Rocket Lineup

Anthony Richard – Alex Belzile – Xavier Simoneau

Joel Teasdale – Peter Abbandonato – Gabriel Bourque

Lucas Condotta – Mitchell Stephens – Nate Schnarr

Pierrick Dube – Anthony Beauregard – Parker-Jones

William Trudeau – Corey Schueneman

Mattias Norlinder – Eric Williams

Olivier Galipeau – Santino Centorame

Kevin Poulin – Philippe Desrosiers

Rafael Harvey-Pinard (emergency NHL recall), Rem Pitlick (emergency NHL recall)

Gianni Fairbrother (knee), Madison Bowey (upper-body), Jan Mysak (DTD), Danick Martel (DTD), Otto Leskinen, Brandon Gignac, Tory Dello, Nicolas Beaudin

Game Report

Game Report written by Chris G

The Laval Rocket began a three-game homestand on Friday by hosting the Hershey Bears. Laval was coming off a 5-2 win on Wednesday in Rochester, while Hershey defeated the Springfield Thunderbirds 6-2 on Saturday. The Bears won the previous matchup this season against the Rocket.

Jean-Francois Houle made no changes to the lineup as there are no extra healthy skaters available on the roster. Kevin Poulin started in goal for the third consecutive match. In Rochester, Poulin stopped 32 pucks and named the second star.

First Period

Laval got an early opportunity to head to the power play when Mike Sgarbossa received a double minor for high sticking Eric Williams at the 3:56 mark.

The Rocket was not able to convert on the opportunity and took only one shot on goal during the four minutes. Alex Belzile had the most dangerous opportunity when his shot from the slot hit the post.

Hershey also had a good scoring chance during the penalty kill after Connor McMichael stripped the puck away from William Trudeau and headed on a breakaway. Poulin made the big stop to keep it scoreless.

Later in the period, the Bears had a two-man advantage for 39 seconds when Xavier Simoneau and Gabriel Bourque were in the box respectively for slashing and delay of game. Hershey needed 12 seconds of five-on-three to open the scoring when Joe Snively beat Poulin with a one-timer from the faceoff circle.

The Bears doubled their lead with six remaining when Sgarbossa’s blocker side shot went past Poulin.

Second Period

It was an uneventful start to the period until the sixth minute when John Parker-Jones and Dylan Mcllrath dropped the gloves at the centre ice. The fight gave energy to the fans and the home team.

Laval outshot their opponents 7-2 over the next four minutes in addition to Mitchell Stephens and Pierrick Dube hitting posts with their shot attempts.

The Rocket’s momentum led to Hershey getting into penalty trouble. Beck Malenstyn and Lucas Johansen received minor penalties 43 seconds apart to give Laval a two-man advantage.

The power play delivered with a pair of goals. First, Joel Teasdale tipped ‘s point shot behind Zach Fucale for the goal. Thirty seconds later, Richard took another shot from the blue line and once again Teasdale redirected the shot behind the red line.

The Rocket dominated the frame outshooting the Bears 22 to 6, including a sequence of over 10 minutes without allowing a shot on goal to Hershey.

Third Period

Hershey’s indiscipline continued into the third period as Malestyn and Aaron Ness received consecutive penalties.

Laval took two shots during the four minute sequence and they were both dangerous opportunities as Teasdale and Pierrick Dube were both stopped point blank from Fucale.

Belzile had an opportunity to give the lead to the home team, but once again Fucale made a key save.

Overtime was needed to determine a winner, and Hershey nearly ended it 40 seconds after puck drop when Mike Vecchione went on a breakaway and Poulin made the key save. The Bears dominated the extra frame until Vecchione took a penalty behind the play at the 3:18 mark.

The power play unit needed 35 seconds to convert when Peter Abbandonato took a shot that was redirected by Teasdale before beating Fucale.

What’s Next?

Laval’s 3-2 win extended the win streak to three games. With three power play goals, Teasdale recorded his second career hat trick in the AHL. The players credited Parker-Jones’ fight as the turning point of this contest.

After defeating the conference leading Bears, the Rocket host the division leading Toronto Marlies on Saturday at 3:00pm Eastern time.

Be sure to scroll down for audio clips from tonight’s post-game media interviews with Richard, Teasdale, Abbandonato, Trudeau and Houle, conducted by the AHL Report and other members of the press.

Plus / Minus

▲ Joel Teasdale, Mattias Norlinder, Lucas Condotta, William Trudeau, Anthony Richard

▼ Gabriel Bourque, Xavier Simoneau