The race for the East Division title is far from over.
The Saskatoon Blades defeated the Prince Albert Raiders 3-2 Friday at the Art Hauser Centre, moving within three points of first place in the division.
It was a sensational night for Blades goalie Evan Gardner, who made his first start since February 2 after dealing with a lower-body injury. The Columbus Blue Jackets draft pick saw some action Wednesday night against the Swift Current Broncos in relief for Ethan McCallum, but tonight was classic Gardfather. The 6-foot-1 netminder stopped 41 of 43 shots, improving his record to 19-12-3-1 on the season.
Calgary Flames draft pick Hunter Laing was named the first star with two goals and an assist, including the game-winning goal in the third period. The 6-foot-6 winger missed the last two games with an injury and reminded fans how much of a factor the 18-year-old forward can be. Laing joined alternate captain Rowan Calvert as the only two Blades with 20+ goals this season, sitting at 21 goals and 17 assists in 56 games.
Rookie centre Cooper Williams finished the night with two helpers, giving him 16 goals and 30 assists in 60 games this season. Williams has ten goals and 13 assists in 29 games since the Christmas break and has played in every game for Saskatoon this season.
With the Red Deer Rebels' regulation loss Friday against the Medicine Hat Tigers, the Blades need just one point to clinch a playoff spot. They have the opportunity to do so tomorrow night in the second half of the home-and-home weekend against Prince Albert.
An entertaining first period didn’t feature goals for either side. The Blades had the first powerplay opportunity of the game 14 minutes into the first period, but it turned to 4-on-4 quickly after Calvert tripping penalty 1:13 later.
The only penalty of the second period was a slew-footing double minor to Raiders defenceman Vojtech Vochvest.
Kibblewhite cashed in less than a minute into the four-minute powerplay to draw first blood. The Vernon, BC native has eight goals on the season, half of which have been scored on a powerplay. Defenceman Brayden Klimpke assisted on the goal, giving him an assist in four straight games. The Blades still had another two minutes to work with on the man-advantage and did not waste it.
Laing ripped home his 20th goal of the year just over a minute later to make it 2-0 Saskatoon. The 6-foot-6 winger has 11 goals and five assists in 20 games with the Bridge City since being acquired on January 8 from the Prince George Cougars.
The Raiders scored a pair of goals within a five-minute span to erase the Blades two-goal lead in the second. Forward Aiden Oiring cut the Raiders deficit in half 11:10 into the frame, giving him 24 goals and 51 assists in 61 games. Fellow forward Evan Smith tied the game with under five minutes left in the second with his third of the season. The stage was set for a massive third period in Hockey Town North.
Laing potted the game-winning goal just over two minutes into the final period of regulation with his third point of the night. The play started off a great forecheck from Williams behind the Raiders net, forcing a turnover and finding his linemate wide open in the slot.
The Raiders threw 15 shots at Gardner in the third, but nothing got by the 19-year-old goalie who helped secure the Blades 32nd win of the year.
What’s Next?
The Blades and Raiders go head-to-head tomorrow night at SaskTel Centre for the sixth time this season, and second of four times in the month of March.
Puck drop is 7:00 p.m.
