Facing a two-goal deficit heading into the third period against rival Salisbury School certainly didn’t cause Brunswick’s hockey team to panic or press. Instead, the Bruins began the third period primed to come back and put another game in the win column.

And did they ever.

The goals quickly came for Brunswick School during the third period at Hartong Rink and at the matchup’s conclusion it tallied four times and was celebrating a spirited victory.

Senior forward Brendan Giles registered two goals, while senior forward Sean Gibbons had one goal and two assists to propel the Bruins past the Crimson Knights, 4-3, before an enthusiastic gathering at Hartong Rink on Wednesday evening.

The four-goal third period raised the Bruins’ record to 23-5-2 overall and improved its positioning in the NEPSAC Elite 8 standings. The host Bruins entered the game ranked fifth in the Elite 8, while Salisbury was No. 4. Eight teams qualify for the ultra-competitive Elite 8 Tournament.

Seeing his squad stage a spirited comeback was no surprise to Brunswick coach Mike Kennedy.

“All year long we’ve been a pretty resilient group,” Kennedy said. “We’ve been there before, down 2-0 against a good team. The boys believed that they can come back and obviously the proved that they could. We came all the way back this time, which was nice to finish it off.”

Senior forward Jake Minella started the Bruins’ comeback. His rebound goal off a shot from sophomore defenseman Jack McCullough cut Salisbury’s lead to 2-1 3:10 into the third period.

“We were working the puck down low really well,” Minella said, while describing his goal. “I cycled it down to (Luke) Drury, it went up to the point, it went ‘D’ to ‘D, Jack stepped in and made a shot kind of pass, I tipped to my back hand and roofed it.”

With 7:13 remaining in the third period, the Bruins tied Salisbury at 2-2. Gibbons, who captains the squad, along with Luke Drury, snapped home a shot from between the faceoff circles, evening the score at 2-2. McCullough also assisted on the hosts’ second tally.

Gibbons knew the Bruins were going to remain focused and confident in the final period.

“In the locker room we knew we were playing well, we were just not finishing,” Gibbons noted. “We decided to stick with it. We have a senior heavy group, so we’re really experienced in these situations and we wanted to find a way to win.”

With the Crimson Knights ahead, 2-1, and on a power play, the Bruins killed off the penalty, keeping it a one-goal game. Senior goalie Will Baker once again, stood tall in goal, recording numerous clutch saves.

“Baker stepped up in the third, they really came at us hard in the third,” Kennedy said. “He has been doing that all year, he’s been giving us a chance to win and he did it again.”

Indeed, the momentum shifted once ‘Wick scored their first goal of the final period.

“It just takes one, you have to break through against a good goalie,” Kennedy noted. “It gives the bench some life, it gives the fans some life. Typically after the first goal, we’ve turned it on this season. It gave our bench life and we knew we could get the next one. Sure enough, we didn’t get just one, we got a couple more.”

At the 11:41 mark of the third period, Gibbons moved the puck to Giles, who finished, giving Brunswick its first lead of the matchup at 3-2. Salisbury pulled its goalie on the early side, but Giles intercepted a centering feed and found the middle of the net from near his defensive crease and ‘Wick seized a 4-2 advantage with 2:03 remaining.

Salisbury made it 4-2 when Oliver Morris scored off assists from Jared Rothman and Zach Walsh with only 46 seconds left to play. Yet the Bruins successfully closed out the game, sealing their 23rd triumph. Rothman had Salisbury’s first goal 5:53 into the opening period, while Jesse Allecia tallied the visitors’ second goal at the 6:25 mark of the second frame.

The Bruins drew plenty of inspiration from their home crowd.

“When all the students showed up for the third period too, it’s really special to play in front of,” Minella said. “It was awesome, that’s one of the best games I’ve ever been a part of here.”

Baker also ignited the Bruins with his outstanding efforts between the pipes.

“Will Baker played incredible,” Gibbons noted. “Their power play was very good and we did a good job of weathering that. We honestly used him for momentum as well.”

“Senior Jake Minella had a huge goal for us, he’s been great all season,” Gibbons continued. “We really take pride in our secondary scoring and our depth guys and Jake made a great play in burying that goal and getting us going. We’re a big group on swagger and confidence and once that kicks in we feel like we’re unstoppable.”

The win was key for postseason tournament positioning for the Bruins.

“They were fourth and we were fifth,” Kennedy said. “It puts us in good position, we have three tough games left. We are in control of our own destiny as far as making the Elite 8. But every team in this league is good.”

Brunswick improved to 24-5-2 with a 6-3 road victory over Frederick Gunn School on Friday evening. Giles continued his scoring surge, netting five consecutive Brunswick goals to power the team in Washington, Conn.

The game was deadlocked at 1-1 after the first period. ‘Wick’s goal was rebounded home by junior Alex Melillo, the first of his varsity career (with the assist going to senior Connor Crosby). Giles went on his scoring spree with two tallies in the second period and three in the third to propel the Bruins.

Giles, who now leads the NEPSAC with 38 goals, showcased his dynamic offensive ability most on his second goal late in the second period — a phenomenal individual effort that saw him finish on the backhand to put Brunswick up 3-1 after 36 minutes. 

Baker was outstanding in between the pipes, making several point-blank saves and stopping a handful of breakaway chances.