The No. 1-ranked Alberta Golden Bears got out to a quick start with four goals in the opening period and cruised to a 9-0 win over the Regina Cougars on Saturday in a Canada West men's hockey game in Edmonton.

Steven Owre had a pair of first-period goals while Noah Philp, Chad Butcher, Curtis Miske, Ben Carroll, Tyson Baillie, Lucas Nickles, and Grayson Pawlenchuk also scored for the Golden Bears. Pawlenchuk added three assists for a four-point night, while Cole Sanford also notched three helpers.

Alberta's Matt Berlin made 19 saves to secure his second shutout of the season, helping the Golden Bears improve to 11-1-0 on the season as they continue to sit atop the conference standings.

Dawson MacAuley got the start between the pipes for the Cougars, but was replaced by Curtis Meger early in the second following a collision that resulted in what appeared to be a blocker hand injury.

The Cougars (2-9-1) will now prepare for a home-and-home weekend with Saskatchewan. They'll host the Huskies on Friday night (7:00 at The Co-operators Centre) before the two teams will meet in Saskatoon on Saturday night.