Laval Rocket: Laval Rocket at Hartford Wolf Pack 6:00 pm
- Thread starter montreal
- Start date
Fire the coach. Why is garbage Barre-Boulet and Dauphin on the PP?
Condotta beats up a guy for making a clean check. Good job.
Condotta beats up a guy for making a clean check. Good job.
They're having a bad stretch.
People we're gushing about the same team the first 10 games.
montreal
Go Habs Go
ChesterNimitz
governed by the principle of calculated risk
- Jul 4, 2002
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Laval played a good game and deserved a far better fate as they dominated Hartford for extended periods of time. While Laval showed that it has a more skillful and dynamic team, the game came down to special teams where Laval went 0 for 7 on the power play and Hartford had two power play goals.
Here is my quick assessment of the play of our prospects.
Beck had a good game, but wasn't dominant. He showcased all the aspects of his game: speed, skill, vision and a high caliber shot that make him an elite prospect. Beck hit the post with a shot that the Hartford goalie still hasn't moved on. Beck was around the net all game and could easily have had 2 or 3 goals. It was interesting to listen to the Hartford announcers who were the best announcers that I have listened to this year on FloHockey. They were effusive about Beck's skill and potential, calling him dynamic. While he didn't score tonight, Beck again showed that skill-wise, he's a notch above most players in the AHL.
Roy had a mediocre game. As usual, he had a couple of scoring chances and made a number of creative passes but he wasn't a driving offensive force tonight. Roy was invisible for large portions of the game, was weak on the boards and it was his blocked shot led to Hartford's third goal. I didn't find much intensity to his game and he wasn't much of a threat on the multiple power play chances Laval enjoyed. But his hand skills and offensive vision/creativity are unmatched on this Laval team.
Florian Xhekaj, who was invisible for the first period, began to come on strong as the game progressed as he started to show good skating with the puck and some clever play making in the offensive zone. The coaches rewarded Xhekaj's improved play by using him on the penalty kill unit. After a few games where he looked flat and a step behind the play, Xhekaj started to show a bit of life and greater involvement and impact on the flow of play. He is still very weak on face-offs.
Tuch, who had a number of strong sequences where he was forechecking with effectiveness, largely had a quiet game. He created little offensively and wasn't the physical presence that he has often been earlier this year. Tuch's offensive limitations was demonstratively shown when he was unable to execute on a clear 2 on 1 opportunity. Nevertheless, even in a 'down' game Tuch displayed enough flashes to confirm his high NHL potential.
Farrell, like several of Laval's forward prospects, showed little in the first half of the game. After being largely invisible for two periods, Farrell came alive offensively in the third period, including scoring his first goal of the season. On his goal, Farrell flashed the skating and shot that made him such a high scorer in the NCAA. Perhaps that goal, where he used his quickness to gain the time and space to use his surprisingly good release, will give him confidence going forward. After scoring, Farrell became noticeable in the third period and made several strong offensive plays. He has to get stronger to have a ghost of a chance to play in the NHL, but sometimes, a bit of confidence, goes a long, long way.
Davidson, who played on a line with Beck and Kidney, had his usual game: skating hard, hitting hard; forechecking hard, going to the net hard and shooting hard. Davidson continues to cement his growing potential as a NHL forward. The Hartford announcers rightly and repeatedly commented on Davidson's pro-style game. Davidson, who played on Laval's second power play unit, could easily have had several goals last night and nicely complemented and supported Beck's great speed. This kid is a player and future leader in Montreal and will be an excellent replacement for Gallagher's growingly exhaustive tinged play.
Kidney had another good game where he showed fearlessness and a willingness to take a hit to make a play. Kidney's growing level of play was rewarded by Laval using him on the power play where he made a number of excellent passes and showed his surprising strength on the boards to win puck battles. Kidney was persistent on the forecheck and used his speed to often be the first on loose pucks. All I can say is if Kidney gets stronger and his development continues, this kid's going to play at the next level.
Mailloux had his best game in a while and looked for once like the top notched prospect so many have and continue to regard him as. Mailloux, most importantly, showed more fluidity in his skating, displayed his great ability to make precise stretch passes, actually successfully transported the puck through three zones of the ice; made multiple plays at the offensive blue line that kept plays alive, was a constant threat in the offensive zone as he was able to get his shot through to the net, limited his defensive errors and made timely pinches that sealed off potential Hartford rushes. If Mailloux would eschew his tendency of slowing down as he approaches the offensive blue line, his game would become exponentially better.
Engstrom had his usually steady game in all three zones, where he flashed his good mobility in cutting off the ice to Hartford forwards, in transporting the puck and walking the line at the offensive blueline. As a result of the improved level of Mailloux's play, Engstrom played on Laval's second power play and was very effective in finding the open man and getting his shot through including one where he rang a shot off the goal post. Engstrom also showed unflinchingly toughness as he absorbed a number of heavy hits to make a play. As I have often said, its interesting to listen to other teams' announcers' assessment of your players/prospects. You get a much more unbiased opinion. Hartford's announcers were very high on both Mailloux and Engstrom's potential. Both had strong games last night.
Trudeau had one of his best games against Hartford last night. He skated excellently which allowed him to avoid the forecheck and support offensive rushes. Trudeau made a number of great defensive plays where he broke up dangerous Hartford rushes, made multiple good plays at the offensive blue line and was very strong on his skates and logged increased ice-time when Laval defenceman Jacobs was lost due to injuries late in the second period. Trudeau's game is starting to mature both in his performance on the ice and his discipline. Along with Kidney, I think Trudeau, is our most improved prospect.
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You do know this is the AHL, right?
Belzile is a great AHL player.
Also, exhibit 1234234 of people having knee jerks reactions.
ChesterNimitz
governed by the principle of calculated risk
- Jul 4, 2002
- 5,948
- 12,984
It's Montreal. Our dear fans are either singing or prepared to jump off the Jacques Cartier Bridge.
Don't care about great AHL players. Hughes was pretty bad in this game. And not great in his previous appearance. Need him to do well so that he can back up Montembault.
Don D
Registered User
- Oct 15, 2017
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