Kaapo Kähkönen stopped all 31 shots he faced, and the Laval Rocket scored three times in 2:39 in the third period to beat the Syracuse Crunch 5-0 on Wednesday night at Upstate Medical University Arena. It is the Rocket’s third straight win, and it moves them to 11-3-1.
A Scoreless First Period
Neither team scored in the first, and Syracuse had the better of the shots, 13-9. Kähkönen stopped all 13, with Dyllan Gill and Dominic James doing most of the shooting for the Crunch. Laval had two power plays, after Tommy Miller’s delay-of-game penalty at 6:13 and Cooper Flinton’s hooking penalty at 13:30, and could not score on either. Mads Søgaard stopped all nine shots he faced for Syracuse.
Thorpe and Poulin Strike 68 Seconds Apart
Laval killed the penalty to Tyler Thorpe that carried over from the end of the first, and then Thorpe made up for it. At 9:20 of the second he released a great wrist shot to open the scoring, his first goal of the season, with assists to Xavier Simoneau and Braden Haché. It turned out to be the game winner.
It took 68 seconds to make it 2-0. At 10:26, David Reinbacher put a shot on Søgaard, and two seconds later Samuel Poulin took the rebound and scored his third of the season at 10:28. Luke Mittelstadt had the second assist, his 14th of the year.
Kähkönen Shuts the Door
Kähkönen made 13 saves in the first period, eight in the second and 10 in the third for the shutout. His biggest test came late in the second, when penalties to Jared Davidson (tripping, 14:48) and Brett Berard (hooking, 15:43) gave Syracuse about 65 seconds of 5-on-3. The Crunch got a shot from Nick Abruzzese at 15:57 and more chances after that, and Kähkönen stopped them all. Syracuse finished 0 for 3 on the power play. The Rocket skated well all night and Kähkönen made the saves when Syracuse pushed.
Three Goals in 2:39 in the Third
Laval went to the power play early in the third after a tripping penalty to Dylan Duke and did not score, and the game turned physical at 4:57 when Alex Belzile and Clark Bishop dropped the gloves. Thirty-two seconds later, Josh Nadeau made it 3-0 at 5:29, with assists to Dillan Bentley and Berard.
Sasha Pastujov scored his seventh of the season at 7:03 for a 4-0 lead, with assists to Haché and Hunter McKown. At 8:08 Berard finished it off, also his seventh, with assists to Nadeau and Owen Protz. That ended Søgaard’s night after 17 saves on 22 shots, and Olivier Rodrigue stopped the only shot he faced. The Rocket scored three goals on seven third-period shots.
Syracuse kept pushing and outshot Laval 10-7 in the third, but Kähkönen did not give up anything. Laval was 0 for 4 on the power play, including a late chance after Shawn Element’s roughing penalty, and the game ended with a scrum and four coincident minors at 18:43. The Crunch fall to 5-6-2.
The Numbers
| Team | Shots by period | Total | Power play | Penalty minutes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Laval Rocket | 9 – 7 – 7 | 23 | 0 for 4 | 15 |
| Syracuse Crunch | 13 – 8 – 10 | 31 | 0 for 3 | 17 |
Syracuse outshot Laval 31-23 and still lost 5-0. Kähkönen stopped 31 of 31, while Søgaard and Rodrigue combined to stop 18 of 23.
Who Stood Out
Kähkönen was the first star with a 31-save shutout. Nadeau was the second star with a goal, an assist and three shots, and Berard was the third star with a goal and an assist. Haché had two assists, Poulin led the Rocket with four shots and a goal, and Mittelstadt now has 19 points, 5 goals and 14 assists, to lead the team.
Rocket Next: Two Straight at Rochester
The Rocket are first in the North Division at 11-3-1 with 23 points in 15 games (.767). Utica is second with 20 points in 12 games, so Laval leads by three points but has played three more games. Laval has scored 58 goals, the most in the division, and allowed 30.
The Rocket have a back-to-back this weekend, and both games are in Rochester: Friday, November 13 at 7:05 p.m. ET and Saturday, November 14 at 5:05 p.m. ET. Rochester is 7-5-0-1 in 13 games and sits fifth in the North Division.
Sources: official AHL game data.
Get the HABSHQ Newsletter in Your Inbox
Every Monday, the HABSHQ newsletter brings you the full Canadiens, Rocket, Lions and prospects report, our takes, the stats of the week and the preview of the week ahead, straight to your inbox. It is free.
Get the Habs week in your inbox
Free weekly newsletter from HABSHQ.
Leave a Reply