ROBIN Davison and Joel Petkoff each grabbed a brace as Wildcats boosted their play-off hopes with a 6-3 triumph over Milton Keynes Lightning at the Link Centre.

Cats' leading points scorer Petkoff and fellow import Jan Vrtik both profited from empty nets in the dying seconds as Lightning twice pulled their netminder in favour of an extra attacker.

The win was no more than Swindon deserved, as Peter Russell's side raced into 4-0 lead and never relinquished their grip.

In a frantic opening, Matty Davies saw a shot well saved by David Wride at 1.53, while at the other end Nathan Craze redeemed himself with a full-stretch save after passing the puck to an opponent.

Cats took the lead on the powerplay at 4.01, Davies gliding down the ice with the puck at full speed before squaring to Davison, who scored with a crisp shot.

Swindon doubled their advantage at 11.51, Jamie Hayes battling hard behind the goal before sliding the puck into the path of Petkoff who netted from close range.

It was 3-0 before the end of the period, Davison completing his brace after a flowing three-man move with assists from Petkoff and Davies.

Cats must have thought they were dreaming when they scored a fourth without reply at 25.22. Slovakian Tomas Janak skated the length of the ice and exchanged passes with John Wheaton before firing home.

Lightning finally got on the scoreboard at 25.52, Toni Alasaarela profiting from Shane Moore's mistake in his own defensive zone.

Milton Keynes reduced their arrears to 4-2 at 31.48, when the league's top scorer Gary Clarke was on target with a short-handed goal.

And when Moore was ordered to the penalty box for four minutes, Cats' seemingly impregnable lead began to look increasingly frail.

Within seconds of the third period starting, and with Moore still off the ice, Lightning struck again through Ales Parez to pull the score back to 4-3.

Cats were hanging on, but they defended superbly and the visitors were forced to sacrifice Wride in favour of an extra skater.

The move backfired, as first Vrtik and then Petkoff took advantage of the unguarded net to seal a superb 6-3 win for the home side.

Match stats
Shots on goal: Swindon 22 Milton Keynes 28
Cats' goalscorers: Davison 2, Petkoff 2, Janak 1, Vrtik 1
Penalty mins: Cats 4, Milton Keynes 8
Man-of-the-match: Davison

Cats are in EPL action again tomorrow night, when they travel to Sheffield Scimitars.

See Monday's Swindon Advertiser for all the reports and reaction to the weekend's games.