Medicine Hat Tigers, Prince Albert Raiders set to square off in clash of Eastern Conference Elites

Not to be outdone, the Raiders finished the season with a 35-6-1-1 record since mid-December.

Both teams swept their second round series en route to the Conference Finals.

Medicine Hat will be without Bill Hunter Memorial Trophy candidate Jonas Woo and 20-year-old forward Ethan Neutens for Game 1.

The Raiders have been hot out of the gate this postseason, proven by the fact that they have scored the opening goal in all nine of their playoff games.

A plethora of future NHL talent will litter the ice this series, with the two clubs combining for a staggering 15 players ranked on NHL Central Scouting’s final draft rankings for the upcoming 2026 NHL Draft.

The Raiders are led by Daxon Rudolph, who was the sixth-ranked North American skater according to Central Scouting, while the Tigers are led by the Ruck twins, Liam and Markus, who were ranked 20th and 23rd amongst North American skaters.

Tigers forward and Calgary Flames second-round draft pick Andrew Basha leads all skaters in points entering this series with 14, and has four assists over his last two games.

Carter Casey will get the Game 1 start for the Tigers, keeping up with the trend of alternating starts between Casey and Jordan Switzer, which began at the start of the second round.

Casey has a 3-0-0 record in the playoffs with a 1.81 GAA and a 0.937 SV%.

Michal Orsulak will get the Game 1 start for Prince Albert.

Orsulak has an 8-1-0 postseason record with a 1.55 GAA 0.919 SV%, and has posted three shutouts in nine starts.

Puck drop from the Art Hauser Centre is slated for 7:00 p.m. MST and the pre-game show begins at 6:45 p.m. on WILD 94.5 FM.

by Will Bryant

Medicine Hat Tigers, Prince Albert Raiders set to square off in clash of Eastern Conference Elites

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