Marc Smith/MJ Warriors

The Moose Jaw Warriors couldn’t capitalize on an early lead as they dropped their second straight to open the preseason.

In front of a sold-out crowd at the Southland Co-op Centre, the Warriors dropped a 4-2 game to the Regina Pats on Saturday night.

“The crowd was great, sometimes exhibition needs a little bit of that, a little bit of juice in the air,” Warriors head coach Mark O’Leary said.

A gutsy effort came up just short for the Moose Jaw Warriors in their preseason opener on Friday night.

The Warriors lost 7-4 to the Regina Pats at Affinity Place to kick-off a neutral site home-and-home set between the two rivals.

“There was all kinds of really good things,” Warriors head coach Mark O’Leary said.

“It’s all about taking steps as we move along here, whether it’s day-to-day or period-by-period… I thought we were better in the second than we were in the first and our best period was the third period.”

Lynden Lakovic and Brayden Schuurman combined to score four overtime winning goals during the Moose Jaw Warriors’ championship run.

The duo were at it again in the Warriors’ Annual Intrasquad Game to wrap up Training Camp on Sunday as Lakovic scored the overtime winner to lift Team Red to a 4-3 win over Team Grey.

“The intensity definitely picked up today and it was the most high-paced game of the camp, that shows really good signs of where our team is at,” Lakovic said after the game.

The Moose Jaw Warriors are excited to announce that the team will be returning to the ice for its 2024 Training Camp from Aug. 28-Sep. 1.

The 2024 Training Camp opens on Wednesday, Aug. 28 and will run over five days at the Moose Jaw Events Centre. The camp wraps up on Sunday, Sep. 1 with the annual Black & White Intrasquad Game.

This year’s camp will feature the returning members of last season’s WHL Championship-winning squad, as well as members of the Warriors’ 2023 and 2024 WHL Prospects Draft classes.

Brayden Yager and Canada Red skated to a 3-2 shootout loss to Sweden in Windsor, Ont. on Wednesday night.

The Moose Jaw Warriors forward picked up an assist on Canada’s first goal by Carson Rehkopf midway through the second period, which tied the game at 1-1.

Sweden took a 2-1 lead early in the third, but Rehkopf’s second of the game with 1:47 to go tied the game back up.

The two sides went to a shootout with Canada missing on its four attempts, including one by Yager, to fall to Sweden.

Brayden Yager crossed another milestone off the list on Thursday.

The Moose Jaw Warriors forward signed a three-year, entry level contract with the Pittsburgh Penguins, inking his first contract in the National Hockey League.

Yager was drafted by the Penguins with the 14th overall selection in the 2023 NHL Draft.

The Saskatoon product had an outstanding fourth season with the Warriors in 2023-24, helping lead the team to its first Western Hockey League Championship.

Coming off a strong rookie season with the Moose Jaw Warriors, Connor Schmidt will get an opportunity to test himself against the country’s best.

The 17-year-old defenceman is one of 41 players invited to Hockey Canada’s National Men’s Summer Under-18 Selection Camp for the Hlinka-Gretzky Cup.

“This is a great opportunity for Connor to play against some high-level competition from his age group and develop going into next season,” Warriors general manager Jason Ripplinger said.

Brayden Yager will be suiting up for Team Canada later this month. The Moose Jaw Warriors forward was invited to Canada’s National Junior Team Summer Showcase on Tuesday.

“Brayden has represented the Warriors’ organization well on the international stage during his three years with the team and we’re excited for him to have that opportunity once again,” Warriors general manager Jason Ripplinger said.

Yager is coming off a career-best year with the Warriors as he scored 35 goals and 95 points in 57 games during the 2023-24 season.

The Moose Jaw Warriors made one selection in the 2024 CHL Import Draft on Wednesday.

The Warriors added Czechia forward Dominik Pavlík with the 53rd overall selection.

“We’re getting a forward who can really skate, he’s heavy, really skilled and he plays the middle, which helps and will complement our 2007 group,” Warriors general manager Jason Ripplinger said.

Pavlík played last season with Kärpät Oulu U18 team in Finland, leading the team with 21 goals and 34 points in 39 games.

The Moose Jaw Warriors will return to the Hangar for the first time in the 2024-25 season on Saturday, Sept. 21.

The Warriors will host the Prince Albert Raiders for the banner raising night as the team will celebrate its 2024 WHL Championship at the Home Opener.

Moose Jaw opens the 2024-25 regular season the night before against the Wheat Kings in Brandon on Friday, Sept. 20.

The full schedule will be released at a later date.