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Raiders acquire McDonald and are lovin’ it after OT win

Jan 6, 2018 | 9:32 PM

Saturday may have been longest day of all time for Kody McDonald, but it was worth it in the end, as he scored the overtime winner in his Prince Albert Raiders debut in a 2-1 OT win over the Red Deer Rebels at the Art Hauser Centre.

After the Raiders acquired McDonald Saturday morning in a blockbuster deal involving former Raiders first rounder Rhett Rhinehart, McDonald woke up in Prince George at 4:30 a.m. to catch a flight.

He didn’t arrive at the Art Hauser Centre until 5:45 p.m. and didn’t even have time to meet the man that struck the deal, Raiders general manager Curtis Hunt, until after the game.

“For sure, getting that first one out of the way feels good,” McDonald said. “It was shocking at first and it was tough leaving a lot of friends in P.G., but it feels good now.

“It’s a real family here, it feels right. Coming in, they’ve treated me well in the first few hours and I feel welcomed. I’m really excited to continue as a Prince Albert Raider.”

As much as Raiders head coach Marc Habscheid wanted to pump McDonald out there continually, it was important to keep his shifts short.

“We had to be careful,” Habscheid said. “He’s a power play guy, he’s a penalty kill guy but his shift were real short. He was tired—there’s no doubt about that. But he’s a gamer, that’s why we got him.”

Vojtech Budik scored the other goal for the Raiders. Like McDonald, Budik had a quick turnaround, as he just returned from the 2018 IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship in Buffalo where he represented the Czech Republic.

“Buds is a great guy, not only a great player but a great person. He has a presence out there, great goal but you can tell defensively he’s just so strong. He logs those quality minutes and we’re glad he’s back.”

Buffalo was filled with mixed emotions for Budik. They were disappointed in the result to the States, but the Czechs got the furthest in the tournament than they had in the past decade.

“We had a great group, we [didn’t] play semifinals since 2005 so it was great tournament for us,” Budik said. “It was a bit sad, the loss in the bronze game against U.S.A.. We wanted to win it, but it’s hockey.”

Curtis Meger only made 18 saves in the game, but was the second star after he made some insane, heart-stopping saves.

“Meegs is an underdog type of guy,” Habscheid said. “The guys pull for him and want him to be successful. He made some huge saves tonight, good on him.”

Scoring Summary

First Period

No scoring.

Second Period

1-0, Raiders, Vojtech Budik from Jordy Stallard and Cole Fonstad, 0:48

1-1, Rebels, Reese Johnson from Alexander Alexeyev and Colin Paradis, 19:33

Third Period

No scoring.

Overtime

2-1, Raiders, Kody McDonald from Regan Nagy and Vojtech Budik, 1:08

Raiders aren’t the only team making deals

The Raiders and Rebels were the only teams in the WHL to complete a trade earlier on Saturday before meeting at the Art Hauser Centre.

The Rebels shipped Austin Pratt to the Regina Pats for a third round draft choice in 2019. Pratt is 6-foot-3, 205-pound forward that scored 16 points in 39 games.

On Friday, the Rebels sent D-man Brandon Schuldhaus and a fourth rounder in 2020 for Colin Paradis and a pair of second round picks (2019 and 2020).

So long Scoreleski

Through their pre-game notes, the Raiders announced that Devon Skoleski had been officially released from the team. With the addition of Regan Nagy, the Raiders were up to four 20-year-olds. Skoleski was scratched for Friday’s game against the ICE before his Saturday release. Skoleski had eight goals and 17 points in 38 games with the Raiders. He was claimed from overage waivers in the offseason after two seasons with the Everett Silvertips.

Pats up next

The Raiders will close out a three-game-in-three-night stretch Sunday, playing the Regina Pats at the Brandt Centre. The Raiders have yet to get a win over the Pats, holding a 0-1-2 head-to-head record against the Memorial Cup hosting club.

 

Jeff.dandrea@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @jeff_paNOW