It’s good to be back.
That was the feeling as the Prince Albert Raiders filed into the Art Hauser Centre for the first day of training camp. The team hit the ice for the first time Friday afternoon following orientation and headshots. The first day of scrimmages are scheduled for Saturday.
“It’s a lot of excitement meeting all the young guys and the new draft picks,” Raiders captain Justice Christensen said. “It’s good to get back into the swing of things and get back on the ice with the team. I’m pretty pumped.”
“I’m super excited,” forward Aiden Oiring added. “You see a lot of familiar faces from last year’s camp, and then some new faces too—some young guys. It’s going to be super skilled and super competitive.”
While the Raider veterans were relaxed and laid back heading into training camp, there’s no doubt they’re a team on a mission. The Raiders won the WHL’s East Division last season, and won the club’s first playoff series since their championship in 2017.
They won’t be satisfied with just that heading into 2025-26. Returning players like defenceman Daxon Rudolph said he expects the club to improve on last season’s showing.
“That’s obviously our goal,” Rudolph said. “Coming from last year, we didn’t make it (to the conference finals), but this year that’s our goal.
“It’s so far away, the end of the year, but I think definitely we can be a competitive team in this league and definitely be top of our division, top of our conference, and hopefully top of our league. I think if we just continue to get better every day the rest will take care of itself.”
“I think we have lots more to give,” Christensen added. “Last year was a big step here in PA in getting into the second round and winning that East Division banner. This year I know just from looking at things we have a good squad and I know that we can push it even further.”
So what it’s going to take to take that next step? For the Raider veterans, it means making sure the first step is a good one. It means a strong training camp, and an improvement over last season’s near-disaster of a start, where they club went 2-8-2 to open the season.
The schedule makers helped out a bit in that department. A year ago, the Raiders started a tough Western Conference road swing just seven games into the2024-25 campaign. This year, they’ll have a bit more time to gel before heading west in early November.
But regardless of who’s on the schedule or where they play, the Raiders said they have to be ready to compete from day one.
“We’ve got high expectations for ourselves,” Oiring said. “I’m expecting us to be another good team—a hard team to play against. Our goals are to exceed last year.”
“Our start this year is really important,” Rudolph said. “Last year we didn’t have the start we wanted but I think that’s a big focus for this year ahead. Once we get that, we’ll just go from there.”
“Just get off on the right foot right after training camp and going through pre-season and starting the regular season,” Christensen added. “(It’s) just starting on the right foot, getting off to a good jump, and then continuing to build.”
Training camp continues on Saturday and Sunday, with the annual Green and White Game scheduled for Monday at 11 a.m. Admission is by food bank donation.
The Raiders open the 2025 WHL preseason on Tuesday in Saskatoon. Game time is 2 p.m. Their first home game of the exhibition season is Wednesday at the Art Hauser Centre at 6 p.m.
