Less than 24 hours after the Rocket and Senators had a penalty-filled battle in Laval, the two teams were back at it again, this time in Belleville. The Rocket pummelled the Senators on the scoreboard 5-2 on and in the many fights that littered Firday’s game as the two rival teams aired their grievances on multiple occasions.
Thanks to an eight-game point streak, the Rocket found themselves just outside the third spot in the North Division heading into this contest, giving them plenty to play for as they chased the Senators in the standings. There was just one lineup change for J.-F. Houle’s squad, with Kasimir Kaskisuo getting the starting nod in net while Jakub Dobeš served as his backup.
It took all of 23 seconds for things to get kicked off as Logan Mailloux and Zack Ostapchuk continued their dealings from the previous night. The duo threw off the gloves at centre ice in a spirited tilt with Ostapchuk seeming to get the upper hand on the Rocket defenceman.
The Rocket offence, without its top offensive back, struggled to find its legs following the fight, and the Senators took advantage to find the game’s first goal. Belleville cycled the puck up to Lassi Thomson at the blue line, He walked in a few steps and snapped a shot off the post and in to put the Senators on top early.
Another scrap, this time between Riley McKay and Bokondji Imama, in front of the Rocket net kept the spicy atmosphere going before the Rocket drew the game’s first power play and looked to find a tying goal. Belleville’s penalty kill was up to the task, smothering Laval’s key shooting options while also giving no space for the top playmakers to try to create space, leaving the Rocket still trailing by a goal.
Laval’s offence slowly woke up after the power play, with Filip Cederqvist playing a big role in creating chances against Kevin Mandolese. The Senators goalie found himself under siege late with Brandon Gignac and Emil Heineman creating looks, but held the fort as the horn sounded, leaving Laval down by a goal heading into the intermission.
Laval jumped out to a quick start in the second period, with the pairing of Mailloux and Arber Xhekaj keeping the puck alive deep in the offensive zone for the Rocket as the forwards peppered Mandolese. However, a poor turnover from Riley Kidney led to him being called for tripping and sending the Senators to their first power play.
The Rocket penalty-killers were dialed in as they fought off the Belleville power play, keeping things easy on Kaskisuo while allowing the offence to seamlessly jump back into things. It looked as though the Rocket were moments away from finding the tying goal as they broke in on a three-on-one rush. The chance dribbled just wide, allowing the Sens to counter, and their odd-man rush ended with Matthew Highmore beating Kaskisuo to make it a two-goal deficit.
Laval slowly chipped away at the Senators’ defence, with long point shots and redirections in front of the net, but Mandolese held strong as Belleville kept their two-goal advantage firmly intact.
Then, things flipped on their head in under a minute for the Rocket.
Lias Andersson took a leading pass to break into the Senators’ zone, and put a shot on net that Mandolese couldn’t handle. Jared Davidson, fresh out of the box, was all over the loose puck and poked it in to get Laval on the board.
Less than a minute later the Rocket suddenly found themselves in a tie game after nearly 40 minutes of frustration. William Trudeau plowed ahead into the offensive zone, slinging a pass across the zone to Xavier Simoneau. The diminutive winger got his stick down, directing it by Mandolese and knotting things up at two goals apiece.
Imama, in an attempt to get the Rocket off their game, took a late cross-checking penalty, and handed the Rocket a full power play to start the third period. That power play needed just 37 seconds to make a difference as Emil Heineman finally got an open look on the Senators’ goal. Philippe Maillet fired a pass across the zone, and Heineman stepped into the one-timer to put the Rocket on top for the first time.
And then, in traditional fashion, all hell broke loose.
Brennan Saulnier broke into the Rocket zone offside, ignored the whistle, and sailed a shot high and wide by Kaskisuo, resulting in the Rocket netminder grabbing Saulnier by the arm at the side of goal. In response, Saulnier circled the net and charged at Kaskisuo, earning himself a five-minute major penalty.
Laval’s power play kept the puck deep in the offensive zone, but weren’t able to produce much in terms of actual dangerous attack, keeping the Senators still within striking distance as the game entered its final 10 minutes. To complicate things, the Senators drew a power play of their own just after returning to even strength, putting all the pressure back on the Rocket.
Kaskisuo was up for the challenge as the Senators attacked in waves, giving up nothing and keeping Laval’s one-goal lead intact. From there it was the Rocket clearing the zone, dumping pucks in, and winding the clock further and further down into the final minute of play.
The defensive effort and goaltending display in the final 68 seconds of play were beyond reproach as the Rocket survived the last push, and came away with a series win over the Senators.
Final Score: Laval 3, Belleville 2
With their wins this weekend, Laval executed an eight-point swing to move up to fourth in the North Division ahead of the Senators. The Rocket now have a few days off before they welcome the Utica Comets to Place Bell on Wednesday night.
