(Laval) Anthony Richard played heroes in overtime for the Rocket on Friday, scoring his 24e goal of the season to allow Laval to win 4-3 against the Rochester Americans.
The Rocket lost 3-0 before completing an impressive comeback.
Pierrick Dubé had two goals and an assist, Richard had a goal and an assist and Lucas Condotta had two assists.
Cayden Primeau stopped 21 pucks for the Rocket, while his opponent, Michael Houser, blocked 42 shots.
Down by one goal late in the game, the Rocket retired Primeau in favor of a sixth player. Mitchell Stephens took advantage of a loose puck in the slot to tie the game 3-3. Dubé picked up an assist for his third point of the game.
With 13:02 remaining in the third period, Rocket forward Riley McKay fought for the second time in the game, this time against Tyson Kozak. Along with a five-minute penalty, McKay also received 10 minutes of misconduct and a game ejection.
Dubé scored his second of the game, on assists from Condotta and Brandon Gignac.
Dubé gave the Rocket hope by scoring his sixth goal of the season on the power play with 2:37 left in the second period. Condotta got an assist on that goal as well.
Houser then made several important saves to put the Americans back in the locker room with a 3-1 lead after 40 minutes.
Jeremy Davies, who got an assist on his team’s first goal, made it 3-0 with his ninth goal of the season, 4:03 into the second period.
The second period was marked by physical play. The fight between Sean Malone and McKay in the dying seconds of the first period seemed to inspire both teams for the rest of the game.
Mason Jobst and Xavier Simoneau came to blows early in the second period, which counted 14 penalty minutes in the first four minutes of play.
The Rocket did not have the expected first period. Jiri Kulich opened the scoring for the Americans after 13:07 of play and Jobst, with just over a minute left in the first period, doubled the team’s shorthanded lead.
Not only did the Rocket allow a shorthanded goal, but the team was unable to take advantage of two penalties from the Americans in the first period.