Bellmore-Merrick hockey is finally top dog.
After years of painful exits, the Bulldogs have conquered the Empire State and are, for the first time, New York’s reigning champions.
“You learn a lot from losing,” head coach Patrick Braglia told The Post, adding that he’s been on the wrong side of nearly half a dozen state tournament heartbreakers, including one in triple overtime.
“These guys understood what it was to lose and what it feels like. I think the older guys, our seniors, especially, were able to keep the room believing.”
Braglia’s proud pound, which exacted revenge on Long Beach in the process, is heading to Plymouth, Minn., for the USA Hockey National Championships next week.
They iced the state tournament with a 4-2 thriller over St. Francis of Buffalo, where Bellmore-Merrick trailed early and could hardly hold on to a 2-2 tie late in the game.
“In the third period, it was like they were the Canadians and we were the Americans,” Braglia said, comparing the championship to the men’s Olympic gold match.
Forward Jackson Austin became the hero with under three minutes to go by getting a deflection goal that put the Bulldogs up 3-2, a lead they padded on an empty-netter on after a ferocious six-on-five attack for nearly 90 seconds.
“We had to have blocked, I don’t know, 10 shots in that short amount of time,” said Braglia.
The boys are taking some well-earned rest before shipping out to Minnesota, as their head coach said the focus is on themselves rather than on anticipating a matchup with some of the other 15 best teams in the U.S.
“It’s about staying the course. We don’t really worry too much about what other people do. We really try to play our game,” he said.
“There’s a full buy-in from every guy — all the time. It’s a special type of environment to be in.”
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