CONCORD – Kyle Mc- Donough had probably seen the situation before. With the Manchester Memorial boys hockey team tied, 4-4, with Bishop Brady midway through the third period on Saturday, Jan. 6, McDonough’s Crusaders took two penalties 21 seconds apart, giving Brady a 5-on-3 power play situation and a very good chance to take the lead.

Last season, when one-goal losses haunted Memorial, a situation like that one “wouldn’t have made me nervous,” Mc- Donough said, “but I thought we would be more apt to lose.” Not Saturday.

After not allowing a quality attempt in the 1-minute, 39 seconds of Brady’s two-man advantage, Memorial turned another penalty kill into a reason to celebrate six minutes later when Shane Johnston stole a pass at his own blue line, swept in on net and slid the game-winning, short-handed tally past goalie Tyler Ingerson with 2:22 remaining for a 5-4 win.

Memorial has several reasons to believe it’s a far different team from the one that started 1-5 last year and fell in the Division I quarterfinals. Saturday’s showing, however, is by far the most definitive. At 7-1 overall and 5-1 in Division I play entering a showdown with top-ranked Bishop Guertin on Wednesday, Jan. 10, the Crusaders have established themselves as one of the state’s early frontrunners.

Behind an incredibly balanced lineup, they’ve claimed two one-goal wins, including a 2-1 victory over Exeter on Dec. 16.

Against Brady, five different players scored, with Auburn native and senior captain Kyle Charbonneau snagging three points with a goal and two assists. Even more surprising, just one of those five – sophomore Cameron Coulombe – was named to the Coca Cola Classic all-tournament team after Memorial claimed that crown. In those games, including a 6-1 title-game win over Central, Anthony Ferendo, Kyle Kenia and Craig Charest helped carry the load.

“Last year we started out 1-5, now we’re 5-1. So I think we’ve improved a lot,” said Charbonneau, who actually suggested Memorial practice its 5-on-3 penalty kill in a practice prior to the Brady game.

“I would say we’re finishing when we need to (this year). Where there’s an open shot, we’ll make it. We’ll take that extra hit. We’re just coming through with everything.”

Yet, McDonough will be the first to admit the Crusaders haven’t proven anything yet. Before dropping a 3-1 decision to Concord on Jan. 3, Memorial had enjoyed a fairly light schedule; its first four opponents boasted a combined .396 winning percentage entering Wednesday.

The team’s current stretch, which continued with Guertin and still includes Central on Saturday, Jan. 13, and Salem on Jan. 20, will be a true gauge of Memorial’s potential. The win over Brady, off to a fast start at 4-1-1, is also a statement.

“That’s the win we wanted,” McDonough said afterward. “We were looking for one of those, against a team that’s good like they are, and we came, we played hard. They played hard, too, but in their barn, killing off that 5-on-3, I can’t ask more from those guys who killed that thing off."

“We’ll go home happy tonight.”