Adam Prudhomme
Editor
The NDSS Golden Hawks boys’ hockey team got their KASSAA season off to a thrilling start on Monday, squeaking by the Regi Panthers 4-3 in a shootout at the SPC.
Napanee fell behind 2-0 in the first period, despite spending much of the frame in the Panthers’ zone.
Their persistence paid off when Corbin Gibson tipped a shot in front from Spencer Cranley for the Hawks’ first goal of the season. Just 39 seconds Gibson tied it up, directing a shot from Isacc Uens into the net.
Ben White gave the Hawks their first lead of the game late in the third. That looked like it might be the difference until Regi scored with just over five minutes left in the game to tie it. After five minutes of three-on-three overtime failed to produce a goal, the game went to a best-of-three round shootout.
NDSS’ Cole Campbell (right) carries the puck through centre ice with a Regi player in pursuit. Photo by Adam Prudhomme.
White and Reid Lambert each scored for Napanee while Ray Mullins turned away two of the three shooters he faced to secure the win.
“That was the way it should be, fast, back and forth,” Hawks coach Jeff Birchard said of the game.
He was pleased to see the team continue to press despite falling behind early.
“Two goals is nothing, especially in this league,” he added.
Hopes are high for NDSS’ boys’ hockey team heading into the season. There’s already plenty of familiarity amongst the players, having played together on club teams outside of school.
“We go in there and aplogize the first game because we’ve got centres playing wing,” said Birchard. “We picked what we thought were the best players, not positionally. Some of them are used to being centre and we’ve got them on wing. We had a defencemen who other than today because we were short on defense is going to play forward for us.”
Napanee will look to stay undefeated on the season when they host Frontenac at the SPC on Monday at 2:30 p.m.
NDSS’ girls hockey team will begin their season Thursday when they host Frontenac at the SPC. Puck drop is 3 p.m.
The NDSS girls are looking to repeat after capturing the 2019 KASSAA championship last February.