After maintaining a tight score through 40 minutes, the Toronto Marlies completely turned the tide on Laval in the final frame.
After maintaining a tight score through 40 minutes, the Toronto Marlies completely turned the tide on Laval in the final frame.
GAME RECAP | Laval Rocket vs Toronto Marlies
Rocket Lineup
Forward lines
81 Xavier Simoneau - 61 Philippe Maillet - 10 Joshua Roy
28 Lias Andersson - 27 Mitchell Stephens - 19 Emil Heineman
49 Jared Davidson - 14 Jan Mysak - 20 Gabriel Bourque
12 Filip Cederqvist - 21 Riley Kidney - 17 Nathan Legare
Defense pairings
4 Paquette-Bisson - 24 Logan Mailloux
84 William Trudeau - 52 Justin Barron
29 Mattias Norlinder - 44 Olivier Galipeau
Goaltenders
71 Jakub Dobes
73 Kasimir Kaskisuo
Out of the lineup:
Scratches: Riley McKay, Strauss Mann
Injuries: Sean Farrell (upper-body), Brady Keeper (lower body)
Game Report
In their first game after the league's All-Star break, the Rocket found themselves kicking off a five-game road trip with an initial stop in Toronto to take on the Marlies.
Jakub Dobes was tapped for his fourth consecutive start in goal, despite the Marlies being the former team of backup netminder Kasimir Kaskisuo. Missing from the lineup were Brandon Gignac, on recall to Montreal, and Lucas Condotta. The latter was returned to Laval earlier in the day by the Canadiens and will likely suit up for the Rocket on Saturday.
The game had a lightning-quick start when former Montreal Canadiens forward Logan Shaw scored a power play goal, followed by a Mitchell Stephens equalizer just 14 seconds later.
Both teams contributed heavily to the physical side of the game, with Logan Mailloux and former Laval forward Joseph Blandisi involved in a particularly nasty bout. But both goaltenders, Dobes and Dennis Hildeby, kept the score stable through 40 minutes of play.
It was the third period that saw everything come undone for Laval. Emil Heineman did not play in the final frame due to an upper-body injury sustained in the second period, leaving the Rocket down a forward.
With about 12 minutes remaining in regulation, the Marlies regained the lead with a goal by William Villeneuve. For a few minutes, it looked as if Laval had a decent chance at finding another tying goal, but then Marshall Rifai extended the Toronto lead to two goals.
Shaw potted his second goal of the night just 15 seconds later, and the floodgates were officially open. Three minutes after that, Blandisi got on the board with an empty-netter after Jean-Francois Houle pulled his goaltender with more than five minutes remaining in the game.
Adding insult to injury, Shaw completed a hat trick a minute later to paste a 6-1 final score on the board. The Rocket seemed helpless as Toronto put up five unanswered goals in the course of about eight minutes, effectively burying their opponents on this night.
[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uRESNpuZScw[/embed]
Game Statistics
Rocket (19-19-4-2)
Shots: 32
Power play: 0-for-4
Penalty minutes: 11
Marlies (20-14-6-2)
Shots: 40
Power play: 1-for-2
Penalty minutes: 25
Scoring Summary
Rocket Scorers
1st period: Stephens (6)
2nd period: No scoring
3rd period: No scoring
OT: n/a
SO: n/a
Marlies Scorers
1st period: Shaw (17)-PPG
2nd period: No scoring
3rd period: Villeneuve (2), Rifai (2), Shaw (18), Blandisi (12)-ENG, Shaw (19)
OT: n/a
SO: n/a
Goaltenders
LAV: Dobes (L) 13-10-4-0
TOR: Hildeby (W) 12-7-4-4
Looking Back
Did you miss the Rocket's last game? Catch up on the recap here: Rocket, Amerks Split Weekend | ROC @ LAV
Up Next
The Rocket and Marlies continue their weekend series with a Saturday afternoon matinee game.
Puck drop on Saturday, February 10th, is scheduled for 4:00 pm ET at Coca-Cola Coliseum in Toronto, ON.
Be sure to bookmark THN.com/Montreal for year-round coverage of the Montreal Canadiens, Laval Rocket, and Habs prospects playing in leagues around the world.
