by Romano Di Franco
The Nepean Raiders had their season opener on the road at the Robert Hartley Sports Complex as they faced off against the Hawkesbury Hawks. The game went into overtime and ended with a final score of 5-4 in favor of the Hawkesbury Hawks. Brady McEwen made his regular season debut in goal for the Raiders while Dimitri Pelekos got the nod for Hawkesbury.
The first period remained scoreless as both teams displayed strong defensive play. The goaltenders were on top of their game, with a total of 28 shots on goal between the two teams in the opening frame.
The second period saw an explosion of goals. Peter Freel of the Nepean Raiders opened the scoring at 3:37, followed shortly by Owen Hardy at 4:36. Joshua Reid added another goal for Nepean at 8:50, and Brandon Reinisch made it 4-0 on the Power Play at 14:13. Alex Fournier finally got the Hawkesbury Hawks on the board with a shorthanded goal at 16:00.
The third period saw a comeback from the Hawkesbury Hawks. Alex Fournier scored his second of the night at 9:21, and Alexis Minville added a power-play goal at 13:31. With just over a minute left in regulation, Garrison Schultz tied the game for the Hawks at 18:47.
The tension continued into overtime, where Remi Gelinas of the Hawkesbury Hawks scored the game-winning goal at 2:23, securing the victory for his team.
Both teams had one goal on the man advantage.
The three stars of the game were awarded to Remi Gelinas of the Hawkesbury Hawks (1G, 3A), Alex Fournier of the Hawkesbury Hawks (2G), and Owen Hardy of the Nepean Raiders (1G, 1A).
It was an exciting and closely contested game, with the Hawkesbury Hawks ultimately coming out on top in overtime, taking the victory with a final score of 5-4.
The Raiders next game is in one week from today as they travel to the North Greenville Municipal Centre to visit the Kemptville 73s for a 7:30pm puck drop.
