Brunswick is known for being a resilient bunch. There may be no better example of that than what happened on Wednesday night.
Down two goals to red-hot Salisbury entering the third period, the Bruins rattled off four-straight goals to pull off a 4-3 win.
The rally started early in the period when senior forward Jake Minella (Darien, Conn.) picked up the rebound from sophomore defenseman Jack McCullough's (Westport, Conn.) shot and deposited it past Salisbury goalie Cooper Flemming, cutting the Crimson Knight lead to 2-1.
Midway through the final frame, Salisbury forward Jared Rothman dented the post with a shot from the high slot. But in a big swing in momentum, Brunswick forward Sean Gibbons (Fairfield, Conn.) tied the game just 30 seconds later.
Gibbons had the puck in an unfavorable position at the opposing blue line. But the West Point commit is known for his craftiness.
He skated towards the perimeter and as he approached the slot, cut in and roofed a shot over Flemming, which tied the game. McCullough also assisted on that goal.
Less than a minute later, Gibbons, a Brunswick captain, fed linemate Brendan Giles (Ridgefield, Conn.) who was open in the slot. Giles waited out Flemming and put it around him, giving Brunswick the 3-2 lead.
Salisbury head coach Andrew Will pulled Flemming for the extra skater with 2:28 left. Giles, who was on the ice to defend the lead, deposited an empty-net goal with just over two minutes to play.
That ended up being the game-winning goal because with 46.5 seconds left, Salisbury junior forward Oliver Morris converted on a rebound, cutting Brunswick's lead to 4-3.
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Salisbury entered the third period with a 2-0 lead off of goals from Rothman in the first period and senior Jesse Allecia.
Brunswick improved to 24-5-2 with the win, while Salisbury fell to 15-5-1. That's the Crimson Knights' first loss since Jan. 10 against Cushing.
Let's dive into the takeaways.
1. As Gibbons goes, so goes Brunswick. I didn't notice Gibbons much in the first two periods, which coincided with the Bruins looking flat. Then, in the third period, Gibbons came out flying; so did Brunswick. His skill mixed with his compete is a perfect play-driving blend and a big reason why Brunswick looks set to host an Elite 8 quarterfinal game.
With Wednesday's game, Gibbons eclipsed the 60-point mark. He has 61 in 29 games.
2. Giles is the perfect wing man for Gibbons, and that was proven again against Salisbury. He knows how to get open and he's in the upper echelon of prep players when it comes to finishing chances. With his two lamplighters, he's now second in the region in goals (33) and fourth in points (57).
3. Last week, Brunswick was down to Cushing, 3-1, in the third period and scored two goals in the final frame to tie the game, only to lose in overtime. It was still one heck of an effort. Almost the same thing happened against Salisbury, the only difference being Brunswick took a lead and never let go.
I'd describe Brunswick with one word: resilient. It's a day school, so it can't bring in recruits from wherever it wants. But it has a good crop of talent and head coach Mike Kennedy gets the most out of it.
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4. Allecia's goal was one Brunswick goalie Will Baker probably wants back. Allecia took a slapshot from the side boards and it looked to bounce off Baker's blocker and over him. From there, however, Baker tightened up and was nails.
Baker had two huge stops right before Brunswick tied the game. On one chance, he went post to post to rob Allecia. Moments later, he denied Salisbury senior Duke Gentzler of a chance from the slot. The comeback doesn't happen without Baker.
5. For two periods, Salisbury was clearly the better team. Its defensive structure didn't let Brunswick into high-danger ice. The defensive core, led by seniors Anthony Biakabutuka, Ty Creech and Zach Walsh, kept Brunswick to the outside and blocked any shots or passes headed towards the net. The Crimson Knights' forecheck also forced turnovers by Brunswick.
How did that change? Brunswick was overwhelming in the third period and played like it had nothing to lose. It worked out.
6. On Friday, I wrote about 13 uncommitted senior prep forwards to watch in the final month. One of those was Salisbury forward Seamus Latta. The senior is the embodiment of Salisbury's offense — not the most skilled, but plays at such a high tempo and IQ. Latta worked well with linemates Nicolas Petrut and Connor Davis.
7. My feelings on Brunswick were only enhanced in this game. The Bruins have been a top-four team all season and proved it on Wednesday. On the other hand, my feelings on Salisbury improved. Last time I saw the Crimson Knights, they were still trying to find their identity at the Flood-Marr. While I didn't see them in person on Wednesday (props to Brunswick for a good live stream), Salisbury played with structure and was the better team through two periods.
8. If the Elite 8 began on Wednesday, this would've been the No. 4 vs. No. 5 matchup with Brunswick as the host. I always find it interesting when teams play each other at the end of the regular season and then again at the start of the postseason. Last year, Milton Academy embarrassed Belmont Hill on Feb. 15, 6-2. The Sextants never forgot that when the two teams faced off in the Elite 8 quarterfinals. Belmont Hill won that game, 7-2.
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If these two teams meet again, Salisbury will be chomping at the bit to make up for blowing this two-goal lead.
9. Salisbury has a chance to improve its standing for the Elite 8 on Saturday when it travels to Avon Old Farms. The playoffs basically began early for Salisbury.
