They say it every day at the Bishop Guertin High School boys hockey practices: 33.7 seconds.

“We mention it every day in practice, we mention 33.7 seconds,” Cards coach Gary Bishop said. “Every day. We remind them. Because that’s when they tied it up.”

Yes, that’s when, a year ago this weekend, the Concord Crimson Tide prevented a BG 2025 Division I title celebration in the finals at SNHU Arena. Guertin was nursing, clinging to a 1-0 lead, ready to taste the fruits of a championship a half a minute away.

Concord’s Cam Roy had other ideas. With goalie Carter Heise pulled, Roy scored to send the game into what would be a historic 46 minutes, 29 seconds of bonus hockey. Two-plus games in one, said to be the longest NHIAA hockey game in modern history.

And a bitter, bitter memory for BG, that on Saturday at 5 p.m. has a chance to create a better one, facing Concord again in the 2026 title bout, also at SNHU Arena in Manchester.

“Last year was definitely heartbreaking,” said Cards junior defenseman Gavin Santos, one of a handful of current BG skaters who played in the game. “It was emotional, for sure. … It sucked. We played two games and a period. It sucked for sure.”

It was an emotional roller coaster ride that left everyone who played in it, even those who watched it, completely drained. Legs were like jelly. It’s a lasting memory cherished by some, hated by some, and just remembered constantly by all.

We can still see the blank looks on the BG bench when the Tide tied it up. Then the anticipation when officals discussed with the goal judge in OT a potential Cardinal score that was correctly waved off, as even the BG side agreed with. And then in the third OT, BG’s Ryan Mogielnicki clanked a shot off the crossbar that everyone watching thought would end it. And the Cards even thought they had it won in regulation with the Tide’s net empty, but a shot to put BG up 2-0 was blocked at the last possible second with 45 ticks left.

Ecstacy turned into agony as the Guertin players yelled pain on their way to the locker room after.

A game for the ages that aged all in the building.

“You can’t even – there’ll never be another one,” Concord coach Duncan Walsh said. “For the two teams to have the chance to meet again — It’s not the same teams, just the same schools. Concord has six players who Walsh said played “significant minutes” in the game. The Cards close to that number.

“But you know every kids who didn’t make the team last year was probably at that game,” Walsh said. “They know the whole history.”

What was it like to coach in it?

“Torture,” Walsh said. “It was torture.”

The scoreboard at SNHU Arena tells the story just before the winning goal was score, as, yes, it was period No. 7, the 2025 Divison I hockey final between Concord and Bishop Guertin taking 91:29. (Telegraph photo by TOM KING)

When BG beat the Tide 4-2 last month the Cardinals celebrated in a big way because it just wasn’t your typical win. They beat Concord. The Tide players groused about it, and Walsh set them straight.

“I said ‘Guys, think about it,'” he said. “If that game went the other way last year, you would be the same way. You guys have no idea. That’d be the most devastating loss you ever had in your life.”

A game like that stays with you, win or lose. When this scribe said to Bishop after his season opening win over St. Thomas that we still couldn’t forget that title game, Bishop said “Neither can I.” Walsh expects a one-goal game again on Saturday, “Maybe 3-2 with four or five overtimes,” he said with a chuckle.

And then he added, “It can’t. It can’t happen again.”

One would think, but the Hockey Gods seem to enjoy BG-Concord Experience.

See you Saturday.

Tom King may be reached at X @Telegraph_TomK, or via email at tking@nashuatelegraph.com