by Romano Di Franco
The Nepean Raiders played their very first game of the season at the Benson Centre against the Cornwall Colts. It was a long off-season due to an overhaul of a new ownership group, but the Raiders are ready to go for the season. For the starting goalies, returning goalie John Gedraitis got the start for Nepean, Gelvin Melcker was in goal for the Colts. Here’s a detailed breakdown of the game:
Camden McCuaig scored his first career CCHL goal which opened the scoring for Cornwall, Tristian Miron and Bradley Fraser got the assists. Almost two minutes later, the Colts added another marker when Bradley Fraser a native of Iqaluit Nunavut made it 2-0 on the Powerplay, Brayden Bowen and Miron with his second point of the game drew the helpers. With five seconds left to go in the first period, Dylan Turcotte scored the first goal of the year for the Nepean Raiders assisted by Carter Williamson and Nicolas Papineau.
Nepean would outshoot the Colts 11-8 in the first period.
In the second period, Cornwall scored two more goals from Kaiden Pyke and Ethan Montroy. The Colts would go on to outshoot the Raiders 17-9 in the second frame.
The third period was WILD! For starters, Cornwall scored three quick goals in that half. Camden McCuaig, Justin Ouellette and Ethan Montroy scored these aforementioned goals. With 10 minutes to go in the game, Bradley Fraser and Owen Kingham got involved in a fist fight. Cornwall the closed out the scoring when Kaiden Pyke scored his second goal of the game assisted from Camden McCuaig and Justin Ouellette.
To add insult to injury, the Colts outshot the Raiders 20-2 in the third period.
The Colts’ effective power play and penalty kill played a crucial role in their victory, particularly with the special teams’ efficiency and the impact of key players like Camden McCuaig and Kaiden Pyke. The game was also marked by significant penalty minutes, with several major and match penalties affecting the flow of the game. The Raiders are hoping to shake off the blowout loss and end the Showcase on a strong note.
Nepean’s next game will be tomorrow when the play the Hawkesbury Hawks for a 12:30PM puck drop at the Benson Centre
