Milton Keynes Thunder welcomed the Haringey Huskies to the Thunderdome for their first meeting of the season. Following an impressive victory over the Slough Spitfires last time out, Thunder were eager to build momentum against the North London side. The Huskies, meanwhile, arrived looking to bounce back after an overtime loss to Invicta the previous weekend.

After featuring for 30 minutes in pre-season against Coventry NIHL Blaze, 16-year-old netminder Alfie Duguid was handed his senior competitive debut. He was joined on the roster by fellow 16-year-olds Josh Furnell, Lewis Conroy, and Joshua Blackwood, continuing Thunder’s commitment to youth development.

A delayed start to proceedings meant pre-game festivities were skipped, and it was straight down to business with the opening puck drop when both teams entered the ice. Thunder started brightly, applying early pressure, but met resistance from a well-organised Haringey defence determined to protect goaltender Dylan Phillips. Despite dominating possession, Thunder found themselves trailing on 4:21 when William Nowik finished off a clinical 2-on-1 break, slotting home at the far post to give the Huskies the lead against the run of play.

The game opened up from there, with chances at both ends. Duguid impressed in his debut, producing several sharp saves to deny the visitors. However, at 9:56, Haringey doubled their advantage as Carl Etuazim pounced on a loose puck low in the zone, forcing it home short side between pad and post.

Thunder’s resilience — a trademark of recent performances — soon came to the fore. They pressed relentlessly to halve the deficit, and with just 11 seconds left in the period (19:49), Mark Austen capitalised on a rebound from Hayden Hagger’s shot, firing high into the roof of the net to make it 2–1 and give Thunder a vital lift heading into the first intermission.

Thunder came out flying in the second period and wasted little time equalising. On 23:24, Marks Kanins showed great patience to outwait Phillips and tuck the puck into an open net after rounding the Haringey goaltender. With the momentum firmly in their favour, the home side surged forward, forcing Phillips into a string of excellent saves to deny Kanins, Conroy, and Peters. The pressure finally told on 27:51, when a rebound from Kanins’ effort fell perfectly for Ryan Wonfor, who turned and buried the puck low to the far post, giving Thunder a 3–2 lead. Haringey were handed a power play opportunity shortly after as Wealthall was called for high-sticking, but Thunder’s penalty killers held firm — and Duguid produced an outstanding full-stretch pad save to preserve the advantage heading into the final 20 minutes.

The Huskies looked to start the final frame with intent, breaking quickly into Thunder’s zone. However, solid defensive work forced the puck wide, allowing Lewis Conroy to win a battle on the boards and spring Kanins on a one-on-one. Forced out to the wing and seemingly out of options, Kanins produced a moment of brilliance — firing a stunning shot over Phillips’ shoulder and inside the near post to extend the lead to 4–2.

Haringey refused to fold and continued to press with both sides exchanging chances before Etuazim struck again, netting his second of the night to make it 4–3 and set up a tense finale. When Austen was sent to the box for hooking shortly after, Thunder’s penalty kill once again stood tall, keeping the Huskies at bay.

With a minute to play, Haringey pulled Phillips for the extra attacker. Kanins came agonisingly close to sealing it with a long-range effort that narrowly cleared the crossbar from inside his own defensive zone. Thunder, however held their nerve to win the final faceoff, and run down the clock in the corner as the Thunderdome erupted to celebrate a second win in as many games.

Final Score: Thunder 4 – 3 Huskies

It was another fantastic night of hockey in Milton Keynes, with both teams battling hard in front of an enthusiastic Sunday crowd. Thunder will take great confidence from back-to-back victories and now look firmly settled into life in NIHL 2. Next up, they travel to Slough on Saturday for the return league and cup fixture against the Spitfires.

Man of the Match (Thunder): Xander Robinson