X-Men shutout Panthers 6-0

(ANTIGONISH, N.S.) - The StFX X-Men (6-5) extended their winning streak to four games with a 6-0 win over the UPEI Panthers (4-6-1) in AUS hockey action Friday night.

The more than 700 fans who braved wintry conditions saw the home team jump to a 3-0 lead after the first period.

X-Men assistant captain Nathan Chiarlitti (Maple, Ont.) opened the scoring at the 3:53 mark when his point shot beat Panther goaltender Matt Mahalak (Monroe, Louisiana). Ted Stephens (Whitehorse, Yukon) and Eric Locke (Toronto, Ont.) assisted on the marker.

At 7:38, Stephens made it 2-0 on assists from Locke and Cole Grbavac (Calgary, Alta.).

Chiarlitti notched his second of the night when he took a pass along the boards from Brad Cuzner (Glace Bay, N.S.) and darted to the Panthers net before beating Mahalak five-hole. Brent Turnbull (Stellarton, N.S.) collected the other assist for the X-Men.  

On the strength of back-to-back goals by Cuzner, the X-Men led 5-0 after two periods.

At 2:52, Cuzner scored unassisted after the Panthers coughed up the puck in their own zone. After that tally, Connor Wilkinson (Ajax, Ont.) replaced Mahalak between the pipes for UPEI.

"I had a little bit of luck on that one, but I will take it," Cuzner said of his first goal of the game.

After killing a penalty, the X-Men raced to a two-on-one with Kirkpatrick putting a pass on the tape of Cuzner who made no mistake in making it 5-0. Adam Stevens (Bedford, N.S.) had the other assist at 6:40.

"It was a great pass from Kirky (Kirkpatrick)," Cuzner said.

The junior forward said the X-Men played a full 60 minutes, noting the team took advantage of a Panthers squad with only five defencemen.

"We worked really hard tonight," he added. "We are on a bit of a roll right now. We need to continue to stick to our game plan."

Cuzner was named Subway first star of the game for his efforts. The other two stars of the game X-Men Chiarlitti and Drew Owsley (Lethbridge, Alta.), who made 22 saves for his second consecutive shutout.

StFX outshot UPEI 36-22.

The X-Men return to action Saturday, Nov. 15, when they host the St. Thomas Tommies. Puck drop is set for 7 p.m. at the Keating Centre.

Source: StFX Sports Information