Head coach Pascal Vincent recognizes this; the Laval Rocket has just concluded a rather light segment of its calendar. A segment that the Laval team completed with one of the best records in the American Hockey League.
Between October 11 and November 2, the Rocket played nine games, including six at home, all of which they won. Also, he only had to go through one sequence of three games in four evenings – all played at home, moreover – last week.
Above all, the team has a record of eight wins and only one loss and has just won its last seven meetings, an organization record since its transfer to Laval in 2017.
To what extent did this schedule contribute to the Rocket’s brilliant start to the season? Vincent hesitates to establish a direct link between the two. However, he admits that this first segment was beneficial to the Rocket in at least one way.
“Certainly, the schedule was favorable to us, because it allowed us to practice and establish our standards, our systems and to really do a lot of video,” said Vincent after his players’ training session Wednesday at Place Bell.
“There was a lot of teaching during those early weeks. Individual meetings, team meetings. It allowed us to establish a good foundation, there is no doubt,” he also corroborated.
It’s a point of view shared by defenseman Tyler Wotherspoon, who joined the Rocket over the summer as a free agent after three seasons with the Utica Comets.
“8 For me, personally, arriving with a new team and in a new system, it helps to take advantage of a lighter schedule. You have more time to practice, more time to work on the different systems. I think it also helps the younger ones who are trying to familiarize themselves with the league,” he stressed.
The month of October also seems to have allowed the Rocket players to get to know each other a little better, including their immediate families. It was all the more important as the Laval team has around ten new members compared to the end of the last season.
“We managed to mix work and a little bit of fun with it, given that we often had four full days before a game,” said forward Brandon Gignac.
“Pascal organized a dinner to which he invited the women and everyone, at the very beginning of the year,” he confided. He wanted us to be united, to form a family. I found it super brilliant. We bonded at the start of the year and afterwards, it shows on the ice how close we are. »
However, in the American Hockey League, there are two unavoidable realities. First, there are the frequent and sometimes long bus rides. Then there is the condensed calendar, a phenomenon often linked to the other reality. Over the coming weeks, Rocket players will experience these realities intensely.
It will all start this weekend when the Laval team will visit the Belleville Senators, its biggest rivals in the American League, Friday and Saturday.
There will follow, between now and December 7, four consecutive weeks where the Rocket will play three matches in four days. And of these 12 meetings, only four will be presented at Place Bell.
In short, a lot of bus trips await the Rocket players and, quite possibly, a few rounds of card games.
“Of course it’s not a plane and it’s a little longer, but we’re used to that. It’s made our life. It still goes by quite quickly,” mentioned Gignac, smiling.
“It’s more about coming back, when we come home at 3 or 4 in the morning. It’s a little more difficult to recover, especially since we, in Laval, don’t have other clubs nearby, like, for example, Syracuse and Utica, which are an hour’s drive away. It’s different. It affects the body, but we are used to it and we try to recover well. »
For the unity of the team, going on the road, being with the guys and on the bus is beneficial, continued Wotherspoon.
“It’s a great opportunity to share meals and get to know each other a little more. It’s a little more family-friendly and it’s even more pleasant when the team is successful,” added the veteran defender.
Vincent knows very well what awaits his team over the coming weeks, and he sees everything very favorably.
“Our first two games (of the season) were on the road, and I thought it was perfect. These moments that you can recreate by doing team activities, they happen by themselves, just on these trips,” he emphasized.
“There, I think (the next sequence) comes at a time when we need to go on the road and be together. It’s always good to come together. This is the fun to be successful at home. Now that we have done it, we will be the whole team together to continue to strengthen ties,” he summarized.
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