As the summertime begins to wind down and the fall begins, the stirring of hockey season begins at the Art Hauser Centre.
Thursday, Sept 1 marks the start of training camp for the Prince Albert Raiders. The team will look to build off the success of last season which saw the Raiders scratch and claw their way into the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference, but only to fall in five games to the top seeded Winnipeg ICE.
There will be a familiar, yet fresh face behind the bench this season for the Raiders. Jeff Truitt, an assistant last season under Marc Habscheid will take over the head coaching role after Habscheid resigned to take a job in the professional ranks in Europe.
Truitt says the opening day of training camp will be all about incorporating players in the team culture and identity.
“We’re going to do a lot of things, we are going to do presentations to the players, parents are going to get to toured around. We’re going to give them a real good feel about the Prince Albert Raider community, and our expectations for our club and what our value and culture entails.”
Heading into training camp, the Raiders will look build from the net out. Returning goaltenders Tikhon Chaika and Max Hildebrand compliment a returning defensive core of Nolan Allan, Eric Johnston, Terrell Goldsmith, Trevor Thurston, Landon Kosior and Tayem Gislason.
Truitt says the Raiders are going to expect a lot from older, returning veterans this season.
“They’re going to have to lead the charge, lead the pace and lead the compete factor. They’ve got to lead through training camp and prove that they want to be a leader and an impact player.”
Raiders training camp will run from Sept. 1 through Sept. 4 and the Raiders open the pre season on Tuesday, Sept 6 against the Saskatoon Blades in Big River First Nation Arena.
Camp Schedule
September 1:
• 10 am registration
• 11am orientation
• 1pm photos
• 2:15 team 1 ice session
• 3:30 team 2 ice session
• 4:45 team 3 ice session
• 6pm team 4 ice session
September 2:
• 8:45 am Team 1 vs Team 2
• 10:30 am Team 3 vs Team 4
• 5:15 pm Team 1 vs Team 3
• 5pm Team 2 vs Team 4
September 3:
• 8:45 am Team 2 vs Team 3
• 10:30 am Team 1 vs Team 4
• 5:15 pm consolation game
• 7:15pm Championship Game
September 4:
• 12pm Green vs White game