Telford Titans coach Dave Fielder has paid tribute to netminder Ben Hunt after the youngster collected his first shut-out in a 6-0 win over Flintshire Freeze in the ENL Cup.

The victory was Telford’s first success of 2010, following a defeat to Sheffield the weekend before and the cancellation of their trip to Kingston Jets on Saturday evening.

Hunt, who is still eligible as an under-18 player, faced a total of 46 shots in Deeside – many of them powerplay strikes – as his side collected a total of 57 minutes in penalties.

Fielder believes the teenager’s performance was a major factor in his side’s success against one of the ENL 2 front-runners.

He said: “Ben played probably his best game of the season, especially as they out-shot us 46 to 36.

“We went there knowing it was a cup game, so we had some fun and won, which is what we wanted.

“It was a great all-round performance from Ben. He was awesome and stopped some great break-outs.”

Kevin Parton was another hero for Telford on Sunday as he collected a hat-trick, while the other goals came courtesy of Ryan Stanton (2) and Luke Brittle.

Fielder’s side was, however, short-handed, with a number of players missing due to bans and work commitments – a situation made worse by the dismissal of Marek Hornak in the second period.

He added: “It was not as easy as the scoreline suggests, and we didn’t play well, especially as we were missing Ash Stanton and Karol Jets.

“But the annoying thing was when Marek collided with another player in the middle of the ice and the referee game him a five plus game for cross-checking from behind.”

Hornak’s penalty means he will miss next weekend’s clash with top-four rivals Coventry Blaze, while Ashley Stanton will also sit the game out as he completes his ban.