That was the case for the Saranac Lake Placid boys hockey team on Thursday as it blanked Norwood-Norfolk 5-0 in a non-league matchup on home ice at the the Olympic Center’s 1932 Rink.

The game was SLP’s first of two in the Lake Placid High School Winter Carnival Tournament, and a solid effort from the host team may have helped erase a lingering sting possibly left over from last weekend when SLP gave up 14 goals in two losses to state-ranked Spencerport on the same ice sheet.

This time around, SLP got the early jump and never let off the gas. Bailey Bartholomew put SLP on the board with the only goal of the first period, teammates Brendan Bullock, Dylan Amell and Tyler Hinckley each found the back of net once in the second stanza, and Carter Sturgeon buried the game’s final goal less than a minute into the third.

At the other end of the rink, Anders Stanton stopped each of the 26 shots he faced to lift SLP to its first shutout win since a 7-0 triumph over Niskayuna in its season-opener on Dec. 6.

Defenseman Carter Sturgeon begins a rush for SLP during the first period of Thursday’s game. (Enterprise photo — Lou Reuter)

Saranac Lake Placid improved to 9-5 overall and in doing so, ended a five-game unbeaten string for the Flyers, who were 4-0-1 in their last five games prior to Thursday. Norwood-Norfolk dropped to 8-4-1 overall.

“I really liked how when we got up we kind of took control of the game,” SLP head coach Keith Clark said. “We haven’t done that all the time this year. It’s something we talk about; trying to create some separation, show a little bit of that killer instinct when you have that opportunity, and tonight we did that.”

SLP put the pressure on from the outset, and eventually got on the board with 3:58 left in the first period when Bartholomew top-shelved a shot from the slot past Flyers goalie Stephen Wagstaff. Sturgeon assisted on the play.

Bullock upped SLP’s edge to 2-0 5:16 into the second period, scoring on a wrist shot from the left faceoff circle with Noah Jennings-Munn assisting.

SLP then buried the dagger during the final minute of the second, grabbing a 4-0 lead on a pair of goals scored in a span of seven seconds. Amell got the first tally with 36 seconds left in the period, going on an end-to-end rush and stuffing the puck underneath Wagstaff on the short side of the net. Hinckley quickly followed on an unassisted goal with 39 seconds remaining on the clock for a 4-0 SLP lead.

Sturgeon rounded out the scoring, sending home a puck 39 seconds into the third period on a power-play goal with assists going to Amell and Darrah.

After struggling last weekend against Spencerport, Stanton, a junior at Lake Placid High School, was unbeatable while blanking the Flyers.

“Anders played really well between the pipes,” Clark said. “He made some key saves at key times and that’s what you need. When we were up 2-0, they had a few good chances and we kept it 2-0 because he made some big saves.”

“This was not our night. We’re short with some injuries, and we are young to start with, so things just kind of spiraled,” Norwood-Norfolk head coach Doug Lavigne said. “This has been a tough, tough day for us today. It’s our first time traveling any distance. The two hours we traveled today, I think it kind of wore on us tonight.

“When we have nights like this, we don’t pressure the puck right off the bat, and it gives their defense too long to get started and revved up, and they kind of put it to us near the end,” Lavigne added. “The good thing us our kids are tough, they are resilient. They’ll bounce back.”

SLP outshot the Flyers 27-26. Wagstaff, a senior recorded 22 saves in goal for the Flyers.

“The guys were skating really well tonight, pushing the pace,” Clark said. “Things just kind of lined up the right way for us tonight, and I think that’s because well played well, so we deserved what we got.”

Action in the Lake Placid High School Winter Carnival Tournament continues Friday at the Olympic Center when the 9-5 Rye Garnets clash with the 8-6 Saranac Chiefs starting at 7 p.m.

All four teams will be back on the 1932 Rink Saturday for the second round. SLP will take on Rye starting at noon, with Norwood-Norfolk and Saranac then squaring off at 2:15 p.m.