Despite strong defensive play, the Prince Albert Northern Bears couldn’t find the back of the net as they dropped their home opener to the Saskatoon Stars 3-0 in SFU18AAAHL action Saturday afternoon at the Art Hauser Centre.

Northern Bears head coach Steve Young says Prince Albert played well from the initial puck drop.

“I thought we came out and started strong. We worked hard, I think we gained confidence early which is important for the type of team we have. We knew playing a team like Saskatoon that has a lot of skill would be a lot of work and I thought we worked hard here today.”

The Bears were under siege early as Saskatoon had several chances early in the game, but veteran goaltender Brooke Archer stood tall in net for Prince Albert, making 25 saves on 28 shots in the contest.

Young says Archer took the pressure in stride.

“I thought she handled it very well. Brooke is coming here with the attitude that she wants this to be her best year and I thought she handled the game well today.”

The most notable save Archer made on the afternoon was a breakaway save on Saskatoon’s Ireland Stein. After a turnover in the neutral zone, Stein was sprung on an uncontested breakaway.

Archer says her initial reaction wasn’t calm and collected, but she knew exactly what she needed to do in that situation.

“I was kind of scared. I knew I had to be patient. Lots of times, I move before anything happens. I knew to let her make the first and make my move after.”

Saskatoon would open the scoring at the 10:57 mark of the second period as Sage Babey would beat Archer assisted by Kolbee Ashe and Rachel Pavlove.

The Stars got an insurance goal at the 14:57 mark of the third period as Sage Babey got her second of the game unassisted. Saskatoon would add a power play goal with 25 seconds remaining from Avery Bairos.

Prince Albert was held off the scoresheet as Saskatoon goaltender Tora Ward stopped all 26 shots she faced in the contest.

Young says the key for the Bears tomorrow is to create more traffic in front of the net.

“It’s important whoever it is to get the net. You got to create things. We got to get to the net more tomorrow.”

Although the scoresheet didn’t have the results the Bears were hoping for, the team is confident knowing they can play alongside a strong Saskatoon team.

Archer says the Bears know what they need to do in the rematch Sunday.

“I think after today, we know we can stick with them. Tomorrow we have to come in and play confident and keep up the speed and just get pucks on net.”

The Northern Bears are back in action Sunday against the Saskatoon Stars. Puck drops at 1:30pm.

It wasn’t the result the Carlton Crusaders were hoping for as they fell 47-10 to the St. Joseph’s Guardians during high school football action Thursday night.

Crusader head coach Lindsay Strachan says the team knew they would be facing a good football team this week.

“We knew we had a stiff test coming in and they were as advertised. We are going to see some must win games. It wasn’t tonight. We know where the bar is from here on out.”

Coming into action Thursday, St. Joseph had only given up 13 points in three games so far this season.

Strachan says the Crusaders played well to start but needed more consistency on offense.

“We turned the ball over too much in the first half. We forced our defense to stay on the field, they did a good job for us early. We just needed to sustain some drives and put some points up, lots of learning tonight.”

St. Joseph scored early and often on Thursday. Carter Casey ran the ball in from a yard out and Tyrell Mohr caught a 10-yard touchdown pass to put the Guardians up 14-0 after the first quarter.

In the second quarter, Thomas Jule extended the Guardian lead with a 48-yard touchdown reception. St. Joseph would add another touchdown, plus a safety, to lead 30-0 at the half.

In the third quarter, the St. Joseph Guardians would extend their lead 33-0 as Carter Casey would kick a 35 yard field goal.

The Carlton Crusaders would break through on the scoreboard in the third quarter as Gage Prodaehl would convert on a 30-yard field goal. In the fourth quarter, Tristan O’Connell would break several Guardian tackles and make it to the end zone for a 46-yard score.

In the second half, St. Joseph outscored the Crusaders 17-10.

The Carlton Crusaders are back in action on Friday, Oct. 7 when they host the Tommy Douglas Tigers at Max Clunie Field. Kick off is at 6:30 pm.

After years of delay and relocation, the Esso Cup will finally take place at the Art Hauser Centre next spring.

For the Host Committee and the Northern Bears, it’s been living in their own version of the 1993 film Groundhog Day with the Esso Cup being constantly delayed and rescheduled from the scheduled 2020 date in Prince Albert.

However, all signs appear to the event finally taking place this upcoming spring at the Art Hauser Centre April 23-29, 2023.

Esso Cup Host Committee Chair Robin Wildey says the committee wants to make the 2023 Esso Cup special following the multiple delays.

“The Host Committee has been very close to actually running the event in 2020 as it was halted just over a month away from starting. We patiently waited through 2021, then supported Hockey Canada as they hosted the event last year. However, our committee and the Bears are now very anxious to put on the event and make sure it’s the best Esso Cup ever.”

Tickets for the 2023 Esso Cup will go on sale on Saturday, Oct. 1. A ticket package for the entire tournament will cost $65 dollars plus applicable taxes.

For the Northern Bears, the team is coming off an Esso Cup appearance last year in Okotoks, where they served as the host team over 760 km away from home.

Forward Julia Cey was a member of last year’s Northern Bears team that finished 2-3 In the tournament. She says the 2023 Esso Cup will be a lot better with the hometown crowd behind them.

“Going to Okotoks was an amazing experience. I know when we bring it home, it’s definitely going to be different, but I know when we bring it home it’s going to be different. The atmosphere is going to be great. All the girls from last year will have that knowledge from last year which will be great.”

Cey posted 23 points in 30 games for the Northern Bears last season.

She says the team is ready for the tournament, and are excited to serve as role models for the younger hockey players in the community.

“I think everyone is really excited. I know I am. It’s going to be awesome to celebrate this [tournament] coming to PA in front of all the young girls and boys that look up to our team.”

The Prince Albert Northern Bears begin their 2022-2023 season on Saturday afternoon against the Saskatoon Stars at the Art Hauser Centre. Puck drops at 1:30pm.

The Prince Albert Raiders couldn’t convert on some key power plays, and it cost them as they fell 2-1 to the Saskatoon Blades in overtime at the SaskTel Centre on Saturday night.

Prince Albert outshot the Blades 25-16 in the contest.

Head coach Jeff Truitt says he thought the team executed well in the defensive zone.

“I thought we did a real good job. You look at the shots on goal, we held them to basically three shots in the third period and overtime. So, they did an excellent job keeping them to the outside. But when you don’t capitalize on special teams, it can bite you and it did.”

Lukas Hansen opened the scoring for Saskatoon with his first career WHL goal at the 13:48 mark of the first period. Hansen beat Max Hildebrand after Tanner Molendyk point shot ricocheted off the boards and straight to Hansen’s stick.

Prince Albert would strike five minutes later as Hayden Pakkala tipped a point shot from Trevor Thurston past Blades netminder Austin Elliott on the power play to tie the game at one.

That would be the end of scoring in regulation, but far from the only opportunities for the Raiders in the hockey game. Saskatoon served 20 minutes of penalty time compared to only 8 for Prince Albert.

Saskatoon would commit two five-minute majors in the game. The first came at the 6:40 mark of the second period when Evan Herman got tangled up with Tanner Molendyk. Molendyk was charged with a slew footing penalty and was given a game misconduct. Prince Albert did not score on the power play.

The second major penalty committed by Saskatoon came at the 17:07 mark in the third period as Justin Lies hit Vladislav Shilo hard from behind, leaving the Belarusian forward shaken up on the play. Lies would be charged with a five-minute major for charging and was given a game misconduct.

Prince Albert would have a power play for the remainder of regulation and for a 1:53 of the five-minute overtime frame but could not solve Blade netminder Austin Elliott.

Truitt says the Raider power play wasn’t up to to the task, going 1 for 6 in the hockey game.

“It wasn’t good enough. When you get two five-minute power plays, you need to capitalize. The 5-on-3s, you got to make sure you’re getting quality shots on net. We turned some things into one on ones. That was the difference tonight, we had opportunities to win, and we didn’t [capitalize]”

After the major penalty to Justin Lies expired in overtime, it appeared the game would be headed to a shootout as both teams were playing lockdown defense in the extra frame.

Saskatoon would get a chance in the dying seconds of the frame, and they would convert. Brandon Lisowsky took a sharp angle shot against Max Hildebrand and the rebound went straight to Tyler Parr in front of the net and the 17-year-old forward made no mistake finding the back of the net with 0.6 seconds left and giving the Blades a 2-1 win.

The Prince Albert Raiders are back in action on Wednesday, Sept. 28 when they host the Winnipeg ICE in a rematch of last season’s first round playoff matchup, which Winnipeg won in five games. Puck drops at 7pm.

The Saskatoon Blades spoiled the Prince Albert Raiders home opener with a 5-2 win on Friday night at the Art Hauser Centre.

Five rookies made their Western Hockey League debuts for Prince Albert. Head coach Jeff Truitt says those players saw the reality of the WHL.

“They’re seeing a different level from exhibition. There’s a lot of learning that has to go on. It’s a process, it’s game one. They’re finding out the game gets harder when all the teams sort of find their rosters.”

It didn’t take long for Saskatoon to jump ahead as Aidan De La Gorgendiere found the back of the net 2:53 into the hockey game to give the Blades the early advantage.

Terrell Goldsmith gave the Raider faithful something to cheer about as the defenceman dropped the gloves with Saskatoon’s Justin Lies at the 6:02 that revitalized the Prince Albert crowd.

However, Saskatoon would get the last laugh as Egor Sidorov would score at the 11:34 mark to give the Blades a 2-0 lead after the first period. Saskatoon outshot Prince Albert 11-9 in the opening frame.

Prince Albert would come storming back in the second period as Trevor Thurston redirected a puck just outside the crease to bring the Raiders within one at the 7:52 mark.

Terrell Goldsmith, fresh off a fight win earlier in the hockey game, gave Prince Albert exactly what they needed as he would score on the power play at the 17:29 mark to tie the game at 2.

Raider head coach Jeff Truitt says even though the Raiders started slow, there were some promising signs.

“We’re down 2-0 and we get two goals from defencemen. Some of the young kids made some good subtle plays. They’re finding it quicker, I thought the kids sometimes made some good plays in the offensive zone to sustain some offensive zone time for us. We’re right there with them.”

There was plenty of physicality between the rivals, as there was plenty of extracurricular activity after many whistles throughout the night. Overage forward Evan Herman was in the middle of it for the Raiders.

Truitt says he was impressed by Herman’s showing.

“He’s a determined player, he plays with speed. He can drive a line. When he shoots the puck, usually good things happen. I thought he was one of our best forwards here tonight.”

Herman earned 4 penalty minutes in the contest. He says he needs to control his emotions better to play physical, but stay out of the penalty box.

“It’s a high emotional game. I let my emotions slip a little bit there. It’s part of the game. It’s better if I can keep them in check. I think the better off we will be.”

The scoresheet came up golden for the Blades in the third period as Saskatoon found the back of the net three times in the final frame.

Prince Albert appeared to score early in the third period, but it was waved off by the officials. After that, Saskatoon took the reins.

Egor Sidorov would notch his second goal of the contest and the game-winner at the 7:57 mark. Charlie Wright would add an insurance goal at 17:46 and Vaughn Watterodt would an empty netter in the 5-2 win for the Saskatoon Blades

Prince Albert will be back in action Saturday night at the SaskTel Centre for the second leg of a home and home series with the Saskatoon Blades. The Raiders return home on Wednesday night when they host the Winnipeg ICE at the Art Hauser Centre.

The Prince Albert Prairie Dogs were underdogs last season when they took home the Harvest Cup championship, and this year not much has changed.

Matt Robin, head coach of the Prairie Dogs says the team is not putting too much pressure themselves. Instead, they’re embracing the same approach as last year.

“The mindset of the team is to play one game at a time. Just to not get too much ahead of ourselves. There is a lot, but we just to play one quarter at a time, one game at a time. That’s the same mindset we had last year going into playoffs, so we’re just trying to keep the same mindset.”

The Prince Albert Prairie Dogs finished as the second seed in the Saskatchewan Field Lacrosse League Standings and played well down the stretch, winning two out of three in their final two weekends of regular season play.

Robin says the team saw themselves in a similar situation a year ago.

“Last year, we were down a couple, and we were sitting around the second seed. This year, there were 3 teams tied for second. We ended up going .500 with 4 wins and 4 losses. Our last two weekends were good. Going in this year to last year, it’s pretty close to the same.”
Robin says the Prairie Dogs have had to deal with a lot more comments from opponents this season after the Harvest Cup win.

“We are the defending champs and we’ve been chirped a little bit during the regular season. But last year, nobody thought PA would be competitive in the field aspect when it comes to senior. We proved them all wrong, and we’re looking to do the same thing. Just show up and do what PA normally does which is bringing home the senior championship.”

The Prairie Dogs take to the field on Saturday against the Regina Southern Comfort at 2:30pm followed by the Saskatoon Plainsmen at 5:30pm. Results of Saturday’s games will determine when Prince Albert plays on Sunday.

The Prince Albert Mintos welcome back a major part of last season’s team just before Saturday’s home opener.

Goaltender Jayden Kraus returned to Prince Albert after a strong showing at training camp with the Victoria Royals of the WHL. Kraus says he took it all in and hopes to pass on the knowledge gained to the rest of the Minto roster.

“The biggest thing at that level you learn a lot of things, see a lot from those guys who have been there for a while. I think the biggest thing is I’ll bring that back and hopefully share it with some of my teammates and the guys in PA.”

Kraus appeared in two games in the pre-season for Victoria. Kraus played for 30 minutes in his WHL pre-season debut stopping 29 of 31 shots against the Prince George Cougars. In his second pre-season game, Kraus stopped all 11 shots the Vancouver Giants fired at him.
Kraus says the experience playing in the WHL pre-season was worthwhile.

“I was a little nervous. The biggest thing for me was to just enjoy it. That was my mindset. I’m playing hockey, at the end of the day I play hockey to have fun. I thought I had a couple good games with a really strong D core in front of me and it turned out really good.”

Kraus adds the biggest thing he took away from Royals training camp was the level of consistency it takes to be a WHL goaltender.

“Off the ice, they’re always professional. On the ice, they’re so good. You’d think a Western [Hockey] League guy should be good. They’re unreal. To see those guys and the perfection it takes to be that good, I was very impressed.”