The Moose Jaw Warriors are getting a good chance to test themselves against the best that the East Division has to offer this season.

The Warriors opened the season with two narrow losses to the Brandon Wheat Kings and now they'll take on the Prince Albert Raiders on Saturday night at Mosaic Place. Both are teams that are expected to lead the division this season and will give the Warriors a good gauge for where they're at early in the campaign.

"We've just got to come out, play our hockey, play as hard as we can, and see what happens," said 18-year-old forward Tate Popple.

"I don't think we're even close to playing our best yet, so we've still got lots to give and it's going to be a good year."

The opening weekend saw the Warriors start slow in both games, but play their best hockey by the third period. The focus this week in practice has been on bringing that 'A' game from the start.

"The first weekend was a little tough for us, but that was expected with lots of new guys and trying to get a feel for the line combinations, so we're okay and we had a good week of practice and feel good coming into the weekend," said Popple.

"Our goal is to come to the rink and keep working at it and get better every day."

The Warriors will receive a big boost to their lineup for Sunday’s game in Regina as 20-year-old defenceman Brandon Schuldhaus will be eligible to return from suspension.

"It feels like it's been a long time since I played regular season hockey, so I'm definitely looking forward to it," said Schuldhaus after practice on Friday. "Having a few games to watch, I'm really looking forward to getting back into it and being in the lineup with the boys."

Schuldhaus saw the Warriors' two season-opening losses to Brandon from the stands last weekend and he said the team is in a solid position early in the season.

"Obviously, the first couple of games were close with Brandon and we've got a lot of younger guys who are still learning, but as a whole, we just need to sharpen things up a little bit," he said. "As guys get more comfortable, we'll get stronger every game."

The Warriors will face off with the Raiders at Mosaic Place on Saturday night at 7 p.m. The Pre-Game Show is on the air at 6:40 p.m. on Country 100.

Moose Jaw will travel into Regina on Sunday afternoon for the first meeting of the season in the Trans-Canada Clash. Puck drops on that game at 4 p.m.