HANCOCK - For the first period Friday night, the Hancock hockey team came out skating with purpose and verve, taking a 2-0 lead over reigning Division 1 state champion Brighton.
That energy and commitment disappeared in the second period, however, and the Lower Peninsula Bulldogs scored a pair of goals in the first two minutes of the third period to take the lead and never look back.
Brighton outshot the hosts by a 41-19 margin, with the final score 5-2 (with an empty netter) reflected in the game's ebb and flow.
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"We just can't sustain things right now," Hancock coach Dan Rouleau said. "The second period has been a bad period for us all year. These kids have to overcome adversity and right now they are not.
"Full marks to Brighton though," he added. "That is a good hockey team. They are going to have a chance at the Division 1 championship again."
Hancock (6-3-1) took an early lead when Larry Fallon sniped a wrister over the glove of Brighton (6-4) goalie James Milletics 6:11 into the game.
Fact Box
Brighton 0 1 4 - 5
Hancock 2 0 0 - 2
First period - 1, HAN, Larry Fallon (Tanner Kearly, Kyle Hauswirth), 6:11; 2, HAN, Matthew Sanregret (Danny Hill, Alex Hill), 12:56.
Second period - 3, BRI, Brett Pietila, 8:18.
Third period - 4, BRI, Kyle Henry (Daniel Bosio, Robert Hohmann), :47; 5, BRI, Lee Pietila (Tyler Hayes, Henry), 2:05; 6, BRI, Brian Dowd, SH, 7:41; 7, BRI, Dowd, EN, 15:55.
Penalties - Brighton 2-4; Hancock 2-4.
Goalie saves - Brighton, James Milletics 17 (10-1-6); Hancock, Jacob Givens 36 (7-16-13).
Matt Sanregret added the second for the host Bulldogs six minutes later with a sharp shot through traffic after sophomore Danny Hill won a battle for a loose puck in the corner. Sanregret's tally was illustrative of the vision Rouleau has for his team against top competition - and also what went missing in the second and third periods.
"We had a great face-off play going on there. We won battles and then boom, the puck was in the back of the net. We needed more of that tonight," Rouleau said.
Brighton came out with renewed energy after the first intermission, and outshot Hancock 17-1 in the period.
Hancock netminder Jacob Givens did his best to keep the hosts in the game with several sprawling saves, but the Bulldogs couldn't provide enough support offensively.
"We talk about supporting the puck, we talk about outnumbering people, over and over again. You still see one guy trying to win a battle against two or three Brighton kids," Rouleau said. "We spent too much time watching the play."
Brighton turned the deficit around quickly to start the third, with Kyle Henry lighting the lamp just 47 seconds in.
Lee Pietila added the winner on an easy rebound chance just over a minute later.
"We want to play with that passion for three periods, not just one period," Rouleau said.
Hancock's best chance to get back in the game came with a man-advantage and 10 minutes to play.
Brighton created a short-handed opportunity however, and though the initial shot was saved, forward Brian Dowd was given way too much time and space to circle for another shot, this time shooting top-shelf off the post and in.
"Our forwards were just skating back and letting the two 'D' do all the work," Rouleau said of the short-handed chance. "Too many guys are letting other guys do the job. That is not going to do it against a team like Brighton."
