The Houlton-Hodgdon Black Hawks have had some memorable wins since they started their hockey program in the 1999-2000 season.

But none as memorable as Saturday night when they shocked Class A Bangor 2-1 at Sawyer Arena in Bangor in a mutual season-opener.

It was the first time the Black Hawks had ever played a Class A team and Bangor played in the Eastern Maine Class A title game a year ago, losing to Lewiston 8-4.

“This one ranks right up there, I think,” said sixth-year Houlton-Hodgdon coach Joel Trickey. “Beating Winslow in the semis at [Winslow’s] Sukee Arena two years ago [was] a pretty big win for us, too.”

Trickey said he took a realistic approach into the game.

“I told the boys to go out and give it their best shot. No one expects us to win. If we win, it’s a bonus,” said Trickey. “And we played an almost flawless game, technically.”

The Black Hawks received a quality goaltending performance from freshman Malik Abouleish, who finished with 28 saves and did a good job protecting the netfront, according to Trickey.

“We tried to keep the shots on him from the perimeter to make them easier for him to handle. He made the saves he needed to and made three or four saves I didn’t think he could make. He played a solid game,” said Trickey.

Two of the players he will be relying upon to score goals this season, Morgan Hall and Craig Buxton, found the net in the first 1:26 of the third period and he said veteran defensemen Zach Chase and Jake Peabody came up with some vital blocked shots late in the third period to preserve the win.

Trickey has nine freshmen on his roster, and he said they were question marks entering the game.

“But the ones we used all came through,” said Trickey, who added that the bus trip home was an enjoyable one.

“The kids had a good time. To tell you the truth, most of my teams tend to leave [their emotions] at the rink after a game, win or lose. But there was a lot of laughing, tee-heeing and giggling on this one,” said Trickey, who is in his sixth year as the head coach and seventh year with the program overall.

The Black Hawks don’t have much time to enjoy the win because they host archrival Presque Isle tonight at 6:30.