Joshua Roy recorded a hat trick and the Laval Rocket beat the Providence Bruins 6-3 on Saturday afternoon at Place Bell.
It was a second victory against the Bruins in less than 24 hours for Pascal Vincent’s men, after triumphing 2-1 the day before.
This time, the Rocket (8-1-0) offered a slightly more complete performance, establishing a team record in the process thanks to a seventh consecutive victory.
In a very robust confrontation, Vincent Arseneau, Logan Mailloux and Laurent Dauphin also moved the ropes for the Laval residents. Mailloux added three assists for the winners.
Connor Hughes didn’t need to stand out like he did Friday night, but he still made a few key saves among his 27 during the game.
Tyler Pitlick, Riley Tufte and Vinni Lettieri responded for the Bruins (3-6-0), who suffered a second straight defeat and who have lost all three duels against the Laval team so far this season.
Brandon Bussi gained the trust of head coach Ryan Mougenel for this second game and he blocked 16 pucks.
The Rocket, who will not return to action until next weekend, were still without the services of goalkeeper Jakub Dobes and striker Alex Barré-Boulet. Injured on Friday, Jared Davidson was also missing.
The attack explodes
After Friday’s match, Vincent asked for a little more discipline from his men, but the message was not immediately understood.
While Laurent Dauphin was sitting on the bench, the Bruins set up their attack in Laval territory. The Rocket, however, was very effective in cutting off the passing lanes and allowing Hughes to work efficiently.
The visitors were nevertheless the first to register, halfway through the start. Patrick Brown won the faceoff and the puck went onto the blade of Frédéric Brunet’s stick. His low shot was deftly deflected by Tufte, who was heading past.
Providence then came within inches of doubling their lead, but Billy Sweezey’s point shot hit the post to Hughes’ right.
If luck didn’t work in favor of the Bruins, it surely helped Arseneau’s cause, with only 50 seconds remaining. His cross pass hit Brunet’s right skate before slipping behind Bussi, who had made his move.
Both teams started to study each other again in the second period, but this time it was the Rocket who struck first. Following a sustained presence, and the work of the tireless Xavier Simoneau, Mailloux accepted a pass from Tyler Wotherspoon and beat Bussi with a low shot.
However, Laval’s momentum was slowed less than two minutes later. Pitlick overwhelmed defenseman William Trudeau and cut to the net. Mailloux did not extend the stick and the former Habs deceived Hughes’ vigilance.
The yo-yo game continued just 95 seconds later. The pressure applied by Riley Kidney allowed Brandon Gignac to spot Roy alone in the slot for his fifth goal of the campaign.
Roy did it again on the power play a few minutes later. He took advantage of the screen from his captain, Lucas Condotta, to place the disc in the left corner and give his team a 4-2 lead.
The Rocket managed to protect their two-goal lead for the majority of the third period, but the Bruins added some spice in the final minutes. The visitors were able to work with a little more ease due to Roy’s broken stick. Lettieri took the opportunity to beat Hughes on the stick side.
Dauphin, however, gave his team two goals back 76 seconds later, following a brilliant pass from Owen Beck. Roy drove the last nail into an empty net.
