Gorham got down by two in the first period of last Wednesday’s Class B West Final versus Kennebunk, but fought back as the action progressed. In fact, Gorham found themselves down to the Kennebunk on three separate occasions, each time managing to recoup the deficit.

Then, with just 1:20 remaining in regulation, Gorham senior Travis Mansir once again proved his immense worth, giving his team their first lead of the game – as well as victory, the B West title and another shot at States.

The team persevered similarly through most of Saturday’s Class B title bout, against reigning champs Messalonskee – but “most of” wasn’t enough, and the Eagles rained fire on the Rams as the third period waned, scoring four goals inside the last five minutes to retain the throne for another year. 7-2 the final.

Both games were held at the Androscoggin Bank Colisee in Lewiston. Gorham retires for the season at 14-6-2.

Regional Final

Kennebunk jumped on top early in the B West showdown, netting points at 11:04 (Jan Rutrle from James Ross) and 4:09 (Boden Beveridge from Patrick Gassman), the latter on a powerplay during which the Gorham PK unit looked a little lethargic.

Really, Gorham’s defense during the entire matchup appeared off form, so that, even after Carl Bear (from Mansir) and Michael Chapin (from Carter Landry) combined to tie the contest at 2-2 midway through the second, Kennebunk all too soon inched ahead again.

That point came not 30 seconds after Chapin’s, and felt powerfully deflating – rather, it felt that way to a spectator. On-ice, though, Gorham maintained their composure, and needed only three minutes to earn a powerplay goal of their own. Chapin, near the right Kennebunk faceoff dot, snapped a hard pass to Bear on the left for a one-timer to beat Kennebunk keeper Mike LeBlanc and even the tally once more, 3-3.

“From the last game we played – when we played Yarmouth, we were down one and we knew that it was possible to come back,” said Mansir of Gorham’s resurgence. “We just never gave up, and just went harder and skated faster and gave it all we got, and came out with the win.”

Again Kennebunk took the lead, this time with just 7.4 seconds to play before intermission – and again Gorham bounced back, Matt Hooker (from Jordan Ward) blasting a shot from the point through the screen and past LeBlanc for 4-4, halfway through the third period.

The game looked headed to OT as the final minute loomed, until seemingly out of nowhere – with very little setup to speak of, except for a pass through the neutral zone from Lucas Roop – Mansir jetted forward, across Kennebunk’s blue line, and popped a quick, tumbling wrister toward LeBlanc from outside-right.

The shot beat LeBlanc unexpectedly – it didn’t have much mustard on it, after all – but a goal’s a goal, and Gorham was finally on top, 5-4, which is how things would end.

No. 1 Kennebunk had actually throttled six-seed Gorham, 6-0, late in the regular season. But Gorham refused to be intimidated for the rematch and merely adopted an alternate style of play.

“We had a different strategy,” Gorham head coach John Portwine said of his squad’s fresh approach. “We brought the puck out differently, and our defensive zone coverage played it a little differently as well.

“This was a tight game; all the credit in the world to Kennebunk. They had a fantastic season. They’re a classy group. I was glad that we could pull it out and play our best against them tonight.”

State Final

The Rams looked as strong in Saturday afternoon’s state championship as they have all year – stronger, actually. In net, Noah Bird turned save after save, diving and lunging to stymie Messalonskee’s nuclear attack, while out front his offense doggedly constructed a lead.

The game echoed 2014’s State battle: Not only was it a rematch between the two teams, it unfolded similarly as well. Both games were tight to begin, before the Eagles managed to open things up.

This year, Carl Bear put Gorham on top first, two and a half minutes in, capitalizing on an interference minor Messalonskee incurred when they hauled Carter Landry down near center ice. The Rams then padded their initial advantage with a shorthanded Mansir goal on a breakaway. 2-0, midway through the second.

“The way we played the first two periods was unbelievable,” said Portwine. “Those are probably the best two periods we played all season. I can’t be anything but proud of the effort they brought tonight. It didn’t end up the way we wanted, but you can’t take anything away from these guys.”

Before the puck ever dropped to begin the contest, smart money was undoubtedly on the Eagles. The East reps entered the tournament No. 1 at 17-1; they won their half of the state handily – dropping Winslow 8-3 in the Regional Final – and bring Maine’s most high-octane attack to the ice. Through the 20 games leading up to the title bout, Messalonskee posted 127 goals, while giving up only 44.

The Rams, by comparison, were something of an upstart in the 2015 West. Gorham entered the postseason at 11-5-2, and had to pull a pair of glorious comeback rabbits from their magic helmets in the later rounds to get past first Yarmouth and Kennebunk, two squads who consecutively skunked the Rams at the end of their regular schedule. And while Gorham gave up a handful fewer goals through one more game than Messalonskee – 38 goals through 21 games, to be exact – they also tallied fewer, and by a longshot: 89.

That’s an intimidating heap, 89 goals; the Rams were hardly slouches on offense. But the Eagles notched more goals than even the top lineups in Class A, including Falmouth, Scarborough, Lewiston and St. Dom’s.

Which makes Bird’s performance on Saturday quite remarkable. While his teammates on the attack slowly assembled their slim lead, Bird ferociously protected his territory, stonewalling shots with his glove, his stick, his pads – heck, even his mask.

For the Eagles to billow the twine, they would need a perfect play. And while their offense indeed moved the puck with the practiced grace of a Vegas blackjack dealer, their every setup fell shy of “perfect” at that most crucial moment – the shot.

Until, that is, the late second period, when Messalonskee’s Jake Dexter and a duo of his linemates pinballed the puck from right to left in front of Bird. Their passing was tight, flawless; Bird couldn’t sweep from side to side fast enough – but then, few goalies could. Dexter redirected for 2-1.

Bird kept his cool, and Gorham made it to the break still ahead. When they returned to the ice for the third, however, things took an immediate and undesirable turn: Willy Baxter incurred two minutes for contact to the head, temporarily hobbling the Rams.

For the first half of the PK, Gorham stood strong, and Bird especially. But with 44 seconds left to kill, the Eagles thoroughly exploited their man advantage when Dexter pounced on a rebound that had bounced off Bird into a swath of open ice. 2-2.

“We got tired,” Portwine said. “Everybody gets tired, and when you do get tired, you start to make mistakes and mental errors. I think that’s what it came down to. I could second-guess everything, and I will, but I’m just happy with the effort that was given.”

Three minutes later, Messalonskee converted again on the powerplay; they had their first lead of the game. Still, the Rams stayed focused, and locked up the Eagles for another five minutes. Gorham created a handful of high-quality chances of their own in that time, but it was Messalonskee who next lit the lamp.

They did it repeatedly, hashing four goals in the final five minutes to completely gobble up a game that had, till that point, belonged to either side. The swiftness of the surge was staggering.

For Portwine, even though the season ended in a loss, it remains: “a huge success. Unbelievable. Last year was great; this year was a little more unexpected, especially the path we took, being the six-seed, not playing our best hockey at the end of the year. Coming back, winning in overtime against Yarmouth, trailing the entire game against Kennebunk.

“We just kept getting better. Early on in the season we were really good, then we kind of hit a little valley, but we played the way we were capable of playing [today], those first two periods, before we ran out of gas. That’s the level they play at. We just couldn’t sustain it long enough.”

Carter Landry stares off in contemplation while the Messalonskee Eagles accept their individual awards after the Class B State Championship on Saturday.Rams captains Jordan Ward (12), Andrew Schmidt (10) and Matt Hooker (7) skate back to their teammates after accepting their Class B state runners-up plaque Saturday afternoon.The Rams line up prior to the Class B State Championship on Saturday.The Rams’ Lucas Roop descends on a Messalonskee opponent as he fires the puck forward.Gorham keeper Noah Bird looked nearly perfect through the first two periods of Saturday’s Class B State Final.Gorham’s Andrew Schmidt tries to shake off an Eagles opponent.Willy Baxter dashes up-ice for the Rams.Travis Mansir puts a shot past the Eagles’ goalie Saturday afternoon.