Belfast Giants 5-2 Bracknell Bees

Belfast Giants kept the pressure on Sheffield Steelers and Nottingham Panthers at the top of the Superleague with a comfortable win over Bracknell Bees.

Paxton Schulte set the Giants on the way when he opened the scoring in the fourth minute.

Steve Thornton's first goal in a Giants uniform then doubled the advantage on 17 minutes.

Defenceman Rob Stewart scored just over a minute later to complete a miserable opening period for the rock-bottom Bees.

Belfast continued their domination in the second period and man-of-the-match Schulte hit his second on the powerplay with Mark Matier sitting out a holding penalty at 23.50.

Scott Kirton pulled a goal back for Bracknell two minutes from the end of the period but Curt Bowen's marker six seconds from the hooter emphasised Belfast's control.

Jonathan Delisle tallied midway through the final session for Bracknell but it was little more than a consolation for an outclassed side.

Belfast's dominance was reflected in the match statistics with Dave Whistle's side having 52 shots on goal compared to Bracknell's 17.