Just under five minutes into the second period Londonderry raced into Concord’s defensive zone in a two-on-two rush. Both Tide defenders followed the puck handler to the right which left Brandon Savage wide open on the left. the senior forward buried the crosser that came his way in the top shelf. The goal tied the game at two. Thirty seconds later Londonderry once again raced into the CHS zone. This time their shot was just inches high and pinged off the cross bat and out of play. The chance to go up 3-2 was gone.
Over the course of the next 10 minutes, Concord ensured that Londonderry would never come that close to taking the lead again. The Crimson Tide washed over the visitors and hammered home four goals in the remainder of the second period. The last came 14 minutes and 59 seconds in when center Cam McGonigle pounced on a loose puck and flicked it across the line just before the horn sounded. The four-goal second was part of an 8-2 trouncing by the Tide that kept them atop the D-I standings.
The win seemed far from certain before the explosion of goals in the latter half of the second. Concord wasn’t their best for much of the first period and was the first to concede.
“I thought for the first period we were a little flat,” said Concord coach Dunc Walsh. “You’ve got to play better than that and second and third period I thought we moved the puck way better and we started moving our feet and when we do that we’re we’re pretty good team. In first period I thought it seemed like effort-wise they [Londonderry] tried harder than we did.”
The turnaround came from the top down with five of Concord’s goals coming from their first line forwards. Center Brooks Craigue was the standout and bagged a hattrick. Walsh credited the line’s passing for their success on the score sheet.
“They moved the puck, especially Craigue. Craigue is so good,” said Walsh. “You give him the puck and you get open he’s gonna get you the puck. I thought in the second and third they did a much better job with that.”
The win improved Concord’s record to 14-0-2 while Londonderry fell to 11-6 on the year. The six-goal margin of victory matches the Crimson Tide’s season-high from a 7-1 win over Pinkerton and the eight goals are the most they’ve scored all season. Walsh stressed how much of a quality opponent Londonderry was despite the final score.
“They’ve played Bedford into overtime and Hanover in overtime,” said Walsh. “They’ve played some close games so you’ve got to take everybody like it’s going to be a tough game. I just think mentally we’ve got to come out every game ready to play.”
Walsh said his team didn’t do that and that a flat start like that in the tournament could be fatal.
“I mean we only got two [games] left and then it’s the tournament,” said Walsh. “Part of me thinks when you win so much that you say: ‘okay another game another win and you can’t have that mentality. You have got to work at.”