Hat tricks help Jets top Salem

LYNN – Behind a pair of hat trick performances, the Lynn Jets powered their way past visiting Salem, 7-1, on Wednesday night at Connery Rink. Freshman Jon Kosmas netted the first three goals of his high school career while the ever-reliable Mark Brazell completed the rare feat as well.?We had to juggle our lines a bit because of an injury and Jon did a great job at stepping up and taking advantage of the opportunity,” said Lynn coach Joe Conlon. “Mark has the ability to make things happen on every shift and he really brought it tonight.”The recurring theme of the evening was the Jets? (2-0) ability to start each period strong, starting with two goals in the opening four and a half minutes of the game.Tony Uva got things started 1:54 in, scoring on his own rebound with a backhand flip over the shoulder of Salem (0-2) fill-in goalie Michael Rosengren. Brazell doubled the lead at the 4:26 mark, banging home a rebound from net-front traffic.Salem?s lone tally came two and a half minutes later when Matt Jalbert snuck home a rebound created by a shot from Danny Heck.The Jets came out strong again in the second as Kosmas? first tally came just 2:38 in. After his initial shot was turned aside by Rosengren, the puck eventually found its way back to the first-year, who slid it home to the short side.?Each time we came back to the room, we talked about continuing getting pucks to the net,” Conlon said. “Salem didn?t have their starting goalie, so our game plan called for a lot of shots and we managed to do that for the most part tonight.”Kosmas? second goal came with 11 seconds remaining in the middle period. After a fantastic rush down the left side, Brazell fired a wrister that hit Rosengren and dropped in the crease, where Corey Wojewodzic (three assists) chipped it over to the eventual scorer.The final period saw Kosmas? hat-trick tally sandwiched between goals Nos. 2 and 3 for Brazell, the first two just 30 seconds apart in the opening minute.Brazell?s second of the game came after another terrific rush down the left wing before he completed the trifecta with a beautiful tip-in from the slot off a shot from Brandon Devin at the left point.?We were without our starting goalie tonight and had to throw a defenseman in the net, but I thought Mike did pretty well,” explained Salem coach Ted Hanley. “He showed a lot of heart out there tonight, but this is a very good Lynn team and we just didn?t have a way of slowing them down.”Kosmas and Brazell each had assists to go along with their three goals while teammate Dan Rustani picked up three helpers. Co-captain Ryan MacDonald, Eric Brazell and Tyler Craig were also credited with assists for Lynn.?It?s going to get harder before it gets easier for us, but we?re off to a very nice start,” said Conlon.