Raiders fall to Blades in overtime
The Prince Albert Raiders had a one goal lead until the final seconds of the third period, as the Saskatoon Blades came back to win 3-2 in overtime on Saturday night in Warman.
It didn’t take long for the Raiders to get on the board, as they opened the scoring just 1:48 into the game. Jonah Sivertson continued his impressive preseason by scoring his third goal of exhibition play to put Prince Albert up early. Sivertson was able to convert on a nice feed from Ethan Bibeau, burying a shot from the slot past Evan Gardner.
Michal Orsulak was perfect in his first period of WHL preseason, as he stopped all 12 shots he faced, which included a couple of powerplay chances late in the frame.
Sivertson’s early tally was the only goal in the first period, as the Raiders took a 1-0 lead into the middle frame.
The Blades were able to tie the game 5:08 into the second period, thanks in part to Matyas Man breaking his stick earlier in his shift. With a defenceman in front of the net unable to deflect any passes away, the puck came to Rowan Calvert, and he was able to take advantage of the situation, tying the game with a shot past Orsulak.
With 46.6 seconds left in the second, Hubert Clarke scored to put the Raiders up 2-1.Ben Bowtell was out of the play holding his face in the Saskatoon zone, giving the Raiders a brief man advantage. They used it to their full power, as Clarke was able to rip a shot from the high slot home past Taye Timmerman.
Through 40 minutes of play, Prince Albert was in the same position they were after the first, leading by a single goal.
In the final moments of regulation, the Raiders ran into penalty trouble, as a delay of game penalty and a faceoff violation penalty put them down 6 on 3, with Saskatoon pulling their goalie. With 16.7 seconds left, Dominik Petr blasted a one timer into a wide open net to tie the game at 2-2, sending things to overtime.
Still on the powerplay, now at 4 on 3, Saskatoon scored the game winning overtime goal one minute in. After a shot from Petr was blocked in front, the puck was rolling towards the goal line, and Tyler Parr was able to finish the play off to win the game 3-2.
Prince Albert will finally face a new opponent in the preseason on Thursday night, as they travel to Yorkton to take on the Regina Pats. Puck drops at 7pm.
