Just two games into a new campaign and head coach Darryl Moxam has seen two very different sides of the Greater Sudbury Cubs.

In their season opener on Thursday, the Cubs limited the visiting Timmins Rock to just 22 shots on net as returning goaltender Matt Vahramian was rewarded with a 4-0 shutout win.

Eidan Macartney opened the scoring, jamming home his own rebound in the final minute of period one but it was a pair of tallies less than a minute apart in the middle stanza that put this game out of reach.

Spencer Horgan roofed a lovely backhand in tight and Cameron Vehkala followed suit, netting his first ever NOJHL goal with just under five minutes to play in the second.

Given the way Sudbury was bottling up the Rock, that was more than enough offense, though Macartney would add his second of the game late to cap off the scoring.

One of six returning defensemen in the lineup on Thursday, sophomore Kyle Navarro is looking to build on a very solid rookie season with his hometown team.

"Adjusting to the speed of the game was a big thing for me last year, just finding my footing and adapting to that role of a two-way defenseman that I kind of want to be," said the 18 year-old blueliner.

"It's about just getting comfortable out there and picking my spots, taking chances when I can. That's the main goal for this year."

Defensive prowess was not nearly as front and centre some 24 hours later as the Cubs and Hearst Lumberjacks battled in a rematch of the NOJHL final from last spring, with the visiting Lumberjacks prevailing 6-5 in the end.

The Hearst attack was anything but top heavy as no less than six different players tickled the twine, a grouping that included Cole Stranathan, Ty McKay, Theo Bourdon-Lemoyne, Mathieu Comeau, Cole Shepherdson and Jasha Bichin.

Veteran OHLer Daks Klinkhammer helped to keep Sudbury close, recording a hat trick and joined on the scoresheet by Lucas Antonioni and Spencer Horgan.

The Lumberjacks chased Sudbury started Matt Vahramian one night after his whitewashing of Timmins, beaten for five goals with Mateo Beites surrendering one goal in 13 minutes of work.

The Cubs close out a season-opening three game homestand this Thursday with an encounter with the Powassan Voodoos, playing their first road game of 2025-2026 on Saturday when they travel to Noelville to face the French River Rapids.