Blake Boddy’s hat trick led the Varsity Blues men’s hockey team to an 11-5 rout of the UQTR Patriotes on Friday, November 11 at Varsity Arena.

The Blues are now 5-4-1 and move into a tie for seventh with the Queen’s Gaels in the OUA East division. The Patriotes loss drops them to 7-5-0 this season. They currently sit third in the East.

Boddy (Ajax, Ont.) wasn’t the only Blues player to break out offensively against the Patriotes. Veteran forward and Cambridge, Ont., native Dan Brewer had one goal and four assists, and Blues leading scorer Byron Elliott (Burlington, Ont.) racked up four assists in the win.

The Blues powerplay was firing on all cylinders, going 7-for-12 on the night. After the Patriotes opened the scoring at 3:19 of the first period, the Blues responded immediately, forcing a turnover from Patriotes goaltender Nadeau. Paul Dupont (Sault Ste. Marie, Ont.) fired it into the empty net and Boddy gave the Blues the lead just a minute later, burying a rebound for his first of three powerplay goals.

The game remained close at 3-2 after the first period, but with the Blues leading 4-3 in the second, Scaroborough, Ont. native Anthony Bergin raced up the middle on a breakaway and made a nifty backhand-to-forehand move to increase the lead to 5-3.

U of T blew the doors off the game shortly after, scoring another six straight goals before the Patriotes could respond with one of their own.

Lost in the Blues offensive onslaught was the play of rookie goaltender Brett Willows (Rivers, Man.). Willows was solid in his second start in the past three games, making 22 saves, including several miraculous stops while the Blues were shorthanded.

The Patriotes were led by Oliver Ouellet, who had two goals and earned player of the game honours for UQTR.

Game Notes: In honour of Remembrance Day, the Blues honoured veterans across Canada prior to the game with a moment of silence before a ceremonial puck drop from two members of the Canadian Armed Forces. The number 11 would impact the game significantly after that, with the Blues scoring 11 goals, and both teams incurring 11 penalties apiece.

The Blues return to the ice tomorrow (Nov. 12) when they take on the Concordia Stingers at Varsity Arena. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.