
For the fourth time in a row, the Prince Albert Raiders got in the win column with a 4-1 victory over the Edmonton Oil Kings on Saturday night.
Raider head coach Jeff Truitt says it wasn’t the best game that Prince Albert has played, but it was the type of win that is needed to be a successful team
“The Oiring line was really good here tonight. I thought that they dictated a lot of the action in the scoring. I thought that we got some traction and played better in the second half of the first period. Penalty kill was good for us. Lots of things went okay for us. I don’t think they saw our best game at all. We had to grind this one out against a team that keeps pressure.
On a delayed penalty, the Oil Kings would open the scoring at the 7:29 mark of the first period. Cole Miller would strike for his fourth of the season. Nipawin product Roan Woodward and Blake Fiddler picked up the assists.
Aiden Oiring would tie things up with his seventh goal of the campaign at the 11:27 mark. The 19-year-old centreman wired a wrist shot past Alex Worthington after a drop pass from Tomas Mrsic.
The hot hand of Tomas Mrsic would stay sizzling later at the 17:19 mark as the St. Louis Blues draft pick would strike for his 12th goal of the season and fourth goal in the last two games. Oiring had the lone assist.
On their third opportunity of the night, it wouldn’t take the WHL’s number one power play to strike. Just six seconds into a Rhys Pederson inference minor, Krzysztof Macias would strike for his fourth goal of the season to give the Raiders a two goal advantage at the 7:29 mark of the third period. Mrsic and Lukas Dragicevic assisted on the play.
It is the second straight game with a goal for Macias, who snapped an eight game goal drought on Friday night against Tri-City.
Macias says he was happy to be able to contribute to the Raiders success.
“It feels nice, absolutely. The biggest thing for me is team wins and losses. I’m happy we could win the fourth game in a row. I don’t care as much about scoring goals as long as the team wins. I’m just trying to do my job as good as I can. I hope I’m contributing to the team wins, even if I don’t score goals”
Entering play, the Raider power play was clicking at a 30.3% clip, nearly a full percent better then the second place Prince George Cougars power play unit.
Truitt says the reason that the Raider power play has been so effective is how close the team has become.
“I think the chemistry amongst the guys, not only the Oiring unit, but also the Bibeau-Dube unit. Those guys are seeing some chemistry here. They’re making good reads. But I like the puck movement, they’re zipping the puck around. That makes the penalty kill move. That opens up plays, it opens up seams. They’re hitting the mark with their shots. We’re scoring because of it. Formations are one thing, personnel is a big thing but the chemistry amongst those guys on both units are going, which is great. We’re going to continue to push forward.
Mrsic would extend the Raider lead to three with a sharp wrist shot for his 13th goal of the season at the 14:27 mark. Oiring provided the assist.
Max Hildebrand made 33 stops for the Raiders to earn the win, Alex Worthington made 21 stops for the Oil Kings.
Myhre makes WHL debut
It was a special night for Nipawin’s Liam Myhre who made his WHL debut with the Raiders on Saturday after signing with the team earlier in the day.
Myhre was selected in the third round, 49th overall by the Raiders in the 2024 WHL Prospects Draft. The pick used on Myhre was acquired as part of the Nolan Allan trade.
Myhre has appeared in one game so far this season with the Mintos after missing a significant period of time with an injury.
Myhre says it felt great to put on a Raider sweater for the first time.
“It was really exciting. Got a few shifts and made some good plays. I thought it was good to get my first one on my belt. It’s been really cool, you know, just to play with the older guys. Skilled guys coming off of the NHL camps. It’s pretty cool. I thought I saw them pretty good. I thought today was a good game for me and we’ll see how it goes the rest of the year.”
The 15-year-old was on a pair with Tyrone Sobry in his debut. Raider head coach Jeff Truitt says Myhre was impressive for a young player and has plenty of room to grow.
“He’s a great skater. He’s a very effortless skater and he’s comfortable with the puck as well, which is great for a young guy just to hop in here and get thrown into the wolves here a little bit. We had to watch his shifts to make sure that we’re doing the right things with him, but I like the way he plays.”
The Raiders return to action on Wednesday night when they welcome Ryder Ritchie and the Medicine Hat Tigers to the Art Hauser Centre. Puck drops at 7 p.m.