Riding a four-game winning streak after Friday’s win against Utica, the Rocket came into Saturday’s matchup looking to stay undefeated against the Comets. Laval rebounded nicely after struggling in December and was nicely poised to take advantage of one of the weakest teams in the AHL.
Pascal Vincent continued to rely on clicking chemistry, not touching any of Laval’s four forward lines. Only Josh Jacobs and Kaapo Kähkönen drew out of the lineup, with Jacobs replaced by Nate Clurman on the bottom pairing, and Hunter Jones getting the start with Laval having played the night before.
After looking like an even match for the bottom-ranked Comet on Friday, Laval needed a strong start, and they received it. Laval controlled play for the opening minutes of the game, with Sean Farrell and Jared Davidson both getting good looks in the first five minutes.
After 14 minutes of mostly nothing from either side, Laval got the lead after a hard wristshot from Marc Del Gaizo found a way through the crowd.
Marc Del Gaizo ouvre la marque!!
— Rocket de Laval (@RocketLaval) January 4, 2026
Del Gaizo scores first 🚀
UTC 0 – 1 LAV pic.twitter.com/rARR3nZJis
Jared Davidson was called for a tripping penalty a couple of minutes later, and the Rocket spent most of the back end of the first period hemmed in their own zone. The onslaught eventually paid off, and Utica tied the game with less than a minute left, a perfect shot from the high slot from Topias Vilan.
The second period started out with a bang, with Florian Xhekaj dropping the gloves just over a minute in. The Rocket’s mood was spoiled shortly thereafter, as Utica climbed ahead 2-1 less than a minute after the fight with a knuckle puck beating Jones.
The Comet took control of the period after the goal, and Laval was left battling on its heels. At the midway point of the second, shots were 14-5 in favour of Utica.
The Rocket spent much of the period short-handed, but a few good kills eventually led to Xhekaj tying the game with a short-handed goal. He stole the puck on Laval’s blue line and beat Jakub Málek glove side from between the circles.
XHEKAJ 🚨2-2 pic.twitter.com/CAmElp63uN
— Rocket de Laval (@RocketLaval) January 4, 2026
Laval used the goal and a power play to tilt the ice back in its favour, and by the end of the second, shots were 18-14 in favour of Utica, a stark contrast to the totals midway through the frame.
The Rocket came into the final period intent on doing what they couldn’t the previous day: seal the win in regulation. Del Gaizo started the Rocket off on a good note, sniping his second of the game just two minutes into the third. This one was a quick wrister from the wall that beat Málek off the post and in. Pascal Vincent’s new third pairing was making the difference offensively.
3-2!! 🚀 https://t.co/sfMuyQtFyq pic.twitter.com/Cof0YAGz8t
— Rocket de Laval (@RocketLaval) January 4, 2026
The goal bolstered the Rocket and Laval controlled possession for the next five minutes. They managed three straight line changes in the offensive zone before Utica came up with a clearance, and even then, Laval was right back at it. After Friday’s game devolved into a violent show of force from both squads, the teams kept things clean through the stretch of the period, playing hockey instead of just battling, even after things got chippy.
Despite the Rocket momentum, as the game shifted to four-on-four Utica was able to tie the game with 11:25 left in the third after a fairly routine wrister squeaked through Jones.
The Comets took the lead just 50 seconds later, with Ethan Edwards snapping a wristshot over the left shoulder of Jones, who ended up off balance while trying to move laterally. The two goals sucked the life out of Place Bell.
Trailing 4-3 with less than four minutes to go, Laval was stifled time after time in the offensive zone. Davidson was stopped on a backdoor tap-in, Joshua Roy on a one-timer from the circle, and Farrell blocked point-blank in the slot. Laval dominated the cycle, but Málek stood strong, and the Comets’ defence put their bodies on the line.
Utica hung on for a whopping 3:45 of constant offensive pressure from the Rocket, and came away with a much-deserved victory.
Final Score: Laval 3, Utica 4
Laval (21-11-0) will be back in action on Friday, January 9, when they travel to Rochester to take on the Americans (16-11-3). Puck drop is scheduled for 7:05 PM ET.
