Raiders rise to top spot in East Division, Blades settle for third

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Raiders 4, Blades 3

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It came down to the last game, last period and final minutes between the Saskatoon Blades and Prince Albert Raiders.

Whoever prevailed would get the first-place pennant in the Western Hockey League’s East Division and coveted No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs that begin this Friday. The losing team would drop to third in the East Division and No. 6 seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs.

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That’s how close it was.

In the end, Prince Albert prevailed with a 4-3 victory before a packed house at  Art Hauser Centre to give the Raiders 84 points in the final standings (39-23-5-1 record) compared to 82 for the Blades (37-23-4-4).

Brandon Wheat Kings wound up in second in the East Division with 83 points (38-23-4-3) to claim the No. 5 seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs. The Wheaties will meet the No. 4 seeded Lethbridge Hurricanes (42-21-3-2, 89 points) in quarter-final action.

The Blades, meanwhile, await the winner between the Medicine Hat Tigers and Calgary Hitmen who are closing out their regular season Sunday.

“We’ll see what happens but we’re going to have to be prepared for a battle, for a really tough series,” Blades head coach Dan DaSilva told CJWW play-by-play broadcaster Les Lazaruk following Saturday’s game in Prince Albert.

“They’re really strong teams. The amount of valuable experience that this young team is getting right now is so invaluable — these types of games, these big games, a big challenge in playoffs.

“We made the moves that we made this year looking towards the future, right? The amount of experience that they get is going to be so beneficial a year from now, two years from now. The type of leadership they’re getting from our veteran players that have been through it is invaluable. It’s going to a special group here in a few years, if these guys continue to develop and improve and commit to playing a certain style of hockey, a brand of hockey. In a year or two from now, we’re going to be looking back at this moment as almost like a really big turning point, and learning lesson, for this group and a motivating factor moving forward.”

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With an average age of 17.9 years, and as the fourth-youngest group in the league, the Blades are the youngest team to make the playoffs this season in the WHL.

“Just so proud of this group,” said DaSilva, who is in his first year behind the bench as head coach after replacing American Hockey League-bound Brennan Sonne.

“We kept fighting right until the end. That’s what I said to them in the room. A resilient group. Never-say-die attitude. Wanted to prove people wrong all year … If you would have told us, in August, that we’d be one shot away from the division title in the last game of the year, we would have taken it. Obviously there’s disappointment, but there’s nothing to hang your head about. Unbelievable amount of character in that dressing room.”

Their youth alone make the Blades an underdog going into the playoffs and they relish that role.

“Our guys like that role,” stressed DaSilva. “They seem to be motivated by that underdog, prove-them-wrong type mentality. It’s going to be the same going into the playoffs. We’ve got to keep that going, harness that energy, that passion, that compete, and take that into the playoffs.”

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Besides veteran leaders like captain Ben Saunderson and alternate captains Tyler Parr and Rowan Calvert, along with overage defenceman Grayden Siepmann and overage forward Tanner Scott, the Blades are getting contributions throughout their otherwise young line-up.

“It speaks to the character in that room, the commitment to getting better every day, as a group and as individuals, buying into what it takes to win hockey games and everybody doing that, not just a few,” said DaSilva. “It takes the whole team.

“I’m just proud of this team and the way they worked, just the way we competed all year long.”

BLADES’ 2024-25 ADDITIONS SHINE

Cooper Williams, David Lewandowski, and Hunter Laing continue to shine for Blades.

As a 16-year-old rookie, Williams finished the season with 21 goals and 36 assists for 57 points in 68 games.

NHL Draft prospect Lewandowski recorded 15 goals and 24 assists in his 52-game rookie season, as he gets set for the NHL Entry Draft in June.

Calgary Flames prospect Laing, who was acquired at the trade deadline, set career-highs with 25 goals and 23 in 64 games.

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‘The season’s not over yet,” said DaSilva. “Now we’re headed to the playoffs and hopefully we can make some noise there as well.”

Playoff tickets for Games 3 and 4 of the Blades’ Eastern Conference quarter-final series go on sale Monday.

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