(Laval) Three of its top scorers were absent, two due to recall to Montreal and the other due to injury. Also, the opponent was none other than the best team in the American League. All this did not prevent the Laval Rocket from getting two precious points in the standings.
Not only did the Rocket hold off the Hershey Bears for 65 minutes, they snatched a 3-2 shootout victory in front of a crowd of 7,820 spectators Wednesday night at Place Bell.
Third player dispatched by head coach Jean-François Houle, Logan Mailloux scored the only goal of the shootout with a shot in the upper left area.
Joe Snively tried to extend the evening, but his backhand shot missed the target.
Philippe Maillet and Jared Davidson, both in the first period, beat goaltender Hunter Shepard, who faced 30 shots.
Ivan Miroshnichenko, in the second period, and Bogdan Trineyev, early in the third period, deceived the vigilance of Jakub Dobes, who blocked 24 pucks, including 21 from the second period.
“I think it shows that we are a really different team from the beginning of the year,” said Maillet about the importance of this victory.
“We have guys who moved up (in Montreal), we lost guys in the lineup. Guys who get put in different situations take their place. That’s what the American League is; there are guys who will rise, there are guys who will fall in combat. When you have your chance, you have to take it,” added Maillet.
This match was played in three stages. The Rocket dominated the first period before seeing the Bears win in the next. The third period offered a very shared game.
“We started well. It was important for us to have a good start to the match. We didn’t give them much in the first half,” analyzed Houle.
“And like any good team, they came out really strong in the second, and we were a little bit on our heels. We managed to keep it at 2-1. I really liked the effort of the players,” added the Rocket head coach.
The Rocket (22-20-7)’s home stay will continue Friday and Saturday with two games in as many days against the Toronto Marlies.
Two games that will be of capital importance in the North Section standings, which makes the victory against the Bears even more crucial. Especially for a team as young as the Rocket.
“The points are so important right now, it’s sure that it can bring a little confidence,” Houle admitted when speaking about Wednesday’s match.
“Whether it’s the playoffs or a run to the playoffs, they’re all games that mean something. I think it’s good for young people to play in matches like this. This is how you grow and this is how you become better. »
An almost perfect period
The first twenty would say a lot about the Rocket’s intentions against a high-level rival. However, this was possibly the best period for the Laval team this season.
Houle’s troops practiced a tight forecheck which allowed them to impose themselves in the opposing zone, obtain 12 shots against only three and give themselves a 2-0 lead after 20 minutes.
Maillet opened the scoring at 15:45, near the end of a power play, with a shot from the left faceoff circle that snuck over Shepard’s glove.
Just under three minutes later, Davidson doubled the lead following a beautiful backhand pass from Lias Andersson, which created space for him on the right flank.
Above all, the Rocket was impeccable defensively during these first 20 minutes.
The only blunder came from William Trudeau when he lost control of the puck at the Bears blue line.
Mike Vecchione grabbed it and tried to escape towards Dobes, but Trudeau held him back to the point where one of the officials called a penalty shot, at 4:04.
Like a wall, Dobes made an almost easy save, using his left pad.
“We knew that when they take the lead, it’s difficult to come from behind. I think it was a key moment. You don’t want to play catch-up hockey against a team like that,” Dobes said of his stoppage.
The Bears react
The Bears players ended their hibernation at the start of the second period, and came out of their den with ferocity. To the point where the Rocket players had a lot of difficulty keeping up, especially in the first half of the period.
The Bears shot often — 17 times to seven — from all angles and their shots were rarely convenient.
Two shots were particularly impactful, both taken by Miroshnichenko, in quick succession, during a penalty to Olivier Galipeau.
The first, downright violent and coming from the left point, hit the vertical rod to the right of Dobes. The second, just as impressive and fired from the same place, vibrated the strings, once again to the right of the Rocket goalkeeper, at 6:11
Thanks to an alert Dobes, the Rocket was at least able to return to the locker room with a 2-1 lead.
But it took the Bears less than two minutes to tie the game in the third.
Trineyev first made a nice feint to get around Galipeau before beating Dobes with a low backhand shot to his left.