Rocket Lineup

Rafael Harvey-Pinard – Alex Belzile – Rem Pitlick

Lucas Condotta – Mitchell Stephens – Jesse Ylonen

Joel Teasdale – Peter Abbandonato – Gabriel Bourque

Pierrick Dube – Anthony Beauregard – John Parker-Jones

William Trudeau – Corey Schueneman

Mattias Norlinder – Tory Dello

Olivier Galipeau – Santino Centorame

Kevin Poulin – Joe Vrbetic

N/A

Gianni Fairbrother (knee), Nate Schnarr (lower-body), Cayden Primeau (upper-body), Madison Bowey (upper-body), Jan Mysak (DTD), Danick Martel (DTD), Xavier Simoneau (upper-body), Otto Leskinen, Brandon Gignac

Game Report

Game Report written by Chris G

The Laval Rocket resumed their four-game homestand on Friday night by hosting the Syracuse Crunch. The visitors were looking for revenge of Wednesday’s 6-3 loss at Place Bell.

There was no changes to Laval’s lineup as the team currently has no extra players on the roster.

Kevin Poulin obtained the start in goal for the third consecutive game. On Wednesday, he made 29 saves in Laval’s win.

First Period

Laval obtained the first power play of the game, but failed to get any shots on goal during the minor penalty.

Midway through the period, the Crunch opened the scoring in an unusual manner. Declan Carlile took a blast from the top of the faceoff circle that was initially called that the puck hit the crossbar. The play continued and at the next stoppage, Syracuse requested the officials to review the sequence. After consulting the replay, the referees awarded the goal to Carlile.

To add to the complexity of the situation, Syracuse received an interference minor between the eventual goal and the review. Laval did not manage to get a shot on goal during the power play again.

The physicality from Wednesday appeared to carry over to the rematch. After having a discussion during warmups at centre ice, John Parker-Jones and P.C. Labrie dropped the gloves.

Laval finished the period with their third power play. Corey Schueneman took a pair of shots on Jack Lafontaine before the buzzer.

Second Period

Laval got on the board during the second minute of the period when Rafael Harvey-Pinard from right outside the crease beat Lafontaine glove side.

Joel Teasdale‘s hot streak continued midway through the period when the forward went around defenceman Jack Thompson and scored glove side. Teasdale has scored his five goals in the last six games.

In the final minute of the period, Teasdale nearly increased his production as he was part of a three-on-one rush, that ultimately did not result in a shot on goal.

The Rocket ended the period shorthanded as Schueneman was called for cross checking with one second remaining.

Third Period

Syracuse got indisciplined in the third period and Laval jumped on the opportunity.

While the Crunch was already on the penalty kill, Gabriel Fortier received a five-minute major and a game misconduct for boarding Harvey-Pinard.

Laval scored two power play goals during the five-minute power play. First, Rem Pitlick beat LaFontaine glove side to make it 3-1. On the sequence, Mattias Norlinder snapped his 16-game pointless drought with an assist.

The Crunch were frustrated with how the period was playing out. Alex Barre-Boulet and Philippe Myers both received a 10-minute misconduct within 1:49 for their words towards the officials.

Alex Belzile added a second power play goal after being setup by Jesse Ylonen for a one-timer from the faceoff circle.

Syracuse pulled their goalie with 5:05 remaining when Teasdale was called for hooking. Laval’s penalty kill unit made several blocks to prevent any pucks to get through on goal.

Poulin brought the 8,787 fans in Place Bell to their feet when he attempted to score in the opponent’s empty net. His shot landed right outside the trapezoid.

Olivier Galipeau sealed the victory with an empty goal in the final minute of play.

What’s Next?

Laval’s 5-1 victory was their eighth consecutive win at home against Syracuse. The Crunch’s last win in Laval was on Mar. 14th, 2019.

Tory Dello left the game during the second period with a lower body injury. He will be further evaluated by the team’s doctors.

Laval continues the homestand on Wednesday when hosting the Manitoba Moose at 7:00 pm Eastern.

Be sure to scroll down for audio clips from tonight’s post-game media interviews with Pitlick, Schueneman, Harvey-Pinard, and Houle, conducted by the AHL Report and other members of the press.

Plus / Minus

▲ Kevin Poulin, Corey Schueneman, Joel Teasdale, Mitchell Stephens, Rem Pitlick, Olivier Galipeau, William Trudeau

▼ Anthony Beauregard