VANCOUVER – The UBC Thunderbirds offence continues to run red hot as they extended their program-record win streak to 10 games with an 8-1 victory over the Trinity Western Spartans Friday night in front of over 4000 Winter Classic fans at the Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre.
Scoring eight-plus goals for the third straight game, the 'Birds scored three times on the power play,
Cyle McNabb had a pair of goals – including his fourth shorthanded tally of the season –
Liam Kindree and
Sam Huo both had four point nights while
Kaeden Lane made 32 saves to earn his ninth win of the season while the 'Birds were tidy in the own zone for a complete 60 minute effort.
"We know we have enough so we can score, so we just need to focus on taking care of our own end and D zone and once that part of the game is locked down then the offence will take care of itself," said UBC head coach
Sven Butenschon after his team completed the season series sweep of the Spartans with a much more concerted effort in their own end. "Going into playoffs things are going to be way tighter so we got to get better back there. We got to get comfortable in our own zone and then with the way things are going with all four lines contributing, we're going to score goals."
While the T-Birds (18-6-2) dominated the game, it was the Spartans (3-24-1) who opened scoring, temporarily quieting the boisterous crowd with Josiah Vanderhooft's first of the season at the 5:50 mark, taking advantage of a turnover.
But from there on in it was all UBC, starting with Kindree's sixth of the season, finishing off a pretty passing play including a Huo spinning backhand pass across the slot.
A night after going a perfect 2-for-2 on the power play, the 'Birds scored two in the final two-and-a-half minutes of the first, a
Tian Rask deflection in front followed by
Sasha Mutala jamming home a Huo rebound as UBC took a two goal lead into the second.
T-Birds captain
Chris Douglas made it three power play goals on three opportunities scoring his sixth of the season midway through the second when he deflected a
Josh Williams shot from the right circle.
All told the 'Birds went 3-for-5 on the power play, now up to 27.8 per cent on the season, tops in the Canada West scoring eight times on the man advantages in the last three games alone.
"We do the same kind of practice plans and same drills, the same philosophy, but I think it's just a part of the overall group," added Butenschon of his team's exceptional execution on special teams. "A young team takes a little while to figure out things, chemistry, how your teammates like to play, where your teammates like the puck. And since Christmas I think it's all kind of coming together."
McNabb essentially put the nail in the Spartans' coffin with three minutes remaining in the second when he slid in his 12
th of the season while on the penalty kill.
The second year forward from Winnipeg earned his second multi-goal game of the season seven minutes into the third scoring perhaps his prettiest goal of the year with a perfectly placed wrister top-shelf, far side, chasing Berk Berkliev from the Spartans' crease. Isaac Labelle entered in relief for the second straight game.
Huo's 11
th made it 7-1 'Birds less than two minutes later and not to let McNabb run away with the team lead in goals,
Jake Lee capped off scoring with his 13
th at 15:28.
While UBC outshot TWU 48-33, Lane was especially busy in the third making 19 of his 32 stops in the final 20 minutes in an all-around stellar performance in goal.
"Not just making the saves but stopping pucks on rims and passing them to defencemen, communicating, he looks comfortable in there."
The return of the Winter Classic was something the campus community, alumni, and especially the team had been looking forward to, and it didn't disappoint.
"It was so much fun, the guys love it. So much energy, it's electric in there."
The Mount Royal Cougars earned a convincing win of their own earlier Friday, 7-0 over MacEwan, to vault back over UBC into third, but Friday night's Winter Classic win saw the 'Birds leapfrog back into third place, one point ahead of MRU. Now just one point behind the idle Alberta Golden Bears, the T-Birds still have the chance to finish with one of the conference's top two playoff berths.
Remaining at home for the final weekend of the regular season, the 'Birds host the Regina Cougars next Friday and Saturday, February 10 and 11, at the Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre, looking to head into the postseason as one of the hottest teams in the country.
