MATCH POSTPONED We are sorry to confirm that due to an ice issue, Sunday's game vs. Basingstoke Bison has been postponed . Please bear with us while we work through the details of rescheduling. Don't worry, your tickets are safe! Sorry for inconvenience.
Milton Keynes Lightning were unable to recover from going two goals behind when they went down 4-1 to Peterborough Phantoms in the National Autumn Cup on Sunday. MK welcomed back Adam Laishram after his absence on Saturday but were still under strength with the continued absences of Liam Stewart, Sam Russell and back-up goalie Matt Smital. They soon found they were behind, conceding a delayed penalty goal to Ales Padelek on 2mins 45secs after captain Russ Cowley was called for tripping. The game was five minutes old Tom Norton clashed with Sean Norris – both receiving fighting penalties – the Peterborough man also earning an extra two minutes in the sin bin. Before the conclusion of the first period Phantoms made it 2-0 thanks a Luc Johnson assisted goal from Duncan Speirs at 16mins 57secs. That scoreline became 3-0 when – in a repeat of the previous evening – MK conceded within a minute of the restart. This time Padelek was on target again [...]
Under-strength Milton Keynes Lightning came from two goals behind to seal an NIHL Cup victory in overtime against a resilient Raiders at Planet Ice on Saturday. The 4-3 win came despite Lightning missing five members of the roster with Ross Bowers persuaded to come out of retirement to help out and former MK Storm junior goalie Thomas Adams, now on Haringey Huskies’ books, filling the gap left by the injury to back up netminder Matt Smital. After a slow start the hosts gradually found a way into the game and in the third period the partnership between former Basingstoke Bison pair Sean Norris and Sam Talbot started to produce rewards – the latter’s performance with two goals and two assists. In the end it was Norris who sent the home fans happy when his blast from the left defeated Raiders’ goalie Ethan James 1min 19secs into the extra period – the pass coming from Talbot. Raiders edged ahead in a scrappy first period – [...]
An overtime powerplay strike from Bobby Chamberlain secured a weekend challenge match double success for Milton Keynes Lightning at Peterborough Phantoms on Sunday. There would have much to delight MK coach Lewis Clifford with goals being scored across the lines, while the team, with many new faces, showed tenacity to hang on and take the win after Phantoms fought back to level in the third session. Lightning looked to be coasting to an easy win early in the game as Phantoms were made to pay twice within the first six minutes. First some poor play by the hosts allowed Chamberlain to feed Callum Field who scored at the second attempt - his very first MK Lightning goal - on 3mins 25secs as goalie Jordan Marr blocked but failed hold his first effort. Less than two minutes later Edgars Landsbergs supplied Hallden Barnes-Garner who went top shelf for the visitors’ second goal at 5mins 4secs. Tom Norton and Jasper Foster both tested MK netminder Matt [...]
Captain Cowley led the way with a hat-trick as Milton Keynes Lightning opened the 2021-2022 campaign with a convincing 6-1 challenge match victory over long term rivals Peterborough Phantoms at Planet Ice on Saturday. For most of the game there was only one team that looked likely to win with Phantoms’ goalie Jordan Marr facing a first period deluge of shots from Lightning’s new attacking strike force – the vast majority of whom had hardly had time to get to know each other. Phantoms suffered two early penalties when Nathan Pollard had only just returned to the ice following a two minute tripping call before Jasper Foster went for hooking. Neither penalty proved expensive for Phantoms. However, Marr was caught out straight from a face off by Bobby Chamberlain – set up by Russ Cowley – to put MK in front on 11mins24secs. Joe Gretton went toe to toe with Hallden Barnes-Garner seconds later with both received 5 for fighting penalties before Chamberlain saw [...]
Looking for some second hand hockey kit? Are you a rec player looking for some good quality second hand kit, or maybe you’d just like to own a unique souvenir? We need to clear out some space in our storage so we are holding a kit sale! We have a number of items ranging from: Sticks Socks Gloves Skates Other miscellany If you'd like to shop, come along to the locker room from 5-7 this Thursday and have a browse. Payment is by card only.
As we’ve built our squad for the 2021/22 season, MKL Head Coach Lewis Clifford has worked hard to balance the priorities of building a squad for the future, performance on the ice, and working within the NIHL wage cap structures for this season. This has meant that although a number of players have returned there are some we are saying goodbye to. For many, this news is already out there but we wanted to say thank you ourselves for everything you’ve done for MKL. #6 Jordan Stokes Stokesy was a solid, stay at home D man who was consistent in his play. Recently fully qualified as a firefighter, Jordan will play for Solihull Barons this year. Good luck for the season Jordan. #9 Grant McPherson Legend. Pure and simple. The players player of the year and a significant contributor to MK and British ice hockey. G grabbed points, including a the final goal of the season, but it was his contribution off the ice [...]
We are delighted that Adam Laishram will join AIB Milton Keynes Lightning for the 2021/22 season. Adam is a British passport holder, but having spent his career to date in Canada, he is classified as a non-British trained player. 24 year old Adam was born in Ashburn, Ontario, Canada has spent the last 4 years at St Francis Xavier University in Nova Scotia. Prior to that he spent 4 years and made 225 appearances in the prestigious Ontario Hockey League for Belleville Bulls, Hamilton Bulldogs and Windsor Spitfires, picking up 91 points overall. Most significantly, in the 2016/17 season Adam was a key part of the Spitfires side which won the Memorial Cup which is the national championship of the Canadian major junior hockey leagues. Adam’s Hamilton Bulldogs coach, former NHL star Steve Staios described Adam as “Terrific” and went on to say: “He does anything and everything you ask him do to at the top level he can. He is a 10 out [...]
“When you are putting your team together you need to tick a lot of boxes. You need so many players who can play on the PK, so many who can play on the PP, so many who can be on the ice in the final minute of a 1 goal game. When you get a player who has all of those attributes you have to keep hold of them as they are a huge asset to the team.” This is what MKL Head Coach Lewis Clifford had to say about capturing the signature of your MKL Captain Russ Cowley, who returns to the club for another year. 38 year old Russ was born in Edmonton, Canada, and brings with him experience of pretty much everything. He’s played at Elite Level with Coventry Blaze and Cardiff Devils, and has made tens of appearances for Great Britain as a senior international. In the 2019/20 season Russ made 34 appearances picking up 53 points. Cliff told us [...]
Completing the AIB MKL defensive lines this season is Mr. Dependable Lewis Christie, who joins MKL for a 12th season. Welcome back Lewy! 32 year old Lewy was born in Edinburgh, Scotland and began his career with Dundee and Edinburgh before earning his first international callup with GB U18s for whom he iced 9 times. Lewy then forged his career in the Elite League with Belfast Giants, and a brief stint in Basingstoke, before joining MKL in 2008. He has remained with the MK hockey family since then, and made 40 appearances for Lightning in the 2019/20 season picking up a goal and 6 assists for his efforts. But it’s not points that define Lewy’s game (although we were lucky enough to see him score a spectacular goal in training the other night), it’s consistency and defensive contribution as MKL Head Coach Lewis Clifford explains: “It would be hard to imagine an MKL team without Lewy on it. I don’t think I need to [...]
