Dragons Beat Mustangs in Historic Hockey Game

When Brick and Brick Memorial faced off a week ago, there was no doubt that the two teams could not have played a closer game.

Memorial held a 5-3 lead in the third period before the Dragons stormed back to tie the game at five with seven seconds left. The Dragons would eventually win the game 6-5.

In Wednesday night's Handchen Cup quarterfinals game, the rivalry escalated to a whole new level.

With 47 seconds remaining, the Green Dragons once again fought back to tie the score at five, this time, however, there would not be a tie to end the game.

With senior defenseman Brian Murphy tying the game with a rocket of a slapshot, both teams squared off for the ultimate thrill of high school sports: overtime playoff hockey.

The Dragons would feed Murphy for multiple looks in overtime, many that were blocked aside or missed the net. Both teams played cautious, as nobody wanted to make the mistake that could cost their squad the game.

The buzzer for the five minute overtime period rang just as Brick Memorial senior Nick Spinelli dove to break up a threatening pass to the front of the net, keeping the Mustangs alive for a chance in the shootout.

In the fateful shoot out, both teams were tied after the opening five shooters went with one goal apiece as Brick sophomore David Kearns scored in the top of the second round while Memorial's Steven Bruno beat Brick goalie Jake Lampiasi glove-side in the bottom of the third round. The Memorial junior had a chance to end the game and nearly did, as his shot rang off the pipe in the bottom of the fifth.

Leading off the extra frame was Brick's Brendan Dowd who slipped the puck through Mustangs goalie Tim Schiess' five hole. Memorial's Kyle Huhn was the Mustangs only hope to continue the shoot out. Huhn used a nice move to get Lampiasi to dive, but couldn't throw the puck on net, concluding one of the greatest games the Shore Conference has ever seen.

"No, I don't think I have ever been a part of a crazier game than this," said Brick head coach Bob Auriemma, who holds the most wins of any coach in New Jersey high school hockey. "Both teams played well, their goalie stood on his head. It really is a shame somebody had to lose a game like this."

"We knew we were tough mentally," Auriemma added. "We might not be blowing teams out this year, but we are a tough working team."

The first period played right into what the Mustangs wanted to do all game long. Relying on a counterattack based off excellent defense, the Mustangs kept most of the nine Dragon first period shots away from the net and allowed few rebounds. On top of that, they would hold a 1-0 lead when freshman Ryan Monaghan capitalized off a turnover, beating Lampiasi glove side.

With four minutes gone in the second period, Memorial's Justin Apgar would step in and clean up a mess in front of the Brick net, scoring and giving Memorial a two goal lead. 

Brick finally got on the board in the most unlikely of ways. After pinning Memorial on their heels, David Kearns was sent to the box for a tripping penalty. On the kill, senior Tyler Martin would come up with a huge goal off a well placed shot coming down the boards on the benches side of the ice.

With 3:06 to play in the second, 16 seconds after the Martin goal, Nick Spinelli buried another shot coming from in close, stunning one half of the crowd while elating the other.

30 seconds later, Brick's Austin Blanco would rip a shot off the pipe. After the Mustangs touched the puck, Brick went on the power play for a tripping call.

Andrew Reiss would find Ryan Price across the ice as Price would fire home a one timer, as the Dragons again cut the Mustang lead in half, this time on the power play.

Part of playing in such a high stakes game against a team where losing is not an option, there is plenty of heart on display. Perhaps the biggest display of the night was Memorial defensemen Colin Trevors getting hit while blocking a shot. The shot appeared to hit just underneath the shin pad, while just under the hard boot of the skate. Trevors limped to the bench looking gimpy, yet appeared again in the third period playing a prominent role.

Less than a minute into the third period, Memorial would once again hold a two goal lead when Steven Bruno scored off a miscommunication in front of the Dragon net.

Tyler Martin and David Kearns rapidly took matters into their own hands, as they would score two minutes apart. After Kearns goal at 12:29, Martin would score two minutes later, when Dowd win a faceoff right to him.

With the game tied again, boh teams played seven safe minutes of hockey until Bruno broke the tie. With 3:02 to play, Bruno was just crushed by Brian Murphy at the blueline. Seconds later, he became the hero as he slid a puck past Lampiasi.

Three minutes proved to be too much time for the Dragons as Murphy would tie the game.

"No," said Murphy when asked if he scored a biger goal in his life. "Never, it was unbelieveable. It's up there with top three games I've ever played in. It's always nerve wracking playing those guys."

Brick out shot Memorial 40-16.

"I'm proud of them," said Memorial head coach Chip Bruce. "It was a solid game, the way it should be when these two schools play. It's tough; we fought."

"I can't say enough about Tim Schiess, he's a steady goaltender and kept us in it."

The Dragons will be awaiting other games to find out who they will be playing in round two, and as for the Mustangs, they have their fingers crossed hoping they receive an at-large bid for the state tournament.

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