ROMFORD, UK – Juraj Huska bagged his third consecutive hat-trick and Michael Gray made 29 saves as the Raiders beat a resilient Oxford City Stars 5-1 on Sunday evening. The Raiders, playing their only game of the weekend, won for the fourth straight game as import forward Huska scored his 13th, 14th and 15th goals of the season in another strong individual performance. The home side slowly took control after a fast start from the visiting Stars, clearly leg-weary after a weekend of emphatic victories over the Bristol Pitbulls and Swindon Wildcats respectively. Despite the scoreline, Oxford offered much as an attacking force, hitting the post three times as they failed to capitalise whilst on top. Huska would ultimately make them pay for their mistakes, though it was Joe Allen that got the home side underway for the evening late in the first. Allen took a gorgeous cross-ice pass from AJ Smith during a Raider powerplay, one-timing a wrist-shot short-side past Stars’ goaltender Robin Lindva. It was an important goal for the Raiders after a scratchy start, one which could have been added to shortly after by the excellent Huska. Huska, exiting the penalty box after a retaliatory cross-checking call, broke in one-on-one with Lindva but failed to beat the goaltender’s right pad after a deke to the backhand had opened up the near side. Oxford had hit the post during the previous powerplay, Dale White ringing a shot off the iron as the Raiders held on to a one-goal lead heading in to the intermission. Gray was called in to action early in the second, denying the Stars from the blueline before kicking out his left pad to stop a stuff attempt in the crease; an important double save that the Raiders would soon build on. The line of Huska, Danny Marshall and Frankie Harvey combined to setup the home side’s second goal three minutes from the break, Huska firing in to an open net after Harvey’s backhand pass through the crease had been tipped on by Marshall. The third period began with a familiar sound of puck on post, Harvey ringing a shot off the goal-frame during an early Raider powerplay before a shorthanded chance for Oxford ended with the same result just seconds later. JJ McGrath, fresh from opening his account for the season during last weekends’ 15-2 win over Swindon, scored for the second consecutive game as his goal gave the Raiders much-needed breathing space with ten minutes to play. McGrath held off the Stars defence as he drove in from the blueline, shifting the puck to his forehand before beating Lindva in close. It was an excellent goal, one that would prove increasingly vital as a late Huska double sandwiched a Joe Edwards goal during a delayed penalty. Edwards cut through the crease and beat Gray before Huska capped his third consecutive hat-trick off a shorthanded breakaway in the dying minutes, firing past Lindva as the Oxford defence struggled to get back; a much tougher test than weekends past, but one that the Raiders pass with reasonable ease. Contact the author – alex.nunn@prohockeynews.com
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