The men’s ice hockey team put on a clinic Sunday at the Whale against St. Francis Xavier University, as they opened up their preseason with a 9-3 rout.

The Bulldogs tallied six goals in the scrimmage before St. Francis Xavier got on the board with 15:30 remaining in the second period. It was Yale’s game from start to finish, with the left forwards leading the way. Jason Noe ’02 and Chris Higgins ’05 led the sons of Eli in scoring with two goals apiece, while Spencer Rodgers ’02 tallied three assists.

The Bulldogs took advantage of a tired St. Francis Xavier squad that was playing its third game in as many nights.

“It was a good outing and we are a young team that is finding itself,” head coach Tim Taylor said. “But we’re realistic about the level of the team we faced that night.”

Despite having 11 man-advantages, the Bulldogs got the bulk of their scoring at even strength, as they were only able to score twice on the power play. Taylor, however, is not concerned with his players’ performance on the power play.

“I was more interested in seeing how players would respond to situations than getting the power play percentage up,” Taylor said.

With nine players tallying points for the Bulldogs, St. Francis Xavier was overwhelmed.

“[The men’s team] is more balanced than past years,” Rodgers said. “You won’t be able to shut us down by controlling one line.”

The Bulldogs will next face the U-18 U.S. National Team at the Whale Nov. 3 at 7 p.m., in what should be a more competitive game, Taylor said.

After working on the man-advantage in practice this week, the Bulldogs will look for more offensive output from their power-play lines.

“We’re going to have to step up our power play if we want to continue to compete,” Rodgers said. “We’re going to have to play at a higher tempo.”