With 0-2 hockey start 'in rear-view mirror,' Hartland rolls past Brother Rice
LIVONIA — When Hartland’s hockey players left Eddie Edgar Ice Arena 17 days earlier following a loss to Livonia Stevenson, they were searching for answers while heading into Thanksgiving with the program’s first 0-2 start in 18 years.
The Eagles’ trip home from Livonia was considerably more upbeat Saturday night.
Hartland is looking every bit like the team that won a state Division 2 championship last season and began this season ranked No. 2 in Division 1 behind perennial power Detroit Catholic Central.
An impressive 5-2 victory over Birmingham Brother Rice, the top-ranked team in Division 2, in the Adam Mitchell KLAA-MIHL Showcase was the Eagles’ sixth straight since the two losses out of the gate.
“After those first two games, we took it to heart and we went to practice right away and we started giving 110%,” said Hartland senior Ben Pouliot, who had a goal and an assist. “We’re being way more aggressive now, we’re getting to the D, getting more shots on net. Honestly, those two games are in the rear-view mirror. We’re looking forward.”
Hartland trailed 1-0 and 2-1 to Brother Rice, but was controlling play. It seemed like a matter of time before the Eagles’ persistence in the Warriors’ zone would pay off.
“That was a good win,” Hartland coach Rick Gadwa said. “We built today. Period by period, we got stronger throughout as the night went on. We’re starting to get stronger every game. As a coach, you just like to see your guys take steps, and they’re doing that.”
Hartland’s winning streak includes victories over three state-ranked teams. The turnaround began two days after the Stevenson loss with a 4-1 victory over fourth-ranked Division 3 Riverview Gabriel Richard, then continued the next day with a 4-3 victory over fourth-ranked Division 1 Brighton.
“We take pride in it being a process, and the season is long,” Gadwa said. “Our hope is we start somewhere and we finish a lot higher as a team. As time goes on, you get a lot of reps in practice, we talk a lot, we do a ton of video. You see that stuff start to make a difference. They start to pay attention more and they’re coming together a lot more.”
Peter Rosa gave Brother Rice a 1-0 lead at 5:59 of the first, but Pouliot responded 3:18 later with a shot under the crossbar.
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Jack Cassidy put the Warriors back on top at 4:07 of the second, but a power play goal by Braden Pietila at 11:41 and a goal by Jack L’Esperance at 12:59 put the Eagles on top for good.
Hartland pulled away in the third period with goals by Ian Kastamo at 5:29 and Nick Halonen at 14:03. The Eagles outshot Brother Rice, 34-12.
“Brother Rice, they’re a great team,” Pouliot said. “They have great players, great coaches, but we just went out there relentless today. We were relentless, we went out there, scored a few goals and had fun.”
Contact Bill Khan at wkhan@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter @BillKhan.
This article originally appeared on Livingston Daily: Hartland rolls past Birmingham Brother Rice in KLAA-MIHL Showcase
