Don McDermott reports as the Raiders win two games on the trot for the first time this season after battling their way to a 2-0 victory over the Milton Keynes Thunder.
Slovakian international Marek Nahlik scored both of London’s goals, whilst netminder Michael Gray produced a Man of the Match performance, stopping 44 shots.
Milton Keynes had a few chances early on after penalties to Raiders captain Tom Davis and David Oliver gave the visitors a 5-on-3 advantage. But Gray was solid in net and Nahlik began to make his presence felt as soon as the Raiders returned to full strength.
Davis was called for another penalty later in the period, and London were given their first power play after Thunder goalie Villem-Henrik Koitmaa was cited for delaying the game.
Although the Raiders were unable to make the most of the man advantage, Nahlik finally got his side on the scoreboard with under a minute to play in the period. Robbie Veares sent a pass humming across the ice to Nahlik, who buried it in the wide-open left side of the goal.
Power play
The Raiders picked up their fourth penalty as Oliver was penalized for holding in the 23rd minute.
But the Raiders refused to just kill off the penalty and charged into their offensive zone. Nahlik fired a slap shot that Koitmaa couldn’t quite trap with his legs and the puck trickled in for a short-handed goal.
Frankie Harvey almost put London up 3-0 just minutes later, but hit the crossbar with a slap shot on a power play.
The Thunder began to apply the pressure for the remainder of the period. The Raiders were left short-handed twice more, but killed off the penalties successfully and the final 20 minutes started with London still two goals ahead.
Both sides had chances early on, with Koitmaa denying London with a great sliding save. His team picked up most of the early chances, but the Raiders snatched the momentum back when they were given a 5-on-3 power play.
Davis was later sent off the ice after a third penalty; however, London remained in command. Nahlik had an opportunity to score his hat trick, but had to settle for a yet another two-goal performance after hitting the post with 1:30 mins left on the clock .
But his two goals were enough for London, and they moved to 4-1-4 on the season. Gray was awarded Man of the Match, and Seb Downing was named Player of the Month in his first month with the club.
London Raiders had Sunday off, but will put their winning streak on the line this weekend against Invicta Dynamos in Gillingham.