A victory that feels good for the Rocket

The Rocket just signed a nice victory of 6-2 this afternoon, largely thanks to a burst of five unanswered goals in the third period and a five-point performance, including three goals, from Florian Xhekaj.

3 buts, 2 passes, la première étoile!

3 goals, 2 assists, the first star!

FLORIAN XHEKAJ#GoRocket pic.twitter.com/llQ86LG9KB

— Rocket de Laval (@RocketLaval) December 15, 2024

However, the team has only four victories since November 20, with a record of 4-6-2 over the last 12 games.

Thus, after a historic start of 12 victories in 14 games (12-2-0), the Laval Rocket is experiencing its first slump of the season.

Le Rocket de Laval n’a plus que 5 points de priorité sur une place en séries malgré un départ fracassant à sa saison. La troupe de Pascal Vincent traverse une période creuse et a subi la défaite dans 8 de ses 11 derniers matchs. Ça reprend cet après-midi à Bridgeport.

— Anthony Marcotte (@anthonymarcotte) December 15, 2024

Although the Rocket has lost several close games (none of their defeats were by more than two goals), the team seems to have difficulty winning regularly in recent weeks.

During this period, the AHL team has recorded a performance of 34 goals scored against 39 goals allowed, for a differential of -5.

This is not dramatic, but there is notably a decline in the team’s defensive performance as the goaltending duo is less dominant.

In their first 14 games, the Rocket allowed only 31 goals for an excellent average of 2.21 goals allowed per game. In the last twelve games, the team’s average is 3.35.

This is more than one goal allowed per game, which partly explains the recent drop in form.

However, with this poor streak, Laval is quickly dropping in the standings, sitting in third place in the northern division after having been at the top since the start of the season.

Moreover, the team has only five points of advantage to secure a playoff spot.

Back to normal or a bad streak? Hard to say, but the Rocket will need to quickly bounce back and win more often if it does not want to see its chances of participating in the Calder Cup playoffs melt away like snow in the sun.

For now, I do not believe that the Rocket’s coach, Pascal Vincent, should press the panic button while his team is still well positioned in the standings with seven games above .500.

Therefore, if the Laval players can maintain a performance of at least .500 until the end of the campaign, they should be well positioned to play spring hockey.

However, the Rocket should not experience too many stretches like the current one, especially since several of the teams behind them have multiple games in hand.

By the way, Laval was able to count on reinforcements as Noel Hofenmayer, acquired by the Canadiens earlier this week for Jacob Perreault, made his debut with the team today.

Premier match pour Hoefenmayer
First game for Hof! #GoRocket pic.twitter.com/3iFbVRzzFS

— Rocket de Laval (@RocketLaval) December 15, 2024

In Brief
– It’s going to cost a lot for Vlad!

Une question à beaucoup plus de 100$… (@BlueJays) https://t.co/unB5Z695W5

— Benoît Rioux – Journal de Montréal (@benrioux) December 15, 2024

– Another victory for the Chiefs.

FINAL: @Chiefs improve to 13-1! #KCvsCLE pic.twitter.com/3fLHPGMr6L

— NFL (@NFL) December 15, 2024

– The Ravens too strong for the Giants.

FINAL: Lamar throws 5 TDs in a big Ravens Week 15 win. #BALvsNYG pic.twitter.com/Vr9Z2gIBnI

— NFL (@NFL) December 15, 2024

– Ninth victory for the Texans.