Apparently the advantage to scoring the game's first goal isn't all it's cracked up to be.

That was the lesson to be learned at the Coniston Arena on Monday night as play resumed in the new year for the NEHL (Northeastern Houseleague) crew.

In Bantam action, Valley East Teddy Shack appeared to be off and running as Clay Steitenberger lit the lamp almost nine minutes into the first period of their game against the SMHA Ethier Sand & Gravel Crushers.

The momentum shifted quickly however late in the frame as Gavin Lefebvre and Marc-Andre Huneault tallied just 20 seconds apart and the Crushers never looked back, cruising to a 7-1 win.

Taking advantage of some very well-placed passes, Lefebvre, a defenseman with the Ethier group, went on to net a hat-trick, with Parker Camirand, Harry Smith and Zachary Matheson chipping in with one goal apiece.

Crushers' netminder Michael Duncan settled down nicely, turning aside 16 of the 17 shots he faced while Chad Nielsen was substantially busier at the other end of the rink, finishing the evening with 30 saves.

The start was twice as impressive for the Rayside Tigercats in the Minor Midget finale as Nicholas Belanger scored twice on his opening shift of the game, giving the visitors a quick 2-0 lead over SMHA True Steel Security.

But calm prevailed on the home side bench and by the end of the opening period, a pair of goals from Eric Hunt and a single from Jake Whitehead provided True Steel a lead they would not relinquish.

The SMHA crew went on to post an 8-2 win as Patrick St Amour recorded a pair of late goals, taking a great feed from Carter Jibb for his first, with Jordan Chalifoux, Nick Ames and Jibb adding solo markers.

Netminder Philip Taylor was flawless over the final 39 minutes of play, making a dozen saves for True Steel while Zachary Blades finished the evening with a 27-save performance.

Play continues on Tuesday evening with games scheduled for Centennial, Coniston, Capreol, Countryside, Cambrian and Sudbury Arena.