Raiders start seven game road trip with 2-1 win in Lethbridge
Solid offensive contributions from all four lines, combined with stellar defensive and goaltending play helped the Prince Albert Raiders pick up a 2-1 win over the Lethbridge Hurricanes on Wednesday night. That kicked off a seven game road swing on the right note for the green and gold.
The Raiders got on the board 7:27 into the first, as Brayden Dube snapped a brief two game pointless streak. After Brayden Dube found Owen Corkish open in the slot, he gave his linemate a soft pass. Corkish then fed the puck ahead for defenceman Hubert Clarke, who came jumping in on the rush. Clarke took the pass and skated hard towards the net, then dished a cross crease pass to Dube on the far post. Dube redirected a shot home past Koen Cleaver, picking up his sixth goal of the regular season. With the primary assist, Clarke picked up a point in his second straight game.
That would be all for scoring in the first period, as the Raiders outshot the Hurricanes 15-5 in the opening 20 minutes.
6:01 into the middle frame, Jackson Kostiuk put an end to a six game pointless drought, as he found the back of the net to extend Prince Albert’s lead. Along the right wall in the offensive zone, Connor Howe freed the puck up, and Kostiuk picked it up and brought it into the slot. It didn’t look like he had a shooting lane, but Kostiuk managed to snipe home a shot past a Canes defenceman and over Cleaver’s glove hand. It was his second goal of the year, making it a 2-0 game.
Just over seven minutes later, Lethbridge got back to within one, as Shane Smith cashed in on a rebound chance. After Owen Berge fanned on a shot on an odd man rush, the puck bobbled towards Michal Orsulak, deflecting off his stick and back into the slot. Smith was in the right place at the right time for the Hurricanes, as he was able to bury his 11th goal of the season, and took the team lead in points.
Smith’s goal was the last one of the second period, as Prince Albert took a 2-1 lead into the final frame.
The third period was the least busiest, as just 10 combined shots were tallied. Lethbridge held the advantage 6-4, but both Orsulak and Cleaver were perfect, stopping every shot they faced. The Hurricanes pulled Cleaver with a couple minutes left to get the six on five advantage, but the Raiders did not surrender a late game tying goal. The visitors held on to pick up a 2-1 win, improving to 11-0-3-0 on the season.
It’s a travel day to Spokane tomorrow for Prince Albert, as they get ready for a matchup with the Chiefs on Friday night.
