Adam Prudhomme
Editor
Up 5-0 in the third period of Friday’s home game and seemingly ready to switch to cruise control, the Napanee Raiders had to quickly put their foot back to the pedal to drive home a 6-4 victory.
Hosting the Picton Pirates, the Raiders grabbed the lead in the opening minutes of the second period courtesy a goal from Ben Carter. Soren Zamuner and Connor Brooks each chipped in with a goal to give Napanee a 3-0 edge heading into the final intermission.
Not content to rest there, Napanee continued to pour it on with a pair of goals 2:14 into the third-the first from Adam Nuttall, the second from Ryan Kidd.
A 5-0 lead with 18 minutes to play may seem like a safe lead but as New York Yankee legend Yogi Berra famously quipped ‘it ain’t over till it’s over.’ And in this case, Picton didn’t appear ready to concede anything. Instead the Pirates responded with four goals in a span of seven minutes and two seconds, with Landon McLellan, Brody Partridge, Jack Dow and Cole Stevenson each lighting the lamp.
That outburst brought the visitors to within one with 8:20 left to play and suddenly added some mystery to an outcome that just a few minutes early felt like a forgone conclusion.
Napanee was able to right the ship just in time however, thanks in large part to an empty net goal scored by Cameron Krupa with just under 20 seconds left to play. His insurance tally helped to prevent a major meltdown by Napanee and allow them to close out the 2022 home portion of their schedule on a winning note.
Baily Maracle earned the win with 25 saves on the night while Brady Spry took the loss, allowing five of the six goals with 38 saves.
Napanee will be back in action on Tuesday when they travel to Campbellford to face the Rebels for their final game before the holiday break.