(Red Deer Rebels/Taylor Lachance)

By rdnewsNOW staff

Tough loss

Rebels fall to Raiders in annual Toque and Teddy Bear Toss game

Dec 6, 2025 | 9:25 PM

The Prince Albert Raiders played spoiler in a 7-3 win over the Red Deer Rebels in the annual Toque and Teddy Bear Toss game at the Centrium.

In front of 4,423 fans, the Rebels led 2-1 after the first period, but the Raiders, who are ranked third in the entire CHL, piled on the goals, including three on the power play.

Lacombe native Daxon Rudolph led the way offensively with a goal and two assists for the Raiders. Meantime, Rebels defenceman Nate Yellowaga had a goal and an assist in the loss. Netminder Matthew Kondro made 36 saves on 42 shots, and Raiders goalie Dimitri Fortin made 15 saves on 18 shots.

Head coach Marc Habscheid said, despite playing well over the last month, Saturday night’s game wasn’t one of their best.

“We were okay in spurts, and then in spurts we weren’t… In the second period, we weren’t in their end much, but we hung in there one goal down,” he said. “I thought to start the third, we were okay, and then we got into penalty trouble and then three power play goals, and it was over.”

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One of the biggest challenges in playing against the Raiders, Habscheid said, is that they’re a really quick team.

“They move the puck well, they’re quick, and we are too, but we just didn’t have our A game,” he added. “When we did, we were okay, but we played in spurts. It just seemed like the energy for some reason was down. It felt that way even in the building. But it’s one game, we’ll learn from it and move on.”

The Raiders found the back of the net first, just over three and a half minutes into the game. Forward Jonah Sivertson redirected the puck past Kondro following a shot from Linden Burrett from the blueline.

Rebels forward Landon MacSwain scored midway through the first period and was showered with toques and teddy bears in support of the Red Deer Christmas Bureau from the thousands of fans in attendance at the Centrium.

The rookie knocked in the loose puck in the crease after a shot from defenceman Keith McInnis redirected off a few bodies in front of the net.

“I thought it was pretty special,” MacSwain said after the game. “I’m definitely very grateful. It was a good play there for cubby to shoot it and I just made sure I was in front of the net and tapped it in.”

The Rebels then extended their lead to 2-1 with an incredible goal from defenceman Nate Yellowaga.

His highlight-reel goal came with 6:24 remaining, where he went coast to coast and made a move around a Raiders defender before beating the goaltender.

The Raiders tied the game early in the second period when forward Maddix McCagherty corralled the loose puck in the slot and picked the top corner of Kondro’s net. His eighth of the season came just 1:31 into the period.

Prince Albert retook the lead nearly midway through the period with a goal from Ethan Bibeau after he was left alone in front of the net.

In the third period, the Raiders scored three straight goals on the man advantage to lead 6-2 and put the game out of reach.

The first came from defenceman Daxon Rudolph on the power play with 16:27 to go, followed by another power play marker scored by Aiden Oiring a minute and a half later. Forward Max Heise added the third goal with 10:53 remaining.

Red Deer, however, showed a sign of life with a goal from Matej Mikes on the power play with just under eight minutes to play.

The Raiders then sealed the deal with an empty net goal from Owen Corkish.

Next up, the Rebels will head to Calgary next Friday, Dec. 12, for a matchup with the Hitmen before the rematch in Red Deer on Saturday, Dec. 13, at 6 p.m.