Raiders, and just two goals behind the team lead.

The Raiders pick up two tough wins out of three on the weekend. This is the fourth time this season the Raiders have played three games in three nights. In those twelve games, the Raiders are 10-2 in those games with a perfect 4-0 record in the third game of those stretches.

The Raiders will now have some rest as they get ready to welcome the Moose Jaw Warriors to town on Friday.

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nick.nielsen@pattisonmedia.com