The Montreal Canadiens AHL affiliate sweep weekend doubleheader.
by Chris G, Rocket Sports, Montreal Canadiens blogger
The Laval Rocket returned to Place Bell and hosted the Hartford Wolf Pack (New York Rangers) for a doubleheader on Friday and Saturday.
Friday: Hartford Wolf Pack 1 - Laval Rocket 3
The home team did not waste time and got on the board with their first shot on goal when Owen Beck redirected Jared Davidson’s pass behind the goal line. The scoreline remained unchanged until the 8:02 mark of the third period, when former Rocket captain Alex Belzile capitalized on a bad pass by Alex Barre-Boulet and went top corner with a backhander to beat Cayden Primeau. Later in the period, Florian Xhekaj was in the crease area and knocked in a rebound with four seconds remaining on a power play. Laurent Dauphin extended his point streak to four games and sealed the victory with an empty net goal with two seconds remaining.
"I liked our start,” Pascal Vincent said post game. “It's a team win. We blocked shots, we entered the crease in the offensive zone, we worked the goal line well [...] Our penalty kill was solid tonight.”
Recalls Force Last Minute Adjustments
Vincent was running a pre-game meeting with the team prior to Saturday’s rematch when the Montreal Canadiens called informing the coach that they’re recalling Owen Beck and Logan Mailloux. The two players left immediately as they needed to travel to make it in Anaheim on time for Sunday’s contest against the Ducks.
Earlier in the morning, Laval sent their extra forward Alex Beaucage to their ECHL affiliate in Trois-Rivieres. As a result, Vincent only had 11 forwards available to dress. On defence, Gustav Lindstrom was not scheduled to play due to an injury, but with only five other healthy defencemen on the roster, he approached the coach and volunteered to dress and help out as much as he can. The veteran defenceman spent the entire third period on the bench as he was no longer able to play through the injury.
Saturday: Hartford Wolf Pack 4 - Laval Rocket 5
The Wolf Pack came out strong, outshooting their opponents 8-0 through 8 minutes and leading 1-0. They added two more goals, including one on the power play to take a commanding 3-0 lead. Sean Farrell reduced the lead before the intermission when he banged in a rebound from the slot during a power play.
Hartford increased their lead early in the second with a goal on their second shot of the frame. The game swung in Laval’s favor from that point, and outshot the Wolf Pack for the remainder of the period. The home team was rewarded with three goals during that stretch and it began with Jared Davidson converting a penalty shot after a player closed his glove on the puck in the crease. Later, Alex Barre-Boulet setup Farrell in the slot for his second of the afternoon.
The Rocket had a four-minute power play to wrap up the period and Barre-Boulet jumped on his own rebound for the tying goal and his third point of the contest. Overtime was needed to decide the winner and for the second time in 24 hours, Xhekaj recorded the game winning goal with a hard shot with 10 seconds remaining before shootout.
"We usually have good starts. Today, I think there was a shock before the game [Beck/Mailloux recalls]. It was also a combination of we won yesterday and we thought it would be easier today. [Hartford] wasn't happy about yesterday's game. I like the resilience of our team, the way they came out in the second, third, and overtime,” Vincent said.
Xhekaj’s Upward Progression
Florian Xhekaj was the weekend’s hero with the two game winning goals. Since the start of the season, he was centering the fourth line with Luke Tuch primarily to his left. Vincent has gradually increased his responsibilities to include regular duty on the penalty kill and is being considered to be added on the power play.
"He's got good skills. He's got a good shot. He's willing to drive the net. We know he's tough,” the coach noted following Friday’s contest. “His curve is going uphill [...] It's very very interesting how he's progressing and absorbing the information."
Primeau Proud of Results
Cayden Primeau joined the Canadiens AHL affiliate on January 1st for his first practice following his demotion from the NHL. With the two victories obtained over the weekend, he has 9-0 record, 1.96 goals-against-average, and .923 save percentage.
"How I have been battling and competing,” answered Primeau following his 30-save performance on Friday when asked about his proudest accomplishment. “I'm trying to get better every day. I'm happy how my game is trending."
Roster News
Laurent Dauphin got clipped by a high stick in the final minutes of the second period and did not return. There was no information available on the extent of the injury following the game.
Xavier Simoneau will miss 4 to 6 weeks with an upper body injury that occurred during the January 26th match in Providence.
Up Next
The Rocket head into the All Star break on a five-game winning streak. “We’re pretty injured now. It comes at a good time. We pushed the guys hard during practices, in the gym. They worked hard during games. We had success but we pushed them hard. It’s the right time,” Vincent noted.
The team returns on Thursday, when they will travel to Toronto for a doubleheader against the Marlies (Toronto Maple Leafs) on Friday and Saturday.
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