Raiders and Rebels ready to rock in first round of 2026 WHL Playoffs

The Prince Albert Raiders and Red Deer Rebels are ready to rock in the first round of the 2026 WHL Playoffs.

If recent history is to be trusted, fate just might hang in the balance.

The last time the Raiders met the Rebels in the first round of the WHL Playoffs, the year was 2019. Fans in Hockey Town North remember all too well how that spring ended – with a WHL Championship.

Prince Albert swept Red Deer in the first round of the 2019 WHL Playoffs before battling to the Club’s first WHL title since 1985.

But that was 2019, and this is 2026 – only time will tell where the Raiders and Rebels go from here.

Interestingly enough, the two teams split their four-game season series – the Raiders took the first two games prior to Christmas, while the Rebels emerged triumphant twice during the first week of March. Prince Albert outscored Red Deer by a margin of 15-11 over the four games, thanks to a 7-3 victory December 6.

Prince Albert laid claim to the No. 1 seed in the WHL’s Eastern Conference thanks, largely in part, to a balanced attack up front. 2026 NHL Draft-eligible blueliner Daxon Rudolph led the Club in scoring, tallying an impressive 78 points (28G-50A) in 68 games. The 6-foot-2, 202-pound rearguard is ranked sixth among North American skaters by NHL Central Scouting ahead of the 2026 NHL Draft.

Red Deer’s offense was also led by a 2026 NHL Draft-eligible star, as 5-foot-11, 173-pound right winger Beckett Hamilton recorded 62 points (24G-38A) in 67 games to power the Rebels. The product of Saskatoon, Sask., is ranked 75th among North American skaters by NHL Central Scouting ahead of the 2026 NHL Draft.

Last season, the Raiders advanced to the second round of the 2025 WHL Playoffs, before falling at the hands of the eventual WHL Champion Medicine Hat Tigers. For the Rebels, they return to the WHL post-season following a one-year absence.

The Raiders wrapped up their regular season slate Saturday with a 4-0 shutout victory at Saskatoon, finishing the campaign with a record of 52-10-5-1.

The Rebels regular season schedule closed Saturday with an 8-3 defeat at the hands of the Tigers, leaving Red Deer with a record of 26-36-4-2.

The best-of-seven first-round series between the Raiders and Rebels gets underway Friday, March 27 (7 p.m. ST) from the Art Hauser Centre in Prince Albert, before shifting to Red Deer for Game 3 on Tuesday, March 31 (7 p.m. MT).

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