CALGARY – Brock Nixon and Torrie Wheat notched two goals apiece and Dustin Butler made 23 saves for the University of Calgary Dinos en route to a 5-2 victory over the Regina Cougars at the Father David Bauer Arena in Calgary.

BOX SCORE

Without scoring, it was rookie forward Tyler Swystun who made the most noise to start the game. After registering two quick shots on goal, Swystun got caught with his head down and was laid out at centre ice by a Regina defender, which caused quite the commotion on the Cougars bench. Quick to get up and unfazed by the hit, the rookie forward hustled to get back into the play, where he eventually found himself wide open in front of Regina's net before getting his stick raised at the last second.

It was Nixon, however, who opened the scoring for the Dinos midway through the first. Getting free from a hook on a breakaway, the second year winger found the five hole of Brant Hilton on the delayed penalty. With the two goals, Nixon brings his season point total to seven, good for eleventh in Canada West.

After a goal from Ryan Sawka of the Cougars evened it up as an Aaron Richards penalty expired, Hilton stopped the Dinos from going up 2-1 late in the first period. Facing a Calgary two on one situation, he stymied a Jerrid Sauer one-timer with a quick glove hand, sending the game into the break tied at one.

Hilton's luck turned just four minutes into the second stanza however, where unable to find the puck, he was beat by an opportunistic Cory Pritz on his right side, who jammed his first goal of the season through for the one goal advantage.

Regina did manage to answer the Dinos once more, as midway through the frame on the power play, Carter Smith rifled one from the point over Butler's shoulder, who had little chance on the shot. Torrie Wheat took the lead back for the Dinos before the end of the period though, capitalizing on a Cougars turnover in the shorthanded situation, and Calgary never looked back from there.

Both Nixon and Wheat added their second goals of the evening in the third period, with Wheat's coming on the empty net with a little over a minute remaining.

Calgary head coach Mark Howell liked how his team responded from losing a lead twice during the game.

“I really challenged them at the second intermission to go out there and give full effort to finish the game after what I thought was some sloppy play in the second,” said Howell. “For the majority of the period, that's what they did, which I was very pleased to see.”

“And hey,” continued the coach, “the breathing room at the end was great. It's definitely nice to win a game by more than one goal after all those shootouts.”

Hilton made 22 saves in the Regina loss, letting four goals past him before watching Wheat notch the empty netter.

The Dinos (4-1-2) and Cougars (2-5-0) face off on Saturday night for the Halloween rematch at 7 PM at the Father David Bauer Arena.

-UC-