Dave Leaderhouse
Special to the Herald
1099 days!
That is how long it had been since the Prince Albert Predators last lost a junior Prairie Gold Lacrosse League game, but that streak ended Saturday afternoon when they were upset 8-7 by the Swift Current Wolverines in a neutral-site game played in Shellbrook. To make the loss sting even more, the game-winning tally came with just one second left on the clock.
“I thought we were very complacent,” noted Predators head coach and general manager Lucas Wells. “We picked it up in the second and third periods, but we just were not good enough.”
“Some guys on this team have never lost,” added Wells who is trying to guide his squad to a fourth straight league championship and third consecutive MacDonald Cup emblematic of Western Canadian supremecy. “I think maybe it was a good thing for them to have that feeling.”
The losing ways did not last long, however, as just hours later – back in their home facility at the Kinsmen Arena – the Predators exacted some revenge with a 15-4 thumping of the Wolverines.
Braden Shewchuk led the way in the opening-game loss scoring three times and setting up two others while Ryley Prediger with two goals and three helpers and Talon Sandry with two goals and one assist rounded out the scoring. The Predators outshot the Wolverines 70-33, but could not muster enough offence to pull out the win.
In the second half of the twinbill it was Chase Lehner leading the way with four goals and two assists while Logan Rieger tallied three markers. Sawyer Elphinstone, with a pair, Cole Barmby, Owen Bear, Tucker Proedahl, Matthew Cudmore, Shewchuk and Prediger also hit the scoresheet with Cudmore and Prediger adding five and three assists, respectively.
May 6, 2023, was the last time the Predators lost a league game. They were 10-1-1 during that first title season and followed that up with a perfect 12-0-0 mark in 2024 and an 11-0-1 ledger last year.
Their record is now 2-1-0 this season and they will look to add to that on May 23 when they will host the Moose Jaw Mustangs at 7 p.m. at the Kinsmen Arena. The Predators will then conclude the home-portion of their schedule on May 30 when the Weyburn Razorbacks come to town. A doubleheader that day will see games played at 1 and 7 p.m., both at the Kinsmen Arena.
The remainder of the season will be played on the road with six games in June concluding the regular season. Playoffs are set to begin at the end of June with Prince Albert hosting the MacDonald Cup in early August.
It was a busy weekend for local lacrosse teams as all but the U17 North Sask Predators were in action.
In senior Prairie Gold Lacrosse League action, the Outlaws fell for the second straight week this time losing 19-6 to the Winnipeg Blizzard on Sunday in Shellbrook.
Talon Sandry and Brody Holizki each had a pair of goals for Prince Albert, who are back in the league after sitting out last season for unknown reasons. Kurtis Peifer and Jarod Reid also scored for the Outlaws, who will next see action when they host the Moose Jaw Mafia on May 29 at 9:15 p.m. at the Kinsmen Arena.
The U13 North Sask Predators had a great start to their weekend when they outscored the Swat 8-3 in Saskatchewan A Box Lacrosse League action played in Saskatoon on Friday. That result, however, was somewhat tempered when they lost both ends of a doubleheader by identical 10-5 scores to the Regina Barracuda on Sunday in Prince Albert.
Ryan Bexson led the way for the Predators in the win over the Swat scoring three times and setting up two others while single markers were added by Asher Roode, Charlie Morgan, Jase Helm, Jaxson Stene and Beckett Horricks.
Bexson and Roode had two goals each in the opening loss to Regina with Nixon Bilodeau tallying once whie Roode led the way in the back end of the doubleheader scoring three times with singles coming from Morgan and Horricks.
Bexson’s strong weekend has propelled him to the top of the league scoring race with 10 goals and six assists while Roode is close behind with 14 points.
The U13 Predators, who are in third place in the league standings with a 2-3-1 ledger, finish up the month with a game in Saskatoon on May 29 and a doubleheader in Regina on May 30. Next home action for the squad is not until June 12 when they will host the Saskatoon Swat at 6 p.m. at the Kinsmen Arena.
The U15 North Sask Predators also played three games on the weekend opening with a 9-5 victory in Saskatoon against the Swat on Friday before returning home on Sunday to tie the Regina Barracuda 7-7 in the opening game of a twinbill and falling 11-4 in the nightcap.
Jaite Bexson was dominant in Friday’s win scoring five times and setting up two others while Evan Morrison, Carson Krasilowez, Brodie Pilkington and Beau Tucker each added singles.
Harrison Shindle, with two, Zade Wozniak, Morrison, Bexson, Krasilowez and Pilkington provided the offence in the draw against Regina while Bexson had a pair and Shindle and Bentley Gariepy each had one marker in the loss to the Barracuda.
Bexson’s huge weekend has him comfortably atop the individual scoring race as his 13 goals and five assists in six games sees him three points clear of everyone else.
The Predators, who are in second place with a 2-3-1 record, hit the road at the end of the month for a doubleheader in Regina against the Barracuda on May 30 followed by another twinbill in Fort Quappelle on May 31 when they will take on the league-leading Standing Buffalo Fighting Sioux. Next home game for the U15 Predators is not until June 12 when they will host the Saskatoon Swat at 7:45 p.m. at the Kinsmen Arena.
The idle U17 North Sask Predators, who have yet to win a game in four starts, do not return to action until May 24 when they will travel to Moose Jaw to face the South Sask. Stealth for a pair of contests. Next home game for the U17 squad is June 7 when the Regina Barracuda will visit the Kinsmen Arena for a pair of games at noon and 4 p.m.
