Despite dressing six affiliated players for their one and only pre-season game this September, the defending league champions still managed to secure a victory on Thursday night at the Countryside Arena.

Goals from Eidan MacCartney, Hudson Goulet (AP) and Ty Dubreuil lifted the Greater Sudbury Cubs to a 3-2 win over the Blind River Beavers as the goaltending tandem of Matt Vahramian and Mateo Beits stood tall in a contest that saw the visitors outshoot the homeside 34-25.

Easily as fleet of foot as he was in his rookie campaign in the league last year but looking to add a little more finish to his game, MacCartney opened the scoring just four minutes in, blasting down the right wing and driving past the defense before tucking the puck past veteran Connor Dunham-Fox in tight.

Ryder Hill knotted the contest at 1-1 midway through the frame and that's the way the scoreboard sat until early in period three.

Picking off an errant outlet pass, Goulet stepped in and made no mistake with a decoy on the far right wing. The Cubs capitalized just seconds into a five on three as MacCartney won the draw clean to Dubreuil with the Windsor Spitfires' prospect burying what would stand as the game-winning goal.

A goal from Jack Kruiderink made things a little tighter later but the Cubs would hold on, preparing to kickoff off the season with a two game set next week as the Timmins Rock (Thursday) and Hearst Lumberjacks (Friday) both visit Sudbury.