BREWER – The seniors on the Brewer High School hockey team had one last chance to earn their first-ever win over arch-rival Bangor Wednesday night at the T.J. Ryan Center.

They finally accomplished the feat and it was a pair of seniors who led the way.

Goalie Aaron Saunders made 28 saves, including several gems during a pair of second-period two-man disadvantages, and center Reid McLaughlin had a pair of goals as Brewer triumphed 4-1.

Class B Brewer won its third straight and improved to 14-3. Class A Bangor fell to 8-7-1.

“I just wanted to beat Bangor for the first time in four years,” said Saunders, who stopped all 15 shots he faced in the second period.

Bangor had a full two-minute, two-man advantage and another that spanned 1:16, including a carry-over of 24 seconds into the third period.

It was Saunders’ first start in three games.

“I haven’t seen the ice that much this season, but I think this helps my argument [for more playing time] a little,” said Saunders, who added that his defensemen did a great job clearing loose pucks into the corners.

Sophomore center Dylan Fitzpatrick, who scored the game-winner late in the first period, said, “That’s the best game I’ve ever seen Saunders play. He played out of his skates.”

“Maybe this was [Saunders’] game and now he can carry Brewer into the playoffs,” said Bangor senior center Matt Boehmer, who opened the scoring 11:16 into the first period. “We had all the chances in the world but we couldn’t get that extra little bounce. They tied up our sticks and didn’t give us any space.”

McLaughlin tied it on the power play 1:31 later and Fitzpatrick broke the tie 1:20 later.

The Rams had tons of glorious chances in the second period, especially with the two-man advantages, but they couldn’t capitalize.

“We needed him in the five-on-threes and he made huge saves, point-blank ones against some of their best players. He had his angles covered real well,” said McLaughlin.

McLaughlin capped his scintillating rush with a one-handed shot that deflected in off Bangor goalie Andrew Riley’s stick 4:14 into the third period and freshman left wing Nick Risser iced it 1:25 later.

“This win feels real good, especially the way we played. If we hadn’t played such a great game, it might not feel as good,” said McLaughlin. “We stayed out of the box for the most part and made plays when we had to.”

After Boehmer tucked a point-blank wrister between Saunders’ pads from a difficult angle, McLaughlin equalized in-tight off the rebound of a Prentiss Swett shot.

“I had a couple rebounds on my backhand and I put it top shelf,” said McLaughlin.

“That was a nice goal. He pulled it back and put it over my shoulder,” said Riley.

Fitzpatrick scored off the rebound of his brother Devin’s low blast from the left point.

“It was a good shot and it put out a perfect rebound,” said Dylan Fitzpatrick, who swept a backhander inside the post to Riley’s left.

McLaughlin’s rush and second goal took the wind out of Bangor’s sails.

“I hadn’t had a lot of skating room all night and I was looking for a couple breaks at the end,” said McLaughlin. “I beat one man and then faked a slap shot and went around a defenseman. I saw Riley come out to pokecheck me and what I really wanted to do was put a one-handed shot into Riley’s five-hole, but it ramped up off his stick and into the top corner.”

Risser capped the scoring with a wrister from the left circle that beat Riley five-hole.

Riley finished with 25 saves.

JV: 2-2

WITCHES 4, RAMS 1

Bangor (8-7-1) 1 0 0 – 1

Brewer (14-3) 2 0 2 – 4

First period – 1. Ban, Boehmer (Dionne, Warren), 11:16; 2. Brew, McLaughlin (Swett), 12:47 (pp); 3. Brew, Dy. Fitzpatrick (De. Fitzpatrick, Nadeau), 14:07. Penalties: Ban, Hyatt, hitting after the whistle, 8:22; Brew, De. Fitzpatrick, hitting after the whistle, 8:22; Ban, Hyatt, holding, 12:04; Ban, Dionne, hooking, 14:51.

Second period – No scoring. Penalties: Brew, Richardson, tripping, 7:33; Br, Coombs, boarding, 7:33; Ban, Silver, elbowing, 12:09; Brew, De. Fitzpatrick, hooking, 13:24; Brew, Dy. Fitzpatrick, hitting after the whistle, 13:24.

Third period – 4. Brew, McLaughlin (unassisted), 4:14; 5. Brew, Risser (Nadeau, Dy. Fitzpatrick), 5:39. Penalties: Ban, Mooers, interference, 6:38; Ban, Whitney, roughing, 7:11; Brew, Coombs, interference, 7:48; Ban, Dionne, interference, 10:08; Ban, Hyatt, holding, 13:22; Brew, Helfin, hitting from behind and 10-minute misconduct, 14:45.

Shots on goal: Bangor 9-15-5-29; Brewer 12-6-11-29

Goaltenders: Bangor, Riley (29 shots-25 saves); Brewer, Saunders (29-28)

Power-play opportunities: Bangor 0 of 3; Brewer 1 of 6

Attendance: 300 (est.)