The Prince Albert Predators are a Junior B Lacrosse team out of Prince Albert comprised of players from Prince Albert, Melfort, Shellbrook and some surrounding First Nations’ communities.
On the field, the team has enjoyed tremendous success. Their last loss was on May 27, 2023. Since then, the team has won three straight Prairie Gold Lacrosse championships and was crowned Western Canadian champions in 2024 and 2025, thanks to winning Westerns in Brooks, Alberta, and Abbotsford, British Columbia.
The Prairie Gold Lacrosse League is made up of Junior B teams based around Saskatchewan, in communities that include Saskatoon, Moose Jaw, Regina, Weyburn, Swift Current, and Prince Albert.
Predators coach Lucas Wells credits the influence of the National Lacrosse League’s Saskatchewan Rush as the driving force behind the sport's growth in the province.
“The Rush came in, and we saw a massive influx of kids joining lacrosse. I'm expecting the same this year, coming up with just how good the Rush were (reaching the league final in 2024-25). It kind of goes in waves, right? It's no different than any other sport. When your professional team is really good, everybody wants to play.”
Wells admits that lacrosse has provided his team more than just an opportunity to travel across Western Canada. It’s also afforded his athletes exposure to higher levels of the game.
“I've been contacted by a couple of junior A teams out in BC that want a couple of our guys. That's not something you normally see unless they have this opportunity.”
Wells says that those opportunities feed back into growing the game at the grass-roots level.
“The exposure for Prince Albert and the community of PA recognizes that there is a good lacrosse team here and that hopefully will continue to grow the game.”
Getting more kids involved in the sport of lacrosse goes beyond Wells' volunteerism as coach of the Predators. He is also on the Prince Albert Lacrosse Association’s executive, and he is diligently working to share his love of the game.
“We're out in the community a lot. Getting awareness and getting sticks in their hands is the biggest thing. Once a younger kid gets a stick in his hand and realizes it's pretty similar to hockey, it's physical, and you can hit somebody as hard as you want and not get a penalty, unlike hockey, they want to play.”
Wells says recruiting players for the Predators is more than just building a team.
We preach excellence, not only in lacrosse but in life. Our biggest thing is family comes first, then school, us, and then work. I don't want kids missing a family member's birthday or anything like that to be at practice.”
Wells added that the Predators have given him as much, if not more, than he has put into the program.
“It's nice winning games, but watching the kids we've coached develop into great young men has been the most rewarding thing. This group that I'm with now, I started coaching them when they were 12 or 13, and I've watched them grow up to become the good young men that they are. That has probably been the most rewarding.”
The Predators' season runs from late April through July, and registration is open now for box lacrosse.
