They were shorthanded far more than they wanted to be, and it took a little bit longer than they would have liked, but the Lewiston Maineiacs, on shootout goals by Sebastien Trudeau and Alex Beaton, started their season off on the right foot Friday, earning a 2-1 victory over the Chicoutimi Sagueneens in front of 3,472 at Centre Georges Vezina.

“We’re very pleased with (the win),” Maineiacs’ coach Don MacAdam said. “Our top guys had to carry the load at key times and hopefully it was a learning experience for our less-experienced players who see what it takes to get a win in a situation like this.”

As expected, Adrien Lemay was stellar, stopping 32 of 33 shots, including seven in overtime as the Maineiacs killed off a 4-on-3 Chicoutimi power play that lasted nearly the entire five-minute extra session.

“We were short for eight minutes in the second period, and again late in the third, and I thought our penalty kill did an outstanding job,” MacAdam said. “It’s really cliche, but your goalie always has to be your best penalty killer, and he certainly was (Friday).”

In the shootout, Trudeau started things off for Lewiston by beating rookie goalie Robin Gusse on a deke. A second-effort by Chicoutimi’s Michal Hlinka went unnoticed and the Sags evened the shootout at one, but after a scoreless second shootout roun, Alex Beaton potted the winner with a move similar to Trudeau’s. Lemay stuffed Alexandre Lavoie to seal the victory.

Captain Billy Lacasse opened the scoring less than five minutes into the game, and Hlinka answered at 10:15 of the first. The teams battled through the next two periods and overtime deadlocked at 1-1.

Lewiston next plays on the road Sunday in Quebec City, with that game scheduled for a 2 p.m. matinee start. The team’s home opener is Friday, Sept. 18 against Baie-Comeau at the Androscoggin Bank Colisee.