The Prince Albert Raiders anticipated a tough series against the Everett Silvertips, and they’re getting everything they expected.
Fresh off a Game 1 loss, the hard-charging Silvertips piled on the pressure from the moment the puck dropped at Angel of the Winds Arena on Saturday. The WHL regular season champions scored three goals in the first period, two of which came in the first six minutes, and cruised to a 6-2 win.
The victory sends the series back to Prince Albert tied at one, with Game 3 set to go on Tuesday.
“We knew they were going to push off the start again, and I don’t think the score was totally indicative of our start,” Prince Albert Raiders head coach Ryan McDonald said. “There was a lot of things in the first period that I really liked that we did. We had some opportunities in the middle of the ice. We just weren’t able to get them off our stick quick and missed a couple Grade A chances and they capitalized on theirs.”
Everett’s Colten Bear opened the scoring for the second night in a row when he grabbed a loose puck in front of the Raider net and fired a wrist shot past goaltender Michal Orsulak 3:20 into the first period.
Kayd Ruedig made it 2-0 roughly two minutes later when he beat Orsulak with a slap shot high blocker side. Rylan Gould added to the Everett lead on the power play with less than a minute to go in the first, and the Silvertips had all the offence they would need to win.
At the other end of the ice, the Raiders generated chances, but couldn’t finish them. Everett starter Anders Miller turned aside all 11 first period shots he faced, and finish with 37 saves on the night.
Silvertips head coach Steve Hamilton said his team “took it up a notch” after falling to the Raiders in Game 1.
“Certainly (it was a) very important game tonight,” Hamilton said during a post-game press conference. “We responded. I liked the directness of the game we played.”
The Raiders mounted a comeback in the second, outshooting the Silvertips 15-9, and getting a goal from defenceman Brock Cripps. The 16-year-old from Victoria B.C. stepped into a loose puck and blasted it past Miller’s glove for a power play goal 4:24 into the second.
However, it was the only puck the Raiders could get past the Silvertips netminder that period. Everett hung on and reclaimed their three-goal lead in the last minute when Bear scored his second of the night on a rebound off a Julius Miettinen shot.
McDonald said he was happy with how his team responded in the second, despite going into it down 3-0.
“That’s the DNA of this group—that never-quit attitude,” he said. “They continued to fight right until the end. Again, I really liked our effort.”
The Raiders pulled within two midway through the third when captain Justice Christensen hammered a one-timer past Miller. However, the Silvertips defence held the rest of the night, and Miettinen put the game out of reach with an empty-net goal in the dying stages.
The Silvertips would add another with one second left on a five-on-three power play to make it 6-2.
Bear finished with two goals on the night and was named the game’s first star. The Silvertips left winger said the team came into Game 2 with a fresh mindset and it paid off.
“Everyone came in not down on themselves,” he said. “It’s a fresh day, a new day, a new game. I think that was our mindset going into the morning.”
News and Notes:
• Miettinen finished with a goal and three assists on the night and was named the game’s second star. Defenceman Landon Dupont recorded two assists and was named third star.
• Daxon Rudolph received a five-minute major and a game misconduct for a cross-check on a Silvertips player after Miettinen’s empty net goal. When asked about the play, and whether the Raiders were worried Rudolph might get suspended, McDonald said no comment.
• The Raiders finished 1/3 on the power play while the Silvertips were 2/4.
• Michal Orsulak finished with 32 saves in the Prince Albert goal.
• The Raiders will host a tailgate BBQ ahead of Game 3 on Tuesday. All proceeds go to KidSport Prince Albert. The BBQ rungs from 5:30 p.m. until 7 p.m. Puck drop is 7:30 p.m.
Scoring Summary
First period
1. EVT – Bear (5) (Miettinen, Ruedig) 3:20
2. EVT – Ruedig (2) (Jamieson, Chastko) 5:31
3. EVT – Gould (5) (Miettinen, DuPont) 19:17 (PP)
Penalties: PA – Dube (Roughing), EVT – Bear (Roughing), PA – Corkish (Tripping)
Second Period
4. PA – Cripps (4) (Rudolph, Cootes) 4:24 (PP)
5. EVT – Bear (6) (Miettinen, DuPont) 19:14 (PP)
Penalties: EVT – DuPont (Tripping), EVT – Vanhanene (Tripping), EVT – Uyeda (Tripping)
Third Period
6. PA – Christensen (3) (Rudolph, Oiring) 9:46
7. EVT – Miettinen (12) (Vanhanen, Liske) 18:58 (EN)
8. EVT – Heslop (4) (Ruedig, Busch) 19:59 (PP)
Penalties: PA – Oiring (Boarding), PA – McCagherty (Roughing), EVT – Bear (Roughing), PA – Rudolph (Cross-checking Major), PA – Burrett (Roughing), PA – Smith (Roughing)
