Boston Pizza Recap: Slough Sharks drop 7-5 decision to Raiders
Lake Diefenbaker, SK – The Lake Diefenbaker Slough Sharks would drop their first loss in regulation in their history during Saturday night’s 7-5 loss to the Prince Albert Raiders at InnovationPlex.
The Slough Sharks would open the scoring on the power play at 6:01 as Luke Mistelbacher (Steinbach, MB) would notch his second straight game with a power play goal from Grayson Burzynski (Winnipeg, MB)n to give the home side the lead. But the visiting Raiders would tie things up at 12:09 where Tomas Mrsic would get his 19th of the season. Prince Albert would get a gratuitous bounce as Aiden Oiring would pinball a play off the back boards in the Lake Diefenbaker zone giving Prince Albert the lead at 17:10 and the Raiders would hold that very lead to the 2nd period.
The second period would see the Slough Sharks tie things up 36 seconds into the period as Carlin Dezainde (Calgary, AB) would score on an early four-on-four situation for his 18th of the season from Ty Coupland (North Vancouver, BC). When the four on four turned into a Raider power play Tomas Mrsic would wire his 19th of the season past relief goaltender Reid Dyck (Winkler, MB) to get Prince Albert back out in front 3-2 at 1:37. But Dezainde would not be denied his second goal of the night on a Slough Sharks power play just squeezing a shot past Dimitri Fortin at 6:25 from Coupland & Connor Gabriel (Saskatoon, SK). Lake Diefenbaker would then take the lead late in the second as Mistelbacher would send his 21st of the season through Fortin at 14:57 from Clarke Caswell (Brandon, MB) and Burzynski to keep the lead into the third.
But when the third period began it was the Raiders in the opening minute on the tail-end of a power play winning a battle in front of the Lake Diefenbaker net as Niall Crocker would score 25 seconds in to tie the game. Then shortly after, Raiders defenceman Lukas Dragicevic would give Prince Albert the lead with his 6th of the season at 2:48 to make 5-4. Ty Meunier for the Raiders would add to the visitors lead at 12:06 to make it 6-4. But the Slough Sharks would start a late rally on the power play as Mistelbacher would net his first career WHL hat-trick at 14:57 making it a one goal game but that’s as close as the Sharks would get as Aiden Oiring would hit the empty net with 20 seconds left in regulation giving the Raiders the 705 triumph.
In the loss the Slough Sharks drop their record to 17-15-0-1 and now sit in 4th in the East Division while Raider move to 2nd in the division.
Swift Current will have an off-day Sunday before returning to action Monday night against the Brandon Wheat Kings. It’s will be the Four Broncos Memorial Game, with puck-drop set for 7 PM.
