nivek_wahs
03-16-2007, 04:32 AM
http://www.canada.com/saskatoonstarphoenix/news/sports/story.html?id=0d16885e-ced4-46a2-a90d-fa4ba390fc0d
Blades can change Raiders' dominance
Doug McConachie, The StarPhoenix
Published: Friday, March 16, 2007
For more than a month, the Prince Albert Raiders have played like a deer caught in the headlights.
Who among them can honestly say they deserve to be in the WHL playoffs, a first-round meeting with the Brandon Wheat Kings straight ahead? The Raiders have managed just three victories to go along with 15 defeats since Feb. 1. And you thought the bottom fell out of Bre-X.
So why is it today they look like the world is off their shoulders?
They're so close to guaranteed wins that they can smell the meat packing plant on the outskirts of Brandon. The Raiders can close the playoff doors on both the Saskatoon Blades and the Moose Jaw Warriors in one fell swoop this weekend.
Not that the Raiders appeared to have anything to cheer about Wednesday. Regina's Garrett Festerling took a breakaway pass with 75 seconds remaining in a 1-1 tie and beat goalie Jesse Deckert to hand the Raiders their fifth straight loss. But when the Raiders got to their dressing room there was some comfort in hearing that the Blades had just defeated the Warriors 3-1.
That means P.A. still holds the fourth and final playoff spot in the WHL East Division. With just two games remaining for Moose Jaw, Saskatoon and Prince Albert in the regular season, neither the Warriors nor the Blades can catch the Raiders if they win out. Had Moose Jaw won Wednesday and the Blades lost, then Saskatoon was in never-never land and the Warriors, with two games remaining against Swift Current, would have been in the driver's seat.
One team's loss is another team's gain. For the Raiders, this was like finding out they'd sold their Bre-X gold shares for $200 days before the fraud was uncovered.
As it turns out, P.A. struck gold with the 2006-07 WHL schedule -- not once, but twice.
First, to make the 72-game schedule work, each team in the six-team East Division has more games against one team than any other. It so happens the unbalanced schedule pits the Raiders against the Blades 10 times. In comparison, Saskatoon played Moose Jaw and Swift Current eight times each, winning six of eight against the Warriors and five against the Broncos.
Secondly, two of the games between the Blades and Raiders are this weekend; tonight in Prince Albert and Saturday at Credit Union Centre. The Raiders can be thankful they're not playing Swift Current, which beat P.A. in all eight contests. The Raiders are 7-1 against the Blades. If the trend continues, so does the Raiders' season, right into the playoffs.
The Raiders have to be delirious. They've had Saskatoon's number all season. Of their three wins in the last six weeks, two were against Saskatoon. So, strut Raiders, strut!
But as of late, it's been the Blades -- against all odds -- who have found a way to stay alive. They picked up two points in Lethbridge a week ago in a game the Hurricanes had to win to keep their playoff hopes alive. On Wednesday there were no tomorrows for the Blades when they outplayed Moose Jaw.
One win can be motivational, especially when your opponent has been in a free fall. Which is why the Blades believe they'll be coming home for a playoff showdown with the Raiders on Saturday. They also have to get some help from Swift Current -- winning once against Moose Jaw -- but that's out of their hands.
Tonight at the Art Hauser Centre in Prince Albert, history means everything for the Raiders.
The Blades think they can rewrite it.
dmcconachie@sp.canwest.com
© The StarPhoenix (Saskatoon) 2007
Blades can change Raiders' dominance
Doug McConachie, The StarPhoenix
Published: Friday, March 16, 2007
For more than a month, the Prince Albert Raiders have played like a deer caught in the headlights.
Who among them can honestly say they deserve to be in the WHL playoffs, a first-round meeting with the Brandon Wheat Kings straight ahead? The Raiders have managed just three victories to go along with 15 defeats since Feb. 1. And you thought the bottom fell out of Bre-X.
So why is it today they look like the world is off their shoulders?
They're so close to guaranteed wins that they can smell the meat packing plant on the outskirts of Brandon. The Raiders can close the playoff doors on both the Saskatoon Blades and the Moose Jaw Warriors in one fell swoop this weekend.
Not that the Raiders appeared to have anything to cheer about Wednesday. Regina's Garrett Festerling took a breakaway pass with 75 seconds remaining in a 1-1 tie and beat goalie Jesse Deckert to hand the Raiders their fifth straight loss. But when the Raiders got to their dressing room there was some comfort in hearing that the Blades had just defeated the Warriors 3-1.
That means P.A. still holds the fourth and final playoff spot in the WHL East Division. With just two games remaining for Moose Jaw, Saskatoon and Prince Albert in the regular season, neither the Warriors nor the Blades can catch the Raiders if they win out. Had Moose Jaw won Wednesday and the Blades lost, then Saskatoon was in never-never land and the Warriors, with two games remaining against Swift Current, would have been in the driver's seat.
One team's loss is another team's gain. For the Raiders, this was like finding out they'd sold their Bre-X gold shares for $200 days before the fraud was uncovered.
As it turns out, P.A. struck gold with the 2006-07 WHL schedule -- not once, but twice.
First, to make the 72-game schedule work, each team in the six-team East Division has more games against one team than any other. It so happens the unbalanced schedule pits the Raiders against the Blades 10 times. In comparison, Saskatoon played Moose Jaw and Swift Current eight times each, winning six of eight against the Warriors and five against the Broncos.
Secondly, two of the games between the Blades and Raiders are this weekend; tonight in Prince Albert and Saturday at Credit Union Centre. The Raiders can be thankful they're not playing Swift Current, which beat P.A. in all eight contests. The Raiders are 7-1 against the Blades. If the trend continues, so does the Raiders' season, right into the playoffs.
The Raiders have to be delirious. They've had Saskatoon's number all season. Of their three wins in the last six weeks, two were against Saskatoon. So, strut Raiders, strut!
But as of late, it's been the Blades -- against all odds -- who have found a way to stay alive. They picked up two points in Lethbridge a week ago in a game the Hurricanes had to win to keep their playoff hopes alive. On Wednesday there were no tomorrows for the Blades when they outplayed Moose Jaw.
One win can be motivational, especially when your opponent has been in a free fall. Which is why the Blades believe they'll be coming home for a playoff showdown with the Raiders on Saturday. They also have to get some help from Swift Current -- winning once against Moose Jaw -- but that's out of their hands.
Tonight at the Art Hauser Centre in Prince Albert, history means everything for the Raiders.
The Blades think they can rewrite it.
dmcconachie@sp.canwest.com
© The StarPhoenix (Saskatoon) 2007