Lightning Hold Off Late Surge, Edge Ramblers 4–3 in Amherst
© Paul Morrison Photography
The Amherst Ramblers dropped a heartbreaker on home ice Saturday night, falling 4–3 to the Chaleur Lightning in a fast-paced, penalty-filled affair that saw the visitors strike early and fend off a furious third-period comeback.
The Lightning wasted no time getting on the board, as Ben Cross opened the scoring just 1:37 into the first period, finishing a feed from Zach Rushton and Jack Hayne. Just over 14 minutes later, Cross found the net again — this time set up by Hayne and goaltender Samuel Carreiras-Pata — to give Chaleur a 2–0 lead after 20 minutes.
That opening period wasn’t without its drama. The game’s first shift exploded into a flurry of penalties, including a roughing call on Cross and a fight between Amherst’s Nolan Shaw and Chaleur’s MacDonald, which saw Shaw handed an instigator penalty and a game misconduct. The tone was physical early, with each side trying to assert itself emotionally as much as tactically.
The Lightning extended their lead in the second period, capitalizing on the power play when Carter Bromley scored at 7:34, stretching the gap to 3–0. Amherst finally responded when Christian White buried a pass from Ty Peddigrew and Elliot Wright at 15:28, giving the home crowd something to cheer about and shifting momentum slightly in the Ramblers’ favor.
However, special teams continued to plague Amherst. Despite earning eight power plays throughout the game, the Ramblers were unable to convert any into goals, while Chaleur went 2-for-5 with the man advantage — a key difference on the night.
In the third, Chaleur restored their three-goal lead when Cross completed his hat trick with yet another power play marker, assisted by Brett Yuzik and Cohen McCallum at 8:56. Down 4–1, Amherst didn’t go quietly. Cooper Cormier responded just two minutes later, cutting the deficit to two, and with time winding down, Ty Peddigrew added a late goal at 19:02 — assisted by Mark Corbett and Owen Aura — to pull the Ramblers within one.
Despite outshooting the Lightning 50–33 over three periods — including a 16–12 edge in the third — the Ramblers couldn’t find the equalizer in the final moments.