Saskatoon Blades pre-season opener spoiled by late Raiders comeback

Teagan Dernisky’s first game of Western Hockey League experience didn’t quite end the way he had anticipated, but he was happy to check off a big moment in his hockey career.

The 15-year-old first-round pick of the Saskatoon Blades this past spring came through with a two-goal performance Tuesday. However, it wasn’t enough to halt a late Prince Albert Raiders comeback as the Blades kicked off the WHL pre-season with a 6-5 loss at SaskTel Centre.

“It was a cool experience,” Dernisky said. “Obviously, it kind of sucks when you don’t get the win the first game. Other than that, it was a cool experience to wear the blue and yellow.”

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The Blades did not trail until the final 1:09 of the third period, as they allowed two Prince Albert goals in a 46-second span to drop their first exhibition game of the year.

Saskatoon head coach Dan DaSilva said the result was secondary for his staff, with the goal of getting eyes on a number of prospects for the first time in game action.

“I thought both teams battled hard, as you would expect in a P.A.-Saskatoon rivalry,” DaSilva said.

“Sloppy for sure in terms of X’s and O’s, but we weren’t worried really about that. We wanted to see these kids go out and bring their game.”

When asked about standout players who caught his eye Tuesday, DaSilva pointed to the team’s diminutive but scrappy first-rounder.

As a whole, he also complimented how he thought players throughout the lineup rose to the occasion.

“Teagan Dernisky obviously had a great first period there potting a couple of the goals,” DaSilva said. “I thought that there’s a number of guys that showcased their ability.”

Four Blades registered multi-point performances in the loss, with Wesley Truax (one goal, two assists) and Christian Lee (three assists) each contributing on three of Saskatoon’s goals.

“I can’t really complain,” Truax said. “I played pretty well, but it wasn’t all me. It was my teammates too, can’t do it all by yourself.”

Just 4:28 into the game, Dernisky opened the scoring for Saskatoon as he hopped on a loose puck in the crease for his first goal in a Blades uniform.

Dernisky doubled up less than six minutes later with a toe-drag to set a screen before he fired home his second goal of the period past Prince Albert goaltender Chase Kettles.

“I just kind of waited until I had a good shooting lane,” Dernisky said. “(Lee) screened him very well and I got a lucky screen. I shot it through and then luckily it went in.”

Prince Albert was quick to answer back, however, as less than a minute after Dernisky’s marker, the Raiders led an odd-man rush after a big hit on Truax.

Louis Judd finished off the scoring play at the other end of the ice to cut the deficit to 2-1 with 9:15 remaining in the first.

The Blades restored their two-goal lead with 6:05 left in the opening frame, with Landon Medin tucking the puck past the leg of Kettles off a net-front pass from Truax to make it a 3-1 game.

Prince Albert managed to beat the buzzer to close the gap to 3-2 before the end of the first period, as Caleb Mozell hopped on a bad Blades turnover in front of their own net with 42 seconds left.

Alexander Sharman joined in on the scoring for Saskatoon just 30 seconds into the second period, with the Blades capitalizing on a Prince Albert turnover.

Truax found a charging Sharman at the net, who did the rest with his hands to pot the 4-2 goal for Saskatoon.

Like they did in the first period, the Raiders closed out the second period with another late tally.

John O’Shea drove the puck to the net on an unassisted effort with 1:37 left in the frame to bring Prince Albert within a single goal through 40 minutes.

At the midway mark of the third period, Saskatoon got back on the board off the rush with a play finished off by Truax for his third point of the afternoon to make it 5-3.

That was until Prince Albert answered back just 19 seconds later, with a pass into the slot from Mozell that banked off a Blades skate past Max Hartel for his second goal of the game.

A Mason West tripping penalty put the Raiders on the power play late in the third period, trailing by a goal, and they got the equalizer with 1:09 left in regulation as Athens Shingoose fired a loose puck home with the goaltender pulled to make it a 5-5 game.

With just 37 seconds left in the game, O’Shea threw a puck from the corner towards the Saskatoon net front, which was tipped by Alex Boldt for the eventual game-winner.

Bracken LaRoque played the first two periods in net for the Blades and made 21 saves on 24 shots against, while Hartel made 14 stops on 17 shots.

Immediately following the game, the Blades and Raiders played a 3-on-3 overtime period that featured a new “no-return” rule the WHL is piloting this pre-season.

As part of the pilot project in every pre-season game this month, players are not allowed to bring the puck back into the neutral zone voluntarily after crossing the attacking blue line, with infractions resulting in a defensive-zone faceoff without the ability to line change.

While there were no plays that necessitated the new rule prior to a goal scored 2:47 into the period by Saskatoon’s Gavin Andersen, DaSilva said it’s a tweak players will have to be aware of.

“Their thought process when they enter the zone is obviously different than what it used to be,” DaSilva said.

“It’s going to be a little bit less possession, bringing the puck back out and trying to tire the opponent out before you re-enter. Teams are going to have to adjust to that for sure.”

The WHL will make a final ruling after the pre-season on whether the “no-return” rule will be part of the 2026-27 regular season.

Truax, 16, recorded 17 points in 26 games last year for Bemidji High School in Minnesota and said his goal is to prove he belongs with a spot in the Blades lineup on opening night.

“It would be great,” Truax said. “I’m just trying to play in a bigger league than in Minnesota.”

With the rookie game now out of the way, DaSilva said returning veterans will get their first exhibition games in the coming week, with four games to be played over the next 11 days.

“Most of the vets will be back in the lineup, unless someone from beneath them really elevates their game and works to take their spot away,” DaSilva said.

“Those are all conversations that we have throughout the course of the pre-season.”

The Blades head to Swift Current for their first road game of the pre-season Friday night to face the Broncos before they host the Raiders on Saturday at the Warman Home Centre Communiplex, with a 7 p.m. puck drop.