Dariana Patterson of the joint Saranac Lake-Lake Placid girls hockey team takes the puck toward the Canton net early in Tuesday’s game at the Olympic Center in Lake Placid. (News photo — Justin A. Levine)

LAKE PLACID – After holding its own early on, the joint Saranac Lake Placid girls hockey team dropped a 2-1 loss to Canton in its season opener Tuesday at the 1932 Olympic rink in Lake Placid.

SLP dominated the first period despite the Golden Bears skating prowess. The home team created a number of opportunities but couldn’t capitalize. SLP looked a little sluggish, but goalie Olivia Ferebee managed to keep Canton off the board.

Each team finished the opening period with seven shots on net, and Ferebee tallied 24 saves on the night.

Early in the second period, Canton’s Etta Coburn ripped a shot on net from the blue line, but Ferebee snagged it with her glove to defuse the threat. About five minutes into the second, Canton’s Phoebe Glasgow and SLP’s Jillian Duffy tangled and each was sent to the penalty box for a minute and a half.

With a little more than six minutes off the clock, SLP’s Dariana Patterson snuck the puck into the goal, but the score was waved off. The game remained tight for the rest of the period until Canton’s Sydnee Rodee broke away and juked to Ferebee’s left for the first score of the game with just 6.4 seconds left in the period.

SLP goalie Olivia Ferebee faces down Canton’s Sydnee Francis late in the second period of Tuesday’s game in the 1932 Olympic rink in Lake Placid. (News photo — Justin A. Levine)

But SLP wasn’t out of it, as Rylee Preston had a shot deflected by Canton’s Katherine Premo at the 1:52 mark. With the puck loose in front of the net, SLP’s Makeda Thompson found the back of the net to tie it up with less than two minutes off the clock. Premo ended the game with 15 saves.

In the third period, SLP earned three more penalties, including one for too many players on the ice, while the Golden Bears had another. Canton’s Michaela Powers put away the game winner with just over eight minutes left in the contest. SLP created a flurry of opportunities late in the period, but despite a few loose pucks in front of the net, the home team couldn’t even the score. Ferebee was pulled with 30 seconds left in the game, but the Golden Bears held on for the win.

Canton improved to 2-0 on the season, and coach Anita Francis said the young team – Canton only has one senior has had a great start to the season.

“They played well. I was nervous because we’ve only been on the ice five times, but they played well,” Francis said. “Every year we come out to win, and they’re impressing me right now.

“They have a lot of hustle. A lot of hustle (and) a lot of heart, which you can’t teach.”

Lake Placid sophomore Lydia Bullock, who led the Blue Bombers soccer team in scoring this fall, said it was good to be back on the ice, but that the team needs to work on finishing.

“I love it. It feels so good to start the season,” she said. “I thought we could have done better. I feel like we don’t have that dynamic yet; we need to talk a lot more and communicate better.

“(We need) lots of shooting in practice. I’m going to go shoot on my own for sure, I need to do that.”

SLP lost 10 seniors to graduation after last season, and now has four seniors, six juniors, three sophomores, six freshmen and a seventh-grader.

Coach Bill Peer said the team has some growing to do, but even with the loss of a large class, the younger girls are starting to fill important roles.

“I think there was some rust on some spots, but there were some good things,” he said. “There were chances, we just couldn’t finish. We had really good looks. It’s the first game of the year, (but) we’ve got a lot of work to do.

“I wouldn’t say it’s a rebuild. But kids that were with us last year that are going to play a more significant role, and there’s some new kids that need to step up. And they will.”

SLP plays next Wednesday, Nov. 28 at 6:15 p.m. in the 1932 rink at the Olympic Center.