VANCOUVER – Powered by a five-goal, second period explosion, the UBC Thunderbirds men's hockey team cruised to a 6-0 win over Lower Mainland rivals, Simon Fraser's club hockey team, in the first of the squad's five non-conference games prior to the 2015-16 Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) season
 
Anthony Bardaro (Delta, B.C.) led the offensive surge for the T-Birds, notching two goals. Josh Connolly (Prince George, B.C.), Chase Clayton (Abbotsford, B.C.), Joel Hamilton (Cochrane, Alta.), and Scott MacDonald (Surrey, B.C.) each got a single marker for UBC, while Nick Buonassissi (Vancouver) chipped in with a couple of helpers.
 
For new head coach Adam Shell, who, alongside new assistant coach Sven Butenschon, made their respective debuts behind the bench for UBC, the win was exciting, and should be kept in perspective.
 
"To start off on a winning track, that was great, but really, it was just nice to see the guys in a game situation, sort of gauge what we've done and where we've got to go." said Shell.
 
The opening 20 minutes of the chippy, penalty-filled affair highlighted the intensity of the rivalry between the two crosstown foes.
 
The T-Birds' first quality chance came halfway into the first frame, as winger Jessi Hilton (Sherwood Park, Alta.) got his stick on the puck near the SFU crease, but goalkeeper Jordan Liem made a terrific stop, sprawling out and getting in the way before the puck could cross the line.
 
After UBC defenceman Riley Guenther (Calgary) was called for high-sticking with five minutes to go in the stanza, Buonassissi did his best to open the scoring short-handed. The third-year left winger broke down the left wing and flashed some quick hands on the way to the net, but couldn't beat Liem, who stood tall.
 
SFU defender Jesse Williamson was ejected from the game with a minute to go in the first for a dangerous hit from behind on third-year center Luke Lockhart (Burnaby, B.C.), who didn't return to the game.
 
The penalty on Williamson, which carried over into the second period, served as a catalyst for the T-Birds' offense.
 
First-year defenceman Connolly got UBC on the board just 50 seconds into the frame, walking in and wiring a wrist shot past Liem from the right hash marks.
 
Another first-year player, Clayton, doubled the T-Birds' lead just four minutes later, combining with linemates Adam Rossignol (Surrey, B.C.) and Justin Georgeson (Maple Ridge, B.C.) to beat the SFU netminder.
 
After SFU's Matt Sheeran took a four-minute high-sticking minor midway through the period, UBC retaliated on the scoreboard, with newcomer Joel Hamilton and Bardaro each netting one with the man advantage.
 
UBC goalie Khaleed Devji (Vancouver) made his presence felt with five minutes remaining in the period, as he robbed SFU winger Mike Sandor on a clear cut breakaway.
 
Bardaro bagged his second tally of the night soon after, a beauty just before the period's 17-minute mark. Taking a beautiful centering feed from Buonassissi in the slot, the third-year center put a bullet upstairs, capping on an explosive period from UBC.
 
The third period showed UBC's ability to lock down their opponent, as, despite giving SFU two additional power plays in the final frame, they didn't allow SFU to threaten Devji's shutout over the final 20 minutes.
 
UBC extended their lead once more with just over two minutes to go in the contest, with MacDonald notching one on a quick wraparound to close out the night's scoring 
 
The T-Birds won't get much time to revel in their initial success, as they're set to ship out for Kamloops, B.C., where they'll face the reigning Canada West champions, the Alberta Golden Bears, in back-to-back contests on September 12 and September 13.