Hi Joe!
Sounds like maybe you didnt rinse the salmon enough.
When I rinse my brined fish, I turn the water on to a medium stream. I gently rub while doing this to release any stuborn salt.
The other thing that may have been wrong would be no fault of your own. I noticed the recipe just calls for 1 salmon fillet. It doesnt mention the size. Your fish could have been alot smaller and less thick than what the author of that recipe normally uses. Meaning brine time would be less than the 3 days.
Here's a simple wet brine I have been using for about 15 years for fish. I got it out of The Ultimate Grill Book. I dont see why you couldnt apply honey to your fish after using this brine, and I dont see why you couldnt substitue ingredients for the garlic, pepper, and bay leaves. As long as you leave the water/ salt/ sugar ratio the same.
For upto 10 lbs. of fish:
3 qts cool water
2 cps firmly packed brown sugar
1.5 cps of salt (I use kosher)
3 cloves of garlic (halved)
2 teaspoons of whole black peppercorns
4 bay leaves.
Stir briskly until salt and sugar dissolve.
I normally smoke only small 10"-13" butterflied trout, so my brine time is usually only 1.5- 2 hours.
Remove from brine. Rinse and pat dry. Let rest on a rack for 30 minutes to an hour until the surface feels tacky.
Then smoke. I smoke my little trout with 2 oz. (or less) of hickory, at 170 degrees for 1.5- 2 hours.
Hope some of this helps.