(Springfield) Cayden Primeau once again frustrated his opponents and the Laval Rocket stayed alive with a 5-1 win over the Springfield Thunderbirds on Monday night.
Posted at 9:45 p.m.
Primeau made a few key saves in the first 40 minutes of play and allowed his team to get two important goals in the third period. The 22-year-old goaltender stopped 30 of 31 pucks aimed at him.
Primeau has allowed two goals or less in 10 of his 14 starts since the start of the playoffs and helped the Rocket tie the American Hockey League Eastern Conference final 3-3. The ultimate duel will take place on Wednesday evening in Springfield.
Danick Martel continued to be a nuisance on the ice and got involved offensively, scoring two goals and an assist for the Rocket. Brandon Gignac added a goal and an assist, while Gabriel Bourque and Lucas Condotta both scored once.
Matthew Peca scored the only goal of the game for the Thunderbirds, who were once again shut out with a man to spare. They haven’t hit the target in 29 power plays since the start of this series.
Joel Hofer allowed four goals on 30 shots. He was coming back in front of the Springfield team after giving up his place to Charlie Lindgren in the last game.
The Rocket Holds Up
The Rocket looked cautious in the first half and mostly unthreatening due to their lack of discipline.
Devante Smith-Pelly took a four-minute high-sticking penalty, but the Thunderbirds weren’t able to beat Primeau. At the end of the engagement, Martel was chased away, but the Rocket escaped unscathed.
Martel somehow redeemed himself, at 4:58 of the second period, when Thunderbirds defenseman Tommy Cross committed a turnover in front of his net. The Rocket forward intercepted his pass and all he had to do was send the puck into a free net.
Primeau once again stood out, following a penalty awarded to Rafaël Harvey-Pinard, and he allowed the Rocket to return to the locker room with a slim one-goal lead.
However, Jean-François Houle’s men picked up the pace in the third period and were able to distance themselves with two goals in the first half.
From the second minute, Corey Schueneman made a pass that Martel redirected on the blade of Bourque’s stick. The latter took advantage of the space in front of him and fired a sharp shot that went over Hofer’s glove.
Martel came to deal a hard blow to the home team at 8: 51. He accepted a discount from Gignac and he skillfully stripped Hofer with a nice backhand feint.
Peca gave the Thunderbirds hope by depriving Primeau of a shutout, but Gignac, in an empty net, and Condotta closed the books at the end of the third period.