[{"id":76610,"date":"2026-04-13T12:13:23","date_gmt":"2026-04-13T16:13:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/?p=76610"},"modified":"2026-04-13T12:13:23","modified_gmt":"2026-04-13T16:13:23","slug":"real-canadian-superstore-save-of-the-night-april-11th-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/video\/real-canadian-superstore-save-of-the-night-april-11th-2026","title":{"rendered":"Real Canadian Superstore Save of the Night – April 11th, 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":445,"featured_media":76611,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"video","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[368],"tags":[{"term_id":553,"name":"Evan Gardner","slug":"evan-gardner","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":553,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":31,"filter":"raw","term_order":"88"}],"class_list":["post-76610","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-video","tag-evan-gardner","video-channels-bladestv","video-channels-highlights","category-368","description-off"],"acf":[],"featured_image":["https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/04\/11225913\/16x9-4.png",1920,1080,false],"hide_from_app_feed":false,"video":false,"gallery":null,"ht_game_id":0,"target_video":{"video_id":"2558540","partner_id":"31014","player_id":"47919","width":"16","height":"9","360p":"https:\/\/cdn.target-video.com\/live\/partners\/31014\/sd\/2558540.mp4","240p":"https:\/\/cdn.target-video.com\/live\/partners\/31014\/ld\/2558540.mp4","480p":"https:\/\/cdn.target-video.com\/live\/partners\/31014\/hsd\/2558540.mp4","1080p":"https:\/\/cdn.target-video.com\/live\/partners\/31014\/fhd\/2558540.mp4","hls":"https:\/\/cdn.target-video.com\/live\/partners\/31014\/streaming\/2558540\/2558540.m3u8","webp":"https:\/\/cdn.target-video.com\/live\/partners\/31014\/webp\/2558540.webp"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/76610","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/445"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=76610"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/76610\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/76611"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=76610"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=76610"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=76610"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":76608,"date":"2026-04-13T12:11:22","date_gmt":"2026-04-13T16:11:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/?p=76608"},"modified":"2026-04-13T12:11:22","modified_gmt":"2026-04-13T16:11:22","slug":"round-2-game-2-highlights-saskatoon-blades-0-at-prince-albert-raiders-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/video\/round-2-game-2-highlights-saskatoon-blades-0-at-prince-albert-raiders-3","title":{"rendered":"Round 2 Game 2 HIGHLIGHTS | Saskatoon Blades (0) at Prince Albert Raiders (3)"},"content":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":445,"featured_media":76609,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"video","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[368],"tags":false,"class_list":["post-76608","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-video","video-channels-bladestv","video-channels-highlights","category-368","description-off"],"acf":[],"featured_image":["https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/6\/2026\/04\/11230837\/PAvsSAS_Highlights-Thumbnails_WHL-Playoffs-1920-1.png",1920,1080,false],"hide_from_app_feed":false,"video":false,"gallery":null,"ht_game_id":0,"target_video":{"video_id":"2558543","partner_id":"31014","player_id":"47919","width":"16","height":"9","360p":"https:\/\/cdn.target-video.com\/live\/partners\/31014\/sd\/2558543.mp4","240p":"https:\/\/cdn.target-video.com\/live\/partners\/31014\/ld\/2558543.mp4","480p":"https:\/\/cdn.target-video.com\/live\/partners\/31014\/hsd\/2558543.mp4","1080p":"https:\/\/cdn.target-video.com\/live\/partners\/31014\/fhd\/2558543.mp4","hls":"https:\/\/cdn.target-video.com\/live\/partners\/31014\/streaming\/2558543\/2558543.m3u8","webp":"https:\/\/cdn.target-video.com\/live\/partners\/31014\/webp\/2558543.webp"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/76608","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/445"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=76608"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/76608\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/76609"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=76608"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=76608"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=76608"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":76601,"date":"2026-04-13T00:49:29","date_gmt":"2026-04-13T04:49:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/?p=76601"},"modified":"2026-04-13T00:49:29","modified_gmt":"2026-04-13T04:49:29","slug":"gardner-olsen-raise-4500-for-local-diabetes-and-autism-initiatives","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/article\/gardner-olsen-raise-4500-for-local-diabetes-and-autism-initiatives","title":{"rendered":"Gardner, Olsen raise $4,500 for local diabetes and autism initiatives"},"content":{"rendered":"

Saskatoon, SK –\u00a0<\/strong>Saskatoon Blades goalie Evan Gardner and forward Zach Olsen raised a combined $4,500 for local diabetes and autism initiatives in Saskatoon.<\/p>\n

In January, Gardner debuted a custom autism-awareness goalie mask. The Columbus Blue Jackets prospect raised $2,700 through an online auction for the mask with all proceeds going to Family Programs \u2013 Autism Services of Saskatoon, an organization that helps families with programming, early detection, and lifestyle learning. Gardner is a finalist for the Western Hockey League\u2019s (WHL) Doug Wickenheiser Memorial Trophy for a third consecutive season. The award is given annually to the WHL\u2019s Humanitarian of the Year.<\/p>\n

“Evan’s a tremendous person,” said Blades Head Coach Dan DaSilva, “We’ve seen him grow up here, right, since 17 now until 20 and part of when he was 16 as well, and (he’s) just come such a long way. Such a beloved teammate. His teammates love him, he’s a popular guy in that room, and obviously he does a tremendous job in the community.”<\/p>\n

Both type 1 diabetics, Gardner and Olsen teamed up to raise $1,800 through an online auction with two signed jerseys. Proceeds from the auction went to the Jim Pattison Children\u2019s Hospital Pediatric Unit. The funds will go towards Blades\/PokeCheck branded patches for kids\u2019 diabetes pumps to help kids feel good about having the pump in the summer months.<\/p>\n

The duo are back in action on the ice Tuesday for Game 3 of Round 2 presented by Discover Saskatoon against the Prince Albert Raiders. Puck drop at SaskTel Centre is 7:00pm, as the Blades look for a crucial win trailing 2-0 in the best-of-seven series.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Saskatoon, SK –\u00a0Saskatoon Blades goalie Evan Gardner and forward Zach Olsen raised a combined $4,500 for local diabetes and autism initiatives in Saskatoon. In January, Gardner debuted a custom autism-awareness goalie mask. The Columbus Blue Jackets prospect raised $2,700 through an online auction for the mask with all proceeds going to Family Programs \u2013 Autism…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":445,"featured_media":76602,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"article","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[541],"tags":[{"term_id":570,"name":"Zach Olsen","slug":"zach-olsen","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":570,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":11,"filter":"raw","term_order":"71"},{"term_id":553,"name":"Evan Gardner","slug":"evan-gardner","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":553,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":31,"filter":"raw","term_order":"88"}],"class_list":["post-76601","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-article","tag-zach-olsen","tag-evan-gardner","category-541","description-off"],"acf":[],"featured_image":["https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/53\/2026\/04\/13001914\/Gards-Olsen-Web.jpg",1920,1080,false],"hide_from_app_feed":false,"video":false,"gallery":null,"ht_game_id":0,"target_video":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/76601","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/445"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=76601"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/76601\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/76602"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=76601"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=76601"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=76601"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":76590,"date":"2026-04-11T13:10:23","date_gmt":"2026-04-11T17:10:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/?p=76590"},"modified":"2026-04-11T15:30:18","modified_gmt":"2026-04-11T19:30:18","slug":"round-2-game-1-preview-blades-search-for-1-1-series-in-prince-albert","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/article\/round-2-game-1-preview-blades-search-for-1-1-series-in-prince-albert","title":{"rendered":"ROUND 2 GAME 1 PREVIEW | Blades search for 1-1 series in Prince Albert"},"content":{"rendered":"

Key Players, Notable Stats, How to Watch and More<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Take two.<\/p>\n

The Saskatoon Blades hope to even the best-of-seven second round series 1-1 in Game 2 at the Art Hauser Centre against the Prince Albert Raiders. Puck drop is slated for 7:00pm.<\/p>\n

The Blue and Gold fell 6-1 in the opening game of the series on Friday. Coming off the high of a Game 7 overtime win in Round 1 against the Edmonton Oil Kings, the Blades went behind 3-0 after 20 minutes of play in Game 1. The Raiders led 6-0 in the third period before a powerplay goal for NHL Draft-eligible winger Zach Olsen broke Raider goalie Michal Orsulak’s shutout bid.<\/p>\n

“I feel like they were just ready to play,” said Blades captain Tyler Parr, “I thought we were slow getting out of the gates. We weren’t simple enough, weren’t hard enough. This is a man’s game, a big boys game, we’ve got to buckle up, and that starts with me.”<\/p>\n

Friday’s result marks the first time the Bridge City Bunch have trailed in a series this postseason. Games 3 and 4 the Blades second round presented by Discover Saskatoon return to SaskTel Centre on Tuesday, Apr. 14 and Wednesday, Apr. 15. Puck drop for both games is 7:00pm<\/p>\n

\n
\n
\n

The good guys<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

The Blades powerplay went 1\/3 in Game 1 and is 3\/8 in the last two games. Edmonton Oilers draft pick David Lewandowski and Calgary Flames draft pick Hunter Laing lead the Blades in scoring with three goals and five assists for eight points. Columbus Blue Jackets prospect Evan Gardner is 4-2-2 this postseason with a .910 save percentage (SV%) and 2.80 goals against average (GAA).<\/p>\n

The opposition<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n

Rest was a benefit for the Raiders ahead of Game 1. The defensive pair of captain Justice Christensen and Daxon Rudolph recorded three points each, the latter leading the Raiders in points with ten (4G, 6A). Prince Albert’s powerplay went 2\/3 in Game 1, improving to 6\/15 at home this postseason. NHL Draft-eligible netminder Michal Orsulak stopped 16 of 17 shots to improve his playoff record to 5-1-0-0. The 6-foot-4 netminder has an .899 SV%, 1.83 GAA, and one shutout.<\/p>\n

Watch & Listen<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Coverage for Round 2 Game 2 presented by Discover Saskatoon is FREE<\/strong>\u00a0on Victory+ TV. Blades Play-by-Play Announcer Les Lazaruk and Blades Communications Manager Tanner Chubey will have the call on the Victory+ away feed. Coverage begins at 6:45pm with the pre-game show on the radio on 600CJWW. To watch tonight\u2019s game for\u00a0FREE,\u00a0<\/strong>click\u00a0HERE.<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Key Players, Notable Stats, How to Watch and More Take two. The Saskatoon Blades hope to even the best-of-seven second round series 1-1 in Game 2 at the Art Hauser Centre against the Prince Albert Raiders. Puck drop is slated for 7:00pm. The Blue and Gold fell 6-1 in the opening game of the series…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":445,"featured_media":76591,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"article","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[541],"tags":false,"class_list":["post-76590","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-article","category-541","description-off"],"acf":[],"featured_image":["https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/53\/2026\/04\/11125334\/Artboard-2.jpg",1920,1080,false],"hide_from_app_feed":false,"video":false,"gallery":null,"ht_game_id":0,"target_video":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/76590","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/445"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=76590"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/76590\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/76591"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=76590"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=76590"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=76590"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":76588,"date":"2026-04-11T02:37:24","date_gmt":"2026-04-11T06:37:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/?p=76588"},"modified":"2026-04-11T02:37:54","modified_gmt":"2026-04-11T06:37:54","slug":"round-2-game-1-highlights-saskatoon-blades-1-at-prince-albert-raiders-6","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/video\/round-2-game-1-highlights-saskatoon-blades-1-at-prince-albert-raiders-6","title":{"rendered":"Round 2 Game 1 HIGHLIGHTS | Saskatoon Blades (1) at Prince Albert Raiders (6)"},"content":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":445,"featured_media":76589,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"video","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[368],"tags":false,"class_list":["post-76588","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-video","video-channels-bladestv","video-channels-highlights","category-368","description-off"],"acf":[],"featured_image":["https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/53\/2026\/04\/11023503\/Raiders_Blades_RD2GM1_041026-12-1-scaled.jpg",2560,1707,false],"hide_from_app_feed":false,"video":false,"gallery":null,"ht_game_id":0,"target_video":{"video_id":"2557886","partner_id":"31031","player_id":"47919","width":"16","height":"9","360p":"https:\/\/cdn.target-video.com\/live\/partners\/31031\/sd\/2557886.mp4","240p":"https:\/\/cdn.target-video.com\/live\/partners\/31031\/ld\/2557886.mp4","480p":"https:\/\/cdn.target-video.com\/live\/partners\/31031\/hsd\/2557886.mp4","1080p":"https:\/\/cdn.target-video.com\/live\/partners\/31031\/fhd\/2557886.mp4","hls":"https:\/\/cdn.target-video.com\/live\/partners\/31031\/streaming\/2557886\/2557886.m3u8","webp":"https:\/\/cdn.target-video.com\/live\/partners\/31031\/webp\/2557886.webp"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/76588","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/445"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=76588"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/76588\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/76589"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=76588"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=76588"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=76588"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":76582,"date":"2026-04-10T00:41:24","date_gmt":"2026-04-10T04:41:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/?p=76582"},"modified":"2026-04-10T00:41:24","modified_gmt":"2026-04-10T04:41:24","slug":"round-2-game-1-preview-highway-11-rivalry-renewed-in-round-2-of-whl-playoffs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/article\/round-2-game-1-preview-highway-11-rivalry-renewed-in-round-2-of-whl-playoffs","title":{"rendered":"ROUND 2 GAME 1 PREVIEW | Highway 11 rivalry renewed in Round 2 of WHL Playoffs"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n

Key Players, Notable Stats, How to Watch and More<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

It’s the matchup every fan in the Western Hockey League (WHL) has been clamouring for.<\/p>\n

Round 2 of the 2026 WHL Playoffs presented by Nutrien features another chapter in the Highway 11 rivalry as the Saskatoon Blades butt heads with the Prince Albert Raiders. Puck drop for Game 1 is 7:00pm at the Art Hauser Centre in Prince Albert. It’s the first collision between the East Division rivals in the postseason since Round 1 in 2024 when the Blades eliminated the Raiders in five games.<\/p>\n

“I genuinely hate the Raiders, I think everyone in that room feels the same,” said Blades goalie Evan Gardner, “Every time we play them we have this fire in us. It feels real, like, you really do hate them. You know, you want to beat them so bad. It’s something that’s definitely pretty cool.”<\/p>\n

The best-of-seven series comes after the Blades stunned the third-seeded Edmonton Oil Kings in seven games in Round 1. Trailing 2-1 with under six minutes remaining in the third period of Game 7, NHL Draft-eligible centre Cooper Williams tied the game with 5:08 remaining in regulation to force overtime. The goal marked the second consecutive game in the series the Calgary, AB native scored a goal late in the third to force overtime.<\/p>\n

“I’ve said my whole life I think I’m better when there’s more pressure,” said Williams, “So, just kind of having that in the back of my mind, when there’s more pressure, there’s more fun.”<\/p>\n

Alternate captain Rowan Calvert sent the Blades to Round 2 after scoring the overtime winner on the powerplay 7:23 into the extra frame. The 20-year-old helped the Blades win the first ever Game 7 on the road in franchise history.<\/p>\n

“I was thinking there (during the celebration) ‘I need to get out of this pile because everybody was laying on top of me,'” joked Calvert, “I thought about it later and it was not a good idea because I couldn’t breathe down there. I was like ‘let me up, let me up!’ No, but it was just a great moment just to share that with everyone and the bus ride home was pretty fun.”<\/p>\n

It’s another tough test for the Blue and Gold going up against the Eastern Conference’s top Raiders. Prince Albert finished the regular season with a 52-10-5-1 record and dealt with the Red Deer Rebels in five games in Round 1.<\/p>\n

“We’re a proud group,” said Blades Head Coach Dan DaSilva,” I think we learned that , we’ve been saying it all year, we can play with anyone in this league when we’re at our best and so the focus is us.”<\/p>\n

The Blades went 2-5-0-1 in the season series against Prince Albert. Saskatoon won 3-2 in overtime at the home opener against the Raiders in September and shutout Prince Albert 4-0 on January 31 at the Art Hauser Centre. The last Saskatoon and Prince Albert clashed in the second round of the playoffs was 2019 when the Raiders downed the Blades in six games.<\/p>\n

Game 2 is Saturday night in Prince Albert at 7:00pm before the series shifts to Saskatoon on Tuesday and Wednesday at SaskTel Centre. Puck drop for both home games is 7:00pm.<\/p>\n

\n

The good guys<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Special teams faced a lot of scrutiny in Round 1 but came through when it mattered most. The Blades went 2\/5 on the man-advantage in Game 7 against the Oil Kings while killing of 3\/4 Edmonton powerplays. Edmonton Oilers draft pick David Lewandowski and Calgary Flames draft pick Hunter Laing lead the Blades in scoring with three goals and five assists for eight points. Gardner is 4-1-2 this postseason with a .912 save percentage (SV%) and 2.66 goals against average (GAA).<\/p>\n

The opposition<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n

If rest is a weapon, than the Raiders have plenty of it. Prince Albert dealt with the Red Deer Rebels in Round 1 in five games. The back-to-back East Division Champions last game was one week ago at home, eliminating the Rebels with a 4-3 overtime victory in Game 5. The Art Hauser Centre has been a fortress for the Raiders who are 3-0 at game this postseason. Prince Albert was 26-4-3-1 at home during the regular season, one of those regulation losses suffered in 4-0 fashion at the hands of the Blades. Rookie defenceman Brock Cripps leads the Raiders in scoring after one round with eight points (3G, 5A). Defenceman Daxon Rudolph, along with forwards Aiden Oiring, Braeden Cootes, and Brayden Dube are averaging more than a point per game. The Raiders outscored Red Deer 21-10 in Round 1, averaging 39 shots per game and allowed just 18.4 shots per game.<\/p>\n

Watch & Listen<\/strong><\/p>\n

Coverage for Round 2 Game 1 presented by Discover Saskatoon is FREE<\/strong> on Victory+ TV. Blades Play-by-Play Announcer Les Lazaruk and Blades Communications Manager Tanner Chubey will have the call on the Victory+ away feed. Coverage begins at 6:45pm with the pre-game show on the radio on 600CJWW. To watch tonight\u2019s game for FREE,\u00a0<\/strong>click\u00a0HERE.<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Key Players, Notable Stats, How to Watch and More It’s the matchup every fan in the Western Hockey League (WHL) has been clamouring for. Round 2 of the 2026 WHL Playoffs presented by Nutrien features another chapter in the Highway 11 rivalry as the Saskatoon Blades butt heads with the Prince Albert Raiders. Puck drop…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":445,"featured_media":76583,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"article","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[541],"tags":false,"class_list":["post-76582","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-article","category-541","description-off"],"acf":[],"featured_image":["https:\/\/media.chl.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/53\/2026\/04\/09120639\/260410_Gameday_Graphic_Web.jpg",1920,1080,false],"hide_from_app_feed":false,"video":false,"gallery":null,"ht_game_id":0,"target_video":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/76582","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/445"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=76582"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/76582\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/76583"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=76582"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=76582"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=76582"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}},{"id":76579,"date":"2026-04-08T16:00:04","date_gmt":"2026-04-08T20:00:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/?p=76579"},"modified":"2026-04-08T16:00:04","modified_gmt":"2026-04-08T20:00:04","slug":"gardner-nominated-for-doug-wickenheiser-memorial-trophy-for-third-consecutive-season","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chl.ca\/whl-blades\/article\/gardner-nominated-for-doug-wickenheiser-memorial-trophy-for-third-consecutive-season","title":{"rendered":"Gardner nominated for Doug Wickenheiser Memorial Trophy for third consecutive season"},"content":{"rendered":"

Saskatoon, SK –\u00a0<\/strong>The man known as the “Gardfather” continues giving back.<\/p>\n

The Saskatoon Blades are proud to announce goaltender Evan Gardner is nominated for the Western Hockey League’s (WHL) Doug Wickenheiser Memorial Trophy for a third consecutive season. The award is given annually to the WHL’s Humanitarian of the Year.<\/p>\n

A type 1 diabetic, the Fort St. John, BC native was an exceptional advocate for diabetes awareness through his first two seasons with the Bridge City Bunch. At the forefront of last year\u2019s \u201cPokeCheck Learns: Diabetes Awareness\u201d campaign, Gardner raised $4,650 dollars for Diabetes Canada through a custom game-worn goalie mask auction. The Columbus Blue Jackets prospect has built on his work throughout the 2025-26 season. In November, Gardner visited Chief Whitecap School in Saskatoon alongside teammate and fellow type 1 diabetic Zach Olsen to offer an inspiring and educational presentation aimed at raising awareness, building understanding, and empowering young people who may be living with or learning about the disease. Sharing her story alongside Gardner and Olsen was Chief Whitecap student and U9B Comets player Eva Houle, who was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes about a year-and-a-half ago. Together the three highlighted an important message not only about the challenges they face but also the strength, resilience, and support that help them strive.<\/p>\n