Blades take series in five

The Saskatoon Blades are on to the second round of the Western Hockey League (WHL) playoffs after a 6-2 win over the Prince Albert Raiders at SaskTel Centre on Friday.

“The belief was still there, we knew it was going to be a challenge, but our guys worked and competed right to the end,” said Jeff Truitt, Prince Albert Raiders head coach.

With a chance to finish a team off early, the Blades were eager to learn the lessons from last year’s extended playoff run that saw the first two rounds go the distance.

This time, the Blades got out of round one in five games.

Brandon Lisowsky scored less than four minutes into the game, starting a four-goal run for the Blades in 12 minutes.

Ben Saunderson snuck in from the blue line and found the top corner to go up 2-0. That goal was quickly followed by one from Alexander Suzdalev. He deflected a shot that Hildebrand had no chance on before Fraser Minten’s first of the series made it four goals on 13 shots.

But with their backs against the wall, the Raiders showed they weren’t going down easy. Niall Crocker found himself alone in front of the net and out-waited goaltender Evan Gardner to get the visitors on the board late in the first period.

Prince Albert Raiders head coach Jeff Truitt is seen in this photo (John Flatters/CTV News)

The game started to heat up physically with hits being thrown all over the ice, resulting in penalties for both teams.

Notably, a hit between Justice Christensen and rookie netminder Evan Gardner near the end of the first warranted a visit from the Blades’ athletic therapist.

Gardner would finish the period but was replaced in the second by Austin Elliott. And while there was no scoring in the middle frame, the hits kept coming.

A huge collision between Raiders’ Kryzstof Macias and Lukas Hansen on a Blades power play was called for a major penalty, ending the night for Macias.

With the score still 4-1 in the third period, Harrison Lodewyk blew past the defenders on a long rush, cutting in front of Elliott at the crease and bringing the score within two.

With their season on the line, the Raiders pulled their goalie with more than four minutes to go, but two consecutive empty-net goals from Trevor Wong and Charlie Wright would seal it 6-2.

“I won’t fault our guys for anything on their effort,” Raiders head coach Jeff Truitt said. “They played hard.”

Truitt admits they had a young group, but the overage players that came into the team were a big help in creating a competitive atmosphere in the locker room.

“You feel bad for our 20-year-olds, that ends their season,” he said. “But for the rest of the guys in this group, it's a real good education about what it takes to win at this level.”

The players graduating from Prince Albert are Sloan Stanick, Turner McMillen, and Jacob Hoffrogge. Truitt says he admired McMillen’s ability to bounce back from a situation that made him the odd man out in Kelowna, coming to Prince Albert and showing the young players the way. In Hoffrogge, he liked the skating ability and steady defensive presence he brought to the Raiders.

“Sloan Stanick, just a tremendous player that we’re hoping he gets a pro opportunity,” added Truitt of the longest-serving Raiders overager.

The Blades will face the Red Deer Rebels in the Eastern Conference Semifinal, the same opponent they faced last year. (John Flatters/CTV News)

Blades coach Brennan Sonne got his first taste of the Highway 11 rivalry in a playoff series, and it came as advertised.

“It felt like a real, true playoff series,” Brennan Sonne, Saskatoon Blades head coach said. “This was a war. It came as advertised, it was a heck of a rivalry and a really gritty series.”

One play that stood out for the nominee for East Division coach of the year came at the end of a Blades power play.

“Did you see [Lisowsky’s] backcheck from the box,” said Sonne. “He made up 25 feet and poked away a breakaway. So it’s not just about the scoring, I just thought they were complete.”

“I just saw the guy out of the box, I just wanted to catch him,” said Brandon Lisowsky, who had a goal and an assist in game five. “It could have been a different game if he scored that. I just had my legs and thought, I just gotta go as fast as I can.”

The Blades will face the Red Deer Rebels in the Eastern Conference Semifinal, the same opponent they faced last year.

“Monday and Tuesday are going to be big days of preparing for a big series against Red Deer,” said Lisowsky. “They’re very similar to P.A. They play very physical, they’ve got some skill guys, they’ve got a good goalie. Last year our start wasn’t good, we had home ice advantage and didn’t take advantage of that.”