Josh Florey and Josh Oliver were on target as Oxford City Stars won a low-scoring game with Milton Keynes Thunder 2-1 in English National Ice Hockey League South Division 1 at Oxpens.

The game was most notable for seeing five players ejected from the game.

It suggests an ill-tempered contest, but aside from one melee towards the end of the second period there were no major flashpoints.

Although Stars had three players ejected compared to Thunder’s two, they held on to claim only their third win of the season.

While still at the foot of the table, it drew them level on points with Cardiff Devils and London Raiders ahead of a trip to Milton Keynes on Sunday.

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New signing Tom Avery saw action straight away in an evenly balanced first period.

Both sides had plenty of shots on target, but clear scoring chances were at a premium and from early on it looked like a defensive game.

The deadlock was broken in the 13th minute, thanks to a stunning piece of individual play by Florey.

After collecting a pass from Darren Elliott, he spun and fired the puck through a crowd of players and into the bottom right hand corner.

Jacob Smith became the first player to be ejected, amid confusion at the start of the second period.

The home fans initially thought he had been hit with a minor infringement for slashing, but was hit with a major penalty for spearing.

Stars killed that penalty, and a subsequent minor one for Dax Hedges, without too many problems and when they returned to full strength went in search of extending their lead.

They were boosted by Thunder’s Harrison Goode being ejected for hooking.

It gave the home side a five minute powerplay, which almost expired before they could take advantage.

Joe Edwards exploited a defensive hole and picked out Oliver, who fired high into the net to give Stars a 2-0 lead.

The game exploded in the final seconds of the period when Michal Tomasik was adjudged to have speared a Thunder player, earning him an early shower.

It sparked a fracas with further ejections for both sides, Hedges for checking and Milton Keynes’s Paul Gore for slashing.

There followed a long conference on the ice to figure out the complex penalty situation, which ended up with two Oxford players sitting out for the same penalty.

It all gave the visitors a five-minute powerplay and they took just two minutes to make it count.

Ryan Coffey scored unassisted, beating James Skaife, who had an outstanding game of hockey.

It set up a tense final period, but Thunder’s hopes of getting back on level terms were hit by their own ill-discipline.

Jamie Line was hit with two separate minor penalties for hooking, which slowed their momentum.

Stars looked the more likely to score and they out-shot their visitors 18-12.

The home side could not add to their tally, but closed out the game for a welcome victory.

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