The week started off well for Laval with a win against the top team in the AHL but the momentum was quickly subsided with a pair of disappointing losses to Toronto.
The Week That Was
February 21: Laval 3, Hershey 2 (SO) – The Rocket got off to a strong start in this one, scoring twice while holding the Bears to just three shots in the opening period. But Hershey is atop the AHL standings for a reason and they pushed back, eventually tying the game early in the third. It eventually went to the shootout where Logan Mailloux was the hero, scoring the only goal in the third and final round.
February 23: Toronto 4, Laval 1 – Calling this a chippy game would be an understatement. It’s not that there were a bunch of fights – there weren’t any – but there were 25 minor penalties assessed, leading to 14 power plays. Nine of those went to the Rocket but they only managed one goal on those opportunities on Joseph Woll. The Marlies, meanwhile, converted on three of their five opportunities with the man advantage which was clearly the difference in this one.
February 24: Toronto 5, Laval 1 – After a tough loss the night before, it would have been logical to hope, if not expect, the Rocket to come out with a renewed effort. It didn’t happen. Through two periods, the Marlies were the better team by a significant margin and while Laval woke up in the third, it was too little, too late as they lost some important ground to their rivals in the standings.
StatPack
Skaters:
| # | Player | GP | G | A | +/- | SOG | PIMS |
| 4 | Tobie Bisson | 3 | 0 | 0 | -2 | 3 | 6 |
| 7 | Chris Jandric | 3 | 0 | 0 | E | 1 | 6 |
| 12 | Filip Cederqvist | 2 | 0 | 0 | -1 | 1 | 0 |
| 14 | Jan Mysak | 1 | 0 | 1 | E | 2 | 0 |
| 15 | Sean Farrell | 2 | 0 | 0 | -1 | 2 | 0 |
| 17 | Nathan Legare | 2 | 0 | 0 | -1 | 3 | 6 |
| 19 | Emil Heineman | 3 | 0 | 0 | E | 6 | 0 |
| 21 | Riley Kidney | 3 | 0 | 0 | -1 | 5 | 2 |
| 24 | Logan Mailloux | 3 | 0 | 0 | -1 | 7 | 0 |
| 27 | Mitchell Stephens | 3 | 0 | 0 | E | 8 | 0 |
| 28 | Lias Andersson | 3 | 1 | 1 | -1 | 5 | 0 |
| 37 | Brandon Gignac | 2 | 0 | 0 | -3 | 4 | 0 |
| 42 | Lucas Condotta | 3 | 0 | 0 | -1 | 4 | 2 |
| 43 | Alex-Olivier Voyer | 1 | 0 | 0 | E | 0 | 0 |
| 44 | Olivier Galipeau | 3 | 0 | 0 | +1 | 3 | 4 |
| 49 | Jared Davidson | 3 | 1 | 0 | -1 | 8 | 4 |
| 52 | Justin Barron | 3 | 0 | 1 | -1 | 8 | 2 |
| 61 | Philippe Maillet | 3 | 2 | 0 | E | 5 | 0 |
| 68 | Riley McKay | 2 | 0 | 0 | -1 | 4 | 0 |
| 81 | Xavier Simoneau | 3 | 0 | 0 | E | 8 | 6 |
| 84 | William Trudeau | 3 | 0 | 0 | -2 | 3 | 2 |
Goalies:
| # | Player | Record | GAA | SV% | SO |
| 71 | Jakub Dobes | 1-1-0 | 2.32 | .910 | 0 |
| 73 | Kasimir Kaskisuo | 0-1-0 | 8.32 | .826 | 0 |
Shootout – Skaters:
| # | Player | G/ATT |
| 19 | Emil Heineman | 0/1 |
| 24 | Logan Mailloux | 1/1 |
| 61 | Philippe Maillet | 0/1 |
Shootout – Goalies:
| # | Player | SVS/SF |
| 71 | Jakub Dobes | 3/3 |
Team Leaders:
Goals: Andersson/Gignac (14)
Assists: Brandon Gignac (28)
Points: Brandon Gignac (42)
+/-: Tobie Paquette-Bisson (+13)
PIMS: Riley McKay (103)
Shots: Joshua Roy (125)
News and Notes
– There was some good news on the injury front as Sean Farrell returned after missing more than six weeks. Meanwhile, Jan Mysak was also able to return for the final game of the week after an upper-body injury that looked a lot like a concussion.
– Strauss Mann was sent down to ECHL Trois-Rivieres but it was a pretty short stint as he has already since been recalled. Meanwhile, winger Alex-Olivier Voyer was also sent down to the Lions.
– Lucas Condotta isn’t expected to be a top-line player in Laval but he’s in a bigger slump than they’d like; he has just one goal since mid-December, spanning 24 games.
Last Game’s Lines:
Simoneau – Maillet – Heineman
Davidson – Gignac – Farrell
Condotta – Stephens – Andersson
Kidney – Mysak – Cederqvist
Paquette-Bisson – Mailloux
Trudeau – Barron
Jandric – Galipeau
The Week Ahead
Wednesday: at Bridgeport – The Islanders are still at the bottom of the AHL standings although that didn’t matter earlier this month when Bridgeport picked up the victory in their first head-to-head matchup. They’re the lowest-scoring team in the league by a considerable margin so this one falls into must-win territory if Laval wants to stay within striking distance of a playoff spot.
Friday: at Hartford – Laval has had some success in the season series with two of three victories so far despite the Wolf Pack being one of the stingier defensive teams in the East. Former Hab Alex Belzile is now their leading point-getter but he is up with the Rangers as their 13th forward so he might not play against his former team. Hartford has two of the top ten rookie scorers in the league in Brennan Othmann and Brett Berard, the last of which is tied with Logan Mailloux for points.
Saturday: at Springfield – The Thunderbirds are in the same situation as Laval, sitting just outside the second and final play-in spot. They’re an older team with their top scorers being veterans Adam Gaudette and former Hab Matthew Peca. Notably, they’ll be without another veteran in Jakub Vrana for this one as he’ll be serving the final game of his suspension.
Final Thought
The return of Sean Farrell to the lineup is a welcome one on a couple of fronts. The first is that Laval getting any sort of offensive-minded player back in their lineup is a good thing as they look to claw their way back into the playoff race. With Joshua Roy up with the big club, there’s an opening for him to play a big role.
The second is from Farrell’s perspective. It feels like his stock in the organization has dipped this season. This time a year ago, there was a lot of enthusiasm when he was coming out of college. Now, in some corners, it feels like he’s more of an afterthought. Missing more than half the season due to injuries will tend to do that. But Farrell is still a quality prospect as he was a year ago. Staying healthy and being a key contributor down the stretch (and possibly into a playoff spot) would keep his name at the forefront for management discussions leading into next year when even more youngsters will be in the mix. He’s talented enough to do just that, now let’s see if he’s able to do it.