(MONCTON, N.B.) - Université de Moncton Aigles Bleus (6-3-1) took a 5-0 lead and then hung on to beat St. Thomas University Tommies (0-7-3), 5-3, in an AUS men's hockey game, Saturday, in front of 600 spectators at the J.-Louis-Lévesque Arena.
Steve Lebel (from Danny Chiasson and Samuel Groulx) and Danny Chiasson (from Rémi Blanchard and Steve Lebel), opened up the scoring for the Aigles in the first period.
Pier-Antoine Dion (unassisted), Jean-François Plante (from Steve Lebel and Danny Chiasson) and Alex Saulnier (from Thierry Comtois and Allain Saulnier) netted three more in the second for Moncton as they put an end to a four game losing streak.
Matt McLeod, Andrew Fritsch and Bryce Milson replied for the Tommies, all in the third period.
Rookie goaltender Brandon Thibeau won his first game in a blue and gold uniform, facing 42 shots, including 16 in the first and 19 in the third periods.
He was chosen as Subway player of the game.
Luke Lee-Knight had 25 saves for the visitors and was replaced by Tyson Teichmann, who had five shots in the third.
"We had a difficult third period," said Moncton coach Serge Bourgeois. "We got caught and the Tommies worked hard on the power play. We were not aggressive enough in some situations. We sort of panicked. We played well in the first, except for the first minutes when we were nervous. We scored in the first and second periods. We started looking at them in the third and we were selfish. With a 5-0 lead, we should have been proud and help our goalie who kept us in the game. We let him down."
Rookie goaltender Brandon Thibeau was happy to get his first AUS win to relieve some pressure. "It is fun to win my first game," he said after the game. "I was able to see the puck well because by defenceman cleared the front of the net. The third period was harder, the Tommies never let up. This game and the victory are special for me, I have been waiting for it since the beginning of the season. It was great to do it front of our (home crowd). It does relieve a bit of pressure, but we must continue."
The Aigles will host Acadia University Axemen and the Saint Mary's University Huskies, Friday and Saturday at 7 p.m. at the J.-Louis-Lévesque Arena.
The Tommies will travel to Halifax Friday, Nov. 14 to face the Dalhousie Tigers at 7 p.m. and move on to Antigonish the following night to face the StFX X-Men, also at 7 p.m.
Source: Moncton Sports Information