A-O, One of the most reliable centres in the WHL

“That’s the pride I have to want to play every game. I love it so much and I want to help the team out in every way I can. I think the first way of doing that is just showing up and playing the game.”

Oiring’s strengths in his game were often things that go unnoticed by fans, but loved by the players. In particular Oiring was known as one of the league’s best faceoff men, evidenced by winning 248 of 435 faceoffs in the playoffs, good for a 57 per cent winning percentage. That’s more faceoffs taken and won than anyone else in the playoffs.

That isn’t to say Oiring didn’t provide some big moments for the fans in his time here. Very rarely did Oiring go more than a single game without a point, he put up four points in a night on three different occasions, and this season he scored the annual Teddy Bear Toss goal that made it rain stuffies in the Art Hauser Centre.

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His best game as a Raider may have been March 15, 2025, during his 19-year-old season and just the second game under newly named Interim Head Coach Ryan McDonald, where Oiring carried the team to a comeback victory by scoring three straight goals, including a shorthanded marker and the overtime winner, for his first and only career hat trick.

He said his favourite memories were the drives to the rink with his billet brother and linemate, Brayden Dube.

“The drives to the rink. I think he’s driven way more than I have, so hopping into that passenger seat and heading to the rink every day (is one of my favourite memories).”

For two years in a row, Oiring was named the Fan Favourite player of the year in Prince Albert. Not only was he effective on the ice, but off the ice he was involved with charity initiatives including donating $50 to KidSport for every point he scored in his final season.

Oiring hopes the work he did both on and off the ice carries forward with the future Raiders to come.

“Just the mark we left on the community. We were very active outside the rink. I hope we left a good footprint, us 20-year-olds. We’re happy with what we’ve accomplished here in the years we’ve been here, and we couldn’t be more happy. It feels pretty special to be part of a group that just kept getting better each and every year. We didn’t make playoffs the first year, and then to finish off at the high of battling for the championship. It means a lot to go through the whole process,” he said.

Oiring’s hockey career will continue in NCAA Div. I with the University of Nebraska-Omaha Mavericks, where he’ll play a number of former WHL opponents including former Raiders teammate and current Calgary Hitmen forward Ty Meunier.

“Super excited. They’ve been pretty vocal of how excited they are too. So I’m looking forward to the end of summer and to head down there.”

While the next chapter is ahead, playing as part of a group that just got better and better over the years has been a privilege for Oiring, and he’s thankful he got to perform for HockeyTown North.

“Thank you for all the support you guys have shown throughout my career here. You guys have been the best. Like I’ve always said, it’s the best, best fans in the league.”

Once a Raider, always a Raider.

by Nick Nielsen

A-O, One of the most reliable centres in the WHL

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