Junior forward Cody McGowan took a perfect feed from senior Dylan DiNatale and slotted home the opening goal with 1:27 left in the first period. Brendan McDonough - on a great feed from Cam Owens - Jake Rogers, and Luke Foley all added third period goals to seal Wilmington's second title in as many years.
"That's a tough loss," Franklin head coach Chris Spillane said. "There's a whole lot thats going to make them feel better walking out of the building. It was a great year for us. It's something they will remember for the rest of their lives."
Wilmington junior goalie Drew Foley stopped all 15 of Franklin's shots, including an incredible save just six minutes into the game.
Franklin senior Aidan Isberg was able to gather the puck through traffic off a rebound and had an open net. Isberg fired but Foley lounged to his left, grabbing the puck in his glove to rob Isberg and Franklin of the opening goal.
Spillane called it a "big one" and that if it found the back of the net, it would have "absolutely" changed the game.
"I think we're a much better team when we score goals early," Spillane said. "A team like that, you know they're going to score their goals so it was a big save."
Franklin junior goalie Devon Maloof came away with 25 saves in the game.
The Panthers will now graduate eight seniors, including senior captain Cam Curley, who has been with the team since his sophomore year.
"He's been here for three years," I feel bad for him that he wasn't able to take the hardware home."
Along with Curley, Franklin will lose Isberg, Mike Patjane, Ryan Lessard, Dennis Pisani, Pat Slason, Andrew Butts, and Jake Sargeant.
"We have eight seniors, each one of them played and were contributors for the team. We'll miss them," Spillane added.
Key returning players for the Panthers include Maloof, Troy Donahue, Kyle Filbert and sophomores Alec Borkowski, Kyle Filbert, and Joe Borque. Junior defenseman Kyle Powers, who will a top defenseman in the Hockomock next year, will also return.
"Our locker room was very tight knit and we had a lot of fun this year. That's what you want."