Adam Prudhomme
Editor
Raider captain Justynn Steven will return for a fifth and final Junior C hockey season, donning the Napanee black and white.
The team confirmed this week the 21-year-old Kingston native would be back with the team for his over-age season.
Last year the centre notched a career high 44 points in the regular season, scoring 17 goals while adding 27 assists. He continued to contribute in the post season, scoring seven goals while chipping in five assists, playing in every game of their 20-1 run to the Schmalz Cup championship.
After a cup of coffee with the OJHL’s Wellington Dukes, Steven joined the Raiders for their 2015-16 season, picking up 11 points in his first 16 games.
He’s been a model of consistency the last three seasons, suiting up for 37, 36 and 39 games respectively. In 128 total games with the Raiders, he’s accumulated 71 goals and 60 assists, including a career high 27 helpers last season.
In their announcement of his re-signing, the Raiders stated he’ll be their go-to leader and offensive contributor as they look to defend their Junior C provincial title.
In another roster move the team announced they had acquired 20-year-old Mack Warren from the OJHL’s Trenton Golden Hawks.
The Stirling native will join the Raiders’ blueline, which was already a strength of the team. Warren comes with experience, having played with the Golden Hawks as well as the Wellington Dukes, where he won a Buckland Cup championship in 2018.
Last season with the Hawks he recorded eight assists in 50 games, collecting 20 minutes worth of penalties.
With the Dukes for three years prior to his stop in Trenton, he had a goal and nine assists in 2018, adding another two helpers in 23 playoff games during their championship run.
The Raiders, who have already held a handful of training camps skates, are expected to announce most roster moves in the coming weeks. Roster hopefuls will have a few more opportunities to state their case over the next two weeks, as they have one last training camp date set for Aug. 31. They’ll then get into the pre-season when the Gananoque Islanders come to town for a Sept. 6 exhibition match starting at 7:30 p.m. at the SPC. On Sept. 8, the Raiders travel to Gananoque for their final pre-season tune-up. The season starts Sept. 13. The full schedule is expected to be released next week.