Latest Articles from Nathan Reiter

Astros ready to host U17, U20 provincials this weekend

Nathan Reiter
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Astros ready to host U17, U20 provincials this weekend

The Prince Albert Astros are ready to host provincials at the Max Power Ball Parks this weekend.

The U20s will take place at Kinsmen Field while the U17s will be at Rotary Field. There a total of eight teams across the two divisions. The U17s consist of the Astros, Saskatoon Jr Jacks, Laird Valley Bluejays, Rosebud Royals and Okanese Thunderstrikers. The U20s will have the Astros, Saskatoon Jr Jacks and Valley Vikings.

Neil Finch is the head coach of the U17 Astros. He says it’s always special when Prince Albert gets a chance to play host to the province. 

“It’s always exciting to host and put together what you’ve been trying to do all season. They’re excited to have people come here. We’re hosting both the U17 and U20 boys provincials so there’ll be lots of excitement around the ball diamond this weekends”

The U20 Astros will take on Saskatoon on Saturday morning at 10 a.m. followed by the Valley Vikings at 6 p.m. Their gametime on Sunday will be determined by how they do in their Saturday games. 

The U17 team will play two games on Friday (10 a.m. vs Saskatoon, 2 p.m. vs Okanese) and two games on Saturday (10 a.m. vs Laird Valley, 4 p.m. vs Rosebud). 

Heading into the tournament, Finch says he feels confident that his team will get a chance to move onto nationals in Surrey, British Columbia next month.

“If our boys play well, we have a very good chance of moving on, but the reason you play the games is you never know what’s going to happen. We’re going to have to do all the little things right.

“I think our bats have been pretty strong from the start and defensively, we have been improving and getting better and better as the season has went on. I’m looking forward to putting it all together this weekend. We’ve had 33 games after (Wednesday) that we’ve played in and so heading into the weekend, we definitely have tuned up enough to be ready.”

The top three teams from round robin will advance to the championship round on Sunday.  When asked what his team will need to do well to have success, Finch says he wants to see his team manage things well between their ears.

“I think one of the things is not on the physical side, but on the emotional side, so just making sure that we stay mostly level, but intense at the same time, which is hard for athletes to do. If we can find a way to do that better than other teams, we’ll be absolutely fine.”

Lac La Ronge Indian Band to host second annual Family Wellness Gathering

Nathan Reiter
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Lac La Ronge Indian Band to host second annual Family Wellness Gathering

Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
Northern Advocate

For the second year in a row, the Lac La Ronge Indian Band (LLRIB) is set to host a family wellness gathering.

This year’s gathering will take place from July 14 to 16 at the La Ronge Urban Reserve. Community members are invited to participate.

The event will include several keynote speakers, hands-on cultural workshops, youth and family activities along with entertainment for all ages. Returning activities from last year include the Cultural and Healing Village where participants took part in moosehide tanning, birch bark crafts, fish net making, traditional medicine, beading and art therapy alongside daily meals and family programming.

LLRIB chief Tammy Cook-Searson says the band was eager to have another gathering after the success last year.

“The first one went really well. It was right after the fires when we had the major evacuations last year. It was a really nice way to come back and just have a healing conference. We have a lot of different social issues in our communities that we’re just trying to give hope to families that there’s a better way.”

According to a press release by LLRIB, the gathering will look to address four main issues affecting the band and other communities up north: mental health, addiction recovery, intergenerational healing and resilience.

Cook-Searson says offering a safe space for those who are struggling to hear from others and to receive the support that they need can be crucial in the healing process.

“We struggle like any other community across Canada with mental health, addictions, and we wanted to make sure that we’re providing a safe space for families to come together and then hearing from others that have gone through similar struggles. We have an elders panel. We have a youth panel. We have breakfast, lunch, and supper every day. We have speakers lined up for morning, afternoon, and then we also have entertainment every evening for the three days, and then on Wednesday morning we have the Lance Run. We have mental health therapists on standby, and then we also have our elders on standby for anyone that needs support in the event that they’re triggered from any of the speakers.”

The gathering will be hosted by LLRIB Child and Family Services and the LLRIB Prevention Program. One speaker at the gathering will be Billy Mills, a former Olympic gold medallist at the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.

Mills is the only American to win the 10,000 m Olympic gold. He grew up on the Pine Ridge Native American Reservation in South Dakota and was an orphan at the age of 12. He was considered a major underdog in the race and was burdened with hypoglycaemia (low blood sugar) at the time.

Cook-Searson says the gathering will look to meet families where they are at.

“We’re just really grateful for the opportunity to be able to host a family wellness gathering. It gives us an opportunity and a space to be able to get together, connect with our community members, and just to bring speakers from all walks of life, from local to national to international speakers that we’re bringing in to our community, just to bring hope and encouragement and inspiration to our families that are struggling.”

editorial@paherald.sk.ca

Some areas of province seeing overland flooding after rain,

Nathan Reiter
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Some areas of province seeing overland flooding after rain,

Overland flooding is becoming a challenge in some areas of the province according to the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency.

In some areas of the province, 100-275 millimetres of rain has fallen in the past week or so. As a result of the precipitation, the province has seen 39 flood incidents so far this year, up from 9 total last year. There have been 11 new declarations of local emergency due to localized flooding.

Leah Clark, the executive director of Irrigation and Economic Development for the Water Security Agency says it will differ region to region as to when the soil is able to absorb water again.

“Saskatchewan is a diverse province, but we are in some areas quite flat. Depending on where we are in the province, and when we can get that water moving and how those outlets are, it really does drive how quick that recovery is for that soil to be able to take on more moisture. We have some areas where we call them semi closed basins that it takes a lot longer for water to move and for recovery to happen.”

Saskatchewan isn’t the only province to see some major rain over the past month. Areas in Alberta have seen a major amount of rainfall during the month of June. Some rivers in Alberta will feed into rivers in Saskatchewan, including the North Saskatchewan River which runs through Prince Albert.

Clark says they aren’t anticipating any major flooding to come on the North Saskatchewan. 

“Through those major water systems, we do have heads up when there’s those (major) rainfall events, but we are able to manage them well through the major river systems. We don’t anticipate as of right now any issues.”

Her statement was echoed by Patrick Boyle, who is the executive director of communications and client service for the Water Security Agency.

“It’s important to keep in mind the North Saskatchewan River, although it’s unregulated, essentially not managed until it gets to Tobin Lake and the reservoir there. It’s a very large river so it takes quite a bit of water to make its way through there. Sometimes it’s just looking at that increased flow and we haven’t seen anything just yet that’s coming through as a result of some of that rainfall.

In certain areas of the province, highways have faced closures due to water running over top of the road and compromising the road itself.

Dan Palmer, the senior communications consultant with the Ministry of Highways says the damage they’ve seen to roads has differed.

“That will depend on what part of the province you’re in and where the highway is. But things like culverts damaged or the shoulders, the edges of the highways eroded or complete washouts. It varies as much as the province’s geography, but those are some of the things we’re seeing.”

In terms of wildfires, the province currently has 61 active across the province. As of 12:30 p.m. on Thursday, four are contained, eight are not contained, 38 are ongoing assessment and 12 are protecting values.

The notable wildfires in the province are the Border fire near Mary Lake (9 hectares, protecting values), the Gulak fire (309 hectares, not contained), Costigan fire (4000 hectares, protecting values), Red Fire (1393 hectares, not contained) and the Kerslake fire (4500 hectares, not contained).

editorial@paherald.sk.ca

Saskatchewan up to 39 flood incidents after past week of rain: SPSA

Nathan Reiter
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Saskatchewan up to 39 flood incidents after past week of rain: SPSA

Overland flooding is becoming a challenge in some areas of the province according to the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency. 

In some areas of the province, 100-275 millimetres of rain has fallen in the past week or so. As a result of the precipitation, the province has seen 39 flood incidents so far this year, up from 9 total last year. There have been 11 new declarations of local emergency due to localized flooding.

Leah Clark, the executive director of Irrigation and Economic Development for the Water Security Agency says it will differ region to region as to when the soil is able to absorb water again.

“Saskatchewan is a diverse province, but we are in some areas quite flat. Depending on where we are in the province, and when we can get that water moving and how those outlets are, it really does drive how quick that recovery is for that soil to be able to take on more moisture. We have some areas where we call them semi closed basins that it takes a lot longer for water to move and for recovery to happen.”

Saskatchewan isn’t the only province to see some major rain over the past month. Areas in Alberta have seen a major amount of rainfall during the month of June. Some rivers in Alberta will feed into rivers in Saskatchewan, including the North Saskatchewan River which runs through Prince Albert. 

Clark says they aren’t anticipating any major flooding to come on the North Saskatchewan.  

“Through those major water systems, we do have heads up when there’s those (major) rainfall events, but we are able to manage them well through the major river systems. We don’t anticipate as of right now any issues.”

Her statement was echoed by Patrick Boyle, who is the executive director of communications and client service for the Water Security Agency.

“It’s important to keep in mind the North Saskatchewan River, although it’s unregulated, essentially not managed until it gets to Tobin Lake and the reservoir there. It’s a very large river so it takes quite a bit of water to make its way through there. Sometimes it’s just looking at that increased flow and we haven’t seen anything just yet that’s coming through as a result of some of that rainfall. 

In certain areas of the province, highways have faced closures due to water running over top of the road and compromising the road itself. 

Dan Palmer, the senior communications consultant with the Ministry of Highways says the damage they’ve seen to roads has differed. 

“That will depend on what part of the province you’re in and where the highway is. But things like culverts damaged or the shoulders, the edges of the highways eroded or complete washouts. It varies as much as the province’s geography, but those are some of the things we’re seeing.”

In terms of wildfires, the province currently has 61 active across the province. As of 12:30 p.m. on Thursday, four are contained, eight are not contained, 38 are ongoing assessment and 12 are protecting values.

The notable wildfires in the province are the Border fire near Mary Lake (9 hectares, protecting values), the Gulak fire (309 hectares, not contained), Costigan fire (4000 hectares, protecting values), Red Fire (1393 hectares, not contained) and the Kerslake fire (4500 hectares, not contained).

‘Things are going to need to change’: Preds head coach on PGLL semi-final cancellation

Nathan Reiter
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‘Things are going to need to change’: Preds head coach on PGLL semi-final cancellation

For the Prince Albert Predators, one word to describe the season has been cancellation.

Not only did they have two regular season games plus the MacDonald Cup cancelled, the three-time reigning Prairie Gold Lacrosse League (PGLL) won’t have a semi-final game to play at the Kinsmen Arena later this week.

The team announced on Monday that the PGLL semi-final that was set for Thursday at the Kinsmen Arena against Moose Jaw was cancelled due to a lack of player availability for the Mustangs. 

Lucas Wells, the head coach and general manager of the Predators, says the news came out of left field for him.

“My initial thoughts were honestly very surprised, from my understanding, they’re (Moose Jaw)  one of the teams that had asked to move the playoff format from a one through three to one through four because two, three and four were so close. I was also shocked because we had sat down literally a week earlier and decided on the date and time and they had okayed with his own team and the teams, the coach and GM had okayed with his team and players saying they had enough to come down. I was shocked and surprised but I think right now that nothing should surprise me.”

In the comments of the Predators facebook post, one fan was questioning the integrity of the PGLL after the cancellation of the playoff game and the two games against Weyburn earlier this season. Other commenters were arguing about the game being scheduled on a Thursday night when it is a four hour drive between Moose Jaw and Prince Albert.

When asked about the situation, Wells says the situation is ultimately out of control of the league and solely the responsibility of each individual club.

“I’m going to defend the league here a bit and I know some people might be surprised, but the league sets these dates in. We have to agree to everything, so ultimately it is up to the teams. I’m going to venture to say that there’ll probably be a hefty fine, but I think that the league at some point has to look at other forms of punishment and what to do.

“I don’t necessarily think that it is the league’s fault. If a team agrees to play on that day and then comes back a week later and says, no matter what’s happening, we’re not driving down there. What’s the league supposed to do? I do understand everyone’s arguments that something needs to change, but that’s something we’re going to have to figure out in the off season.”

When asked about what solutions he would bring up to the league when it comes to cancelled games, Wells says he would like to see missed home games made up for in future seasons

“I think you have to start looking at removing home games for other teams. Why should we lose out on a gate for a playoff game or for two games against Weyburn? Then next year, I have to go down to Weyburn and play two games. To me, that doesn’t make any sense. If it would be up to me and a new punishment of some sort would possibly be you didn’t go to PA for two games. Well, now you have to play all four (games next season) in PA or all three in PA, something along those lines.

“With Moose Jaw, that’s a different case. They came down here on individual days for the regular season, so I can’t fault them for that. It would have to be a case by case basis, but if this is going to be a regular thing, things are going to need to change whether it’s within the PGLL or within our organization.”

With the cancellation of the game, the Preds are automatically in the league final. They will play the winner of the league’s other semi-final, either the Swift Current Wolverines or Winnipeg Blizzard. That game is scheduled for Friday evening at the S3 Arenas in Swift Current.

Instead of hosting a PGLL game on Thursday, the Predators will host an exhibition game against a team of alumni. That game will start at 8 p.m.

Air travel, best-of-five first round coming to WHL next season

Nathan Reiter
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Air travel, best-of-five first round coming to WHL next season

A wide range of changes are coming to the WHL for the 2026-27 season.

In a virtual media availability held on Tuesday, the league announced several changes including a one week extension of the regular season schedule, air travel to select out-of-conference road games, a 3-on-3 overtime pilot project to take place during the preseason and the first round of the playoffs being made to be best-of-five.

Commissioner Dan Near spent nearly an hour and a half on a call taking questions from media across the WHL.

With air travel being permissible in the league next season, the decision will allow WHL clubs to fly to one set of road games. The trip must be greater than 10 hours by bus and applies to out-of-conference games only.

It has been a discussion the league has had in the background for years, but Near says it finally made some economic sense when looking at the rising costs of operating a team.

“If you book these trips out in advance commercially, we won’t charter, these would be commercial trips, the economics actually aren’t nearly as difficult as maybe we once thought that they were. When you think about all the costs of doing it via road trip on the bus, and you think of the costs of flying, including the number of days on the road saved, the cost differences don’t vary that much.”

With the regular season being extended by a week, the league has also shifted the first round of the WHL playoffs to be five games in length. There are four possible formats teams can play in including 1-2-1-1, 2-3, 2-2-1, and 1-1-1-1-1. 

While the WHL has tried to model itself after the NHL, Near says the change shouldn’t change things too much for the league since a lot of series in recent years have been won in short order by higher seeds.

“If you spend some time looking at the American Hockey League, they have a similar model in this regard. Through the press release, you’ll see we have some flexible scheduling options depending on the types of matchups and the geography that goes on that does give preference to the higher seed in the type of scheduling preference.”

“We did look at a lot of data in and around the number of games that are won by lower seeds. The number of games, the number of series that go to six games or that go to seven games. Believe it or not, in the last 10 years, the eight seed has only won one of those. I think only 10 percent ever go to seven games or maybe less than that. Right now we often are sitting with wasted time at the end of the first round.”

The third major new change coming to the preseason will be a no return three-on-three overtime pilot. Under the pilot rule, once a team has gained the blueline no player can deliberately carry, pass or shoot the puck outside the blueline. 

Should that occur, the play will be whistled down (unless the opposing team collects the puck) and the resulting face-off will occur in the defensive zone of the offending team with no ling change permitted. 

All preseason games in 2026 regardless of final score will feature a three-on-three overtime to allow all clubs to try the new rule. Following the preseason, WHL general managers will vote on whether to implement the ‘no return’ rule for the 2026-27 campaign.

Near says the pilot project has gotten attention from the NHL as well.

“Our general managers will be watching. Our head coaches who are living it are going to be giving feedback to the general managers to bring to these meetings. We’re also going to consult with the National Hockey League. We’ve advised them that we’re gonna test this. They’re intrigued and they want to know more. They are a great source of information when you talk about rules and game formats and that type of thing, because they’re always doing data statistics and reviewing the types of things that can make the game better or possible trends. We’ll go through all avenues, but what it will come down to is a meeting with the general managers, potentially our governors, around making the recommendation as to whether to proceed for the regular season.”

Other details mentioned by WHL in its release includes record streaming numbers throughout the last season. With the addition of free livestreaming on Victory+, the WHL has witnessed an increase of over 50 percent year-to-year on regular season viewership.

The playoffs saw a 63 percent jump in average viewership with the league stating the audiences generated rival historical linear cable broadcasts.

In terms of in-person attendance, the league saw a four percent increase from the 2024-25 season.

The WHL also announced the regular season schedule on Tuesday.

Rudolph selected fourth overall, three Raiders taken at 2026 NHL Draft

Nathan Reiter
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0
Rudolph selected fourth overall, three Raiders taken at 2026 NHL Draft

A childhood dream came to realization for three members of the Prince Albert Raiders over the weekend.

Daxon Rudolph (4th overall, Buffalo Sabres), Michal Orsulak (79th overall, Detroit Red Wings) and Jonah Sivertson (113th overall, Vegas Golden Knights) were all selected in the 2026 NHL Draft that took place in Buffalo over the weekend.

The biggest surprise of the draft for many came in the first round when Buffalo selected Rudolph with the fourth overall selection. Buffalo had previously acquired the pick from the Chicago Blackhawks as part of a package that sent Bowen Byram to the windy city.

Heading into the draft, it was widely thought that either Carson Carels (Prince George Cougars) or Chase Reid (Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds) would be the first rearguard off the board.

Speaking to the media after he was selected on Friday, Rudolph says he didn’t even have a conversation with the Sabres until the day of the draft.

“I actually didn’t speak with them at the combine and then they made the (Byram) trade. I spoke with them this morning, so that was my interview with them and their staff. I kind of realized it could be a possibility that I’d be selected (by Buffalo). The defense in this draft is very elite and talented guys who I’m buddies with a lot of them. To be selected, it’s a good feeling and I’ll never forget it.”

For Rudolph, the dream of being drafted into the NHL has been with him since he was a young child growing up in Lacombe, Alberta.

After being the first overall pick in the 2023 WHL Prospects Draft, Rudolph shined in a Raider uniform. In 132 regular season games, he tallied 35 goals and 84 assists from the blueline. He added 39 points in 30 playoff games helping the Raiders reach the WHL Finals this past season.

Rudolph says playing for the Raiders was a major part of his development for the NHL.

“I think the moment where I realized I can really do this is when I got selected first into the WHL by Prince Albert, you realize that you got an opportunity at this and you keep your head down and keep working and you can maybe do it.”

“They helped me so much to prepare for the NHL. It was so much fun playing there, going to the finals. I think what I developed most over the years is just being hard to play against, and I think my offensive game took a jump this year as well. So those are two things that I worked on a lot this season, and I’m so fortunate to play hockey in Prince Albert.”

Like many prospects at the draft, Rudolph had some images with special meaning to him on his jacket that he wore on the special night.

“They all mean so much to me.” Rudolph told the media in Buffalo. “On the right side, I got pictures of me when I’m younger playing hockey and me playing for Team Canada and things like that and then on the left side I got family and friends who obviously support me and do so much for me. I’d say those guys probably mean the most. Then in the center at the back I got pictures of me playing in Prince Albert with my teammates and covered by the draft logo as well. All three mean so much to me in their own ways and I was very fortunate to get them displayed on my blazer today.”

In the third round, the Detroit Red Wings called Michal Orsulak’s name. Orsulak was the first round import selection in 2025. He posted a 2.22 Goals Against Average and a .907 save percentage in 36 games for Prince Albert. He was one of 32 goaltenders selected in the draft, the most since 2004.

Jonah Sivertson was the final Raider to be selected, going 113th overall to the Vegas Golden Knights in the fourth round. Sivertson posted 24 goals and 29 assists in 66 games across his first full WHL campaign.

The Regina product made the Raiders out of camp as a 16-year-old, but was sent back to the Regina Pat Canadians during the 2024-25 season.

The 2026 CHL Import Draft begins on Tuesday at 9 a.m. Saskatchewan time. The Raiders hold the 60th overall selection in the first round. Prince Albert opens the 2026-27 WHL campaign on Friday, September 18 when they welcome the Regina Pats to the Art Hauser Centre.

Rudolph selected fourth overall, three Raiders taken at 2026 NHL Draft

Nathan Reiter
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0
Rudolph selected fourth overall, three Raiders taken at 2026 NHL Draft

A childhood dream came to realization for three members of the Prince Albert Raiders over the weekend.

Daxon Rudolph (4th overall, Buffalo Sabres), Michal Orsulak (79th overall, Detroit Red Wings) and Jonah Sivertson (113th overall, Vegas Golden Knights) were all selected in the 2026 NHL Draft that took place in Buffalo over the weekend.

The biggest surprise of the draft for many came in the first round when Buffalo selected Rudolph with the fourth overall selection. Buffalo had previously acquired the pick from the Chicago Blackhawks as part of a package that sent Bowen Byram to the windy city.

Heading into the draft, it was widely thought that either Carson Carels (Prince George Cougars) or Chase Reid (Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds) would be the first rearguard off the board. 

Speaking to the media after he was selected on Friday, Rudolph says he didn’t even have a conversation with the Sabres until the day of the draft.

“I actually didn’t speak with them at the combine and then they made the (Byram) trade. I spoke with them this morning, so that was my interview with them and their staff. I kind of realized it could be a possibility that I’d be selected (by Buffalo). The defense in this draft is very elite and talented guys who I’m buddies with a lot of them. To be selected, it’s a good feeling and I’ll never forget it.”

For Rudolph, the dream of being drafted into the NHL has been with him since he was a young child growing up in Lacombe, Alberta. 

After being the first overall pick in the 2023 WHL Prospects Draft, Rudolph shined in a Raider uniform. In 132 regular season games, he tallied 35 goals and 84 assists from the blueline. He added 39 points in 30 playoff games helping the Raiders reach the WHL Finals this past season.

Rudolph says playing for the Raiders was a major part of his development for the NHL.

“I think the moment where I realized I can really do this is when I got selected first into the WHL by Prince Albert, you realize that you got an opportunity at this and you keep your head down and keep working and you can maybe do it.”

“They helped me so much to prepare for the NHL. It was so much fun playing there, going to the finals. I think what I developed most over the years is just being hard to play against, and I think my offensive game took a jump this year as well. So those are two things that I worked on a lot this season, and I’m so fortunate to play hockey in Prince Albert.”

Like many prospects at the draft, Rudolph had some images with special meaning to him on his jacket that he wore on the special night.

“They all mean so much to me.” Rudolph told the media in Buffalo. “On the right side, I got pictures of me when I’m younger playing hockey and me playing for Team Canada and things like that and then on the left side I got family and friends who obviously support me and do so much for me. I’d say those guys probably mean the most. Then in the center at the back I got pictures of me playing in Prince Albert with my teammates and covered by the draft logo as well. All three mean so much to me in their own ways and I was very fortunate to get them displayed on my blazer today.”

In the third round, the Detroit Red Wings called Michal Orsulak’s name. Orsulak was the first round import selection in 2025. He posted a 2.22 Goals Against Average and a .907 save percentage in 36 games for Prince Albert. He was one of 32 goaltenders selected in the draft, the most since 2004.

Jonah Sivertson was the final Raider to be selected, going 113th overall to the Vegas Golden Knights in the fourth round. Sivertson posted 24 goals and 29 assists in 66 games across his first full WHL campaign. 

The Regina product made the Raiders out of camp as a 16-year-old, but was sent back to the Regina Pat Canadians during the 2024-25 season.

The 2026 CHL Import Draft begins on Tuesday at 9 a.m. Saskatchewan time. The Raiders hold the 60th overall selection in the first round. Prince Albert opens the 2026-27 WHL campaign on Friday, September 18 when they welcome the Regina Pats to the Art Hauser Centre. 

Legion ready for Canada Day festivities

Nathan Reiter
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Legion ready for Canada Day festivities

While Canada celebrates its 159th birthday next Wednesday, the Prince Albert Legion will make sure Kinsmen Park is the place to be.

Rick Hodgson, the president of the Prince Albert Royal Canadian Legion says it’s always an important day on the calendar for the organization.

“It’s always been a big event for the Legion and since I’ve been involved, I’ve made sure that we keep it going for the tradition and what everybody has done.”

The celebration at Kinsmen Park will follow a similar format as recent years. Live entertainment will begin at 11 a.m. with opening ceremonies scheduled for noon.

Hodgson says there will be activities for those of all ages.

“We have a few extra things for the kids to do like face painting and animals coming in. We got the fire department bringing a fire truck up for the kids to go through and have a look at and Parkland Ambulance will be on the grounds showing their stuff up.”

Canada Day was renamed from Dominion Day in October 1982, with the first official Canada Day taking place the following year. July 1 has been a national statutory holiday in Canada since 1879.

Hodgson says it’s tradition for the Legion to hold an event in the park, and the current Legion members want to “keep it rolling.” They’re also expecting a good turnout.

“(It’s) for families to come up to the park and enjoy themselves,” he says. “It falls on a Wednesday so a lot of people won’t be going anywhere. We always try to do our burgers and food booths that are reasonably priced so the families can have a good day out and enjoy the day.”

editorial@paherald.sk.ca

Cancellation of MacDonald Cup is disappointing

Nathan Reiter
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0
Cancellation of MacDonald Cup is disappointing

Prince Albert was more than ready to host, unfortunately the rest of the lacrosse world wasn’t ready to show up.

The MacDonald Cup, which was scheduled to be hosted in August at the Kinsmen Arena was cancelled earlier this week due to a lack of interest from teams to attend the tournament.

In fact, the tournament has only received one formal bid to attend the tournament from the Prairie Gold Lacrosse League (PGLL)’s Moose Jaw Mustangs. A team from Lloydminster also expressed interest but were only interested in playing a best-of-five series against the Prince Albert Predators if either club were to be victorious in their league playoffs.

It’s disappointing for the tournament organizing committee who had everything planned and ready to go with the exception of teams registered for the tournament. There were plans in place to build scaffolding in the Kinsmen Arena to allow more spectators for the MacDonald Cup, just don’t tell the fire chief.

Prince Albert has a great track record of event hosting including the WBSC Men’s Softball World Cup in 2025, the qualifiers in 2024 along with the many tournaments hosted by minor sports in the city throughout the year.

Across the province, the city of Prince Albert has a less than stellar reputation from those living in other established centres such as Saskatoon or Regina. While the Predator faithful provide an intimidating atmosphere at the Kinsmen Arena, there is still some animosity towards the city itself from opponents.

In response to a comment on a post by the laxtillymen Instagram account, the Moose Jaw Mustangs official team account responded to a comment saying “a respectful message from the Moose Jaw Mustangs PGLL team. This is Junior B2 lacrosse we’re chirping about. And didn’t MacDonald Cup get cancelled in PA this year because no team wants to book a hotel at the jail cell?”

Bold words for a team that has to come to the Kinsmen Arena on July 3 for the PGLL semi-final.

The Predators have travelled out of province for the last two MacDonald Cups, which wasn’t the common trend. The 2024 tournament in Brooks featured four Alberta clubs plus the Predators while the 2025 edition in Abbotsford featured teams only from B.C. along with Prince Albert.

On the floor, Prince Albert earned the right to host the 2026 tournament after winning the last two tournaments despite having to travel the farthest of any team to attend. They proved with their play that they should get a chance to have teams travel to PA.

From an outsider perspective, it’s puzzling that only one other club from the PGLL submitted a bid to attend the tournament. It’s not common to be able to have a chance to participate in a western Canadian championship, especially one in your home province that would be cost effective to attend.

Without knowing the particulars behind the scenes for each team, you would think it would be logical for a team such as the Swift Current Wolverines to submit a bid. They attended the tournament in both 2023 and 2024 and traveled out of province for each tournament.

One has to think that the recent success of the Predators has something to do with keeping teams away. Prince Albert has won the PGLL three years in a row and looks poised to make it four in a row this year. While teams wouldn’t necessarily be chomping at the bit to play in the hostile environment that is the Kinsmen Arena, it would be a benefit to the sport to have the tournament with local teams rather than not happen at all.

Over the course of the past WHL season, the Raiders adopted the slogan “Unapologetically PA” which perfectly encapsulated the club with players such as Justice Christensen, Aiden Oiring, Michal Orsulak and Daxon Rudolph amongst others.

That same slogan also captures the essence of the Predators in recent years. Prince Albert has had some very talented teams along with some special players come through the ranks. The Predators, along with head coach Lucas Wells, haven’t been afraid to rock the boat of the Sask Lacrosse establishment.

Going back to 2024, the Predators tried something that many thought was beyond impossible when they made a bid to attend the Founders’ Cup. For context, the Predators are a Junior B Tier II team while the Founders’ Cup consists of Tier I clubs.

Not only did the Predators defeat Saskatoon in the first round of the play-in for the Founders Cup, they also took the Queen City Kings to overtime in the first game at the Kinsmen Arena before losing the second game of the best-of-three series.

During that process, the Predators proved that they belonged at that level which surprised a lot of people across the province and ruffled a few feathers along the way.

Prior to the first game against Queen City, the Predators posted a video to social media to hype up the game. Part of the video included audio from the pregame speech Wells delivered to his players in the dressing room ahead of the Founders play-in game against Saskatoon.

Shortly after the video went live on social media, the Predators deleted the video. It has been confirmed to the Daily Herald that Wells had been threatened with an indefinite suspension by Sask Lacrosse if the video remained online.

While the MacDonald Cup has been cancelled for 2026, there is one thing for certain. The Predators aren’t afraid to embrace the villain role in the PGLL and will continue to remain Unapologetically PA.

editorial@paherald.sk.ca

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