Raiders forward Justin Nachbaur and Giant defenceman Dylan Plouffe get tangled up in front of the net during Game 1's action. Jeff D'Andrea/paNOW Staff

By Jeff D'Andrea

Game 2 Preview

Raiders regroup for Game 2

May 4, 2019 | 2:01 PM

The Prince Albert Raiders admitted there may have been some nervous energy in the opening game of the 2019 Rogers WHL Championship series, Friday in their 5-4 loss to the Vancouver Giants.

The Raiders took some uncharacteristic penalties in the first period and found themselves down 2-0 within the first six minutes of the game.

“I think some guys were a little more nervous than others. You could definitely tell in the first 10 [minutes],” Raiders assistant captain Zack Hayes said. “I think some guys were able to handle it a little bit better, but the team was a little bit nervous as we’re the guys that everybody wants to knock off.

“It was a little bit nerve wracking but exciting as well,” Hayes added. “We’re all pretty pumped to be here, we just hope we can come out on top tonight.”

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The Raiders will hope that all the nervous energy will stay in Game 1 and not creep any further into the series. Raiders 20-year-old Noah Gregor thinks they’re already gone.

“I think now that it’s out of the way, I think it should correct itself,” said Gregor, who scored a goal in Game 1 Friday. “We’re a veteran team. We know when something goes wrong for us, we’re able to adjust pretty quickly. I think we’ll be able to do that tonight.”

It looked like the Raiders were able to adjust on the fly as the game was happening. They went from a team down 2-0 to firing back with three goals in the second period to tie the game up. Brett Leason, Noah Gregor and Dante Hannoun all scored to make it a 3-3 game, before Yannik Valenti and Dawson Holt scored within the last thirty seconds of the period to regain the lead.

“I thought we just tried to keep an even keel after we gave up two goals in the first, and not try and get them back right away. There was still a lot of time left in the game, just trying to take it shift-by-shift,” Gregor said. “We were able to get three quick ones in the second and able to tie it up. They got the lead again and we tried to stay the same as the first way, we were able to get the one.

Neither team will have too long to think about this one, as the Raiders and Giants will head back on Saturday to the Art Hauser Centre for Game 2. Games 3, 4 and if necessary Game 5 are scheduled at the Langley Events Centre for Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday.

“We love playing in front of this crowd,” Hayes said. “We hope we can bring it back and play this game tonight and win it for the crowd—then go to Vancouver and win a couple there.”

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Jeff.dandrea@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @jeff_paNOW