The Laval Rocket saw their playoff run come to an end Saturday afternoon after surrendering two third-period goals in a 3-2 loss to the Toronto Marlies in the deciding game of their North Division semifinal series.
Owen Beck provided all of Laval’s offence with a pair of goals, while Samuel Blais added two assists in front of a disappointed crowd at Place Bell.
The Rocket carried leads of 1-0 and 2-1 but were unable to hold off a persistent Toronto comeback. Reese Johnson tied the game early in the third period before Vinni Lettieri scored the winner moments later to send the Marlies to the North Division Final against the Cleveland Monsters.
Blake Smith also scored for Toronto, while goaltender Artur Akhtyamov stopped 20 of 22 shots.
Kaapo Kähkönen made 16 saves for Laval in defeat.
Facing elimination, Laval opened the game with urgency and nearly grabbed an early lead when Joshua Roy drove around the net on an individual effort, only to be denied by Akhtyamov.
The pressure eventually paid off midway through the opening period.
After Samuel Blais created space on the rush, Beck stepped into a clean shooting lane and wired a shot past Akhtyamov’s glove to give the Rocket a 1-0 lead.
The remainder of the first period featured a physical edge, with both teams exchanging penalties as tensions rose in the decisive contest.
Toronto pushed back early in the second while Laval successfully killed off two penalties in a five-minute span.
The Marlies finally broke through with less than six minutes remaining in the period when Smith blasted a shot through traffic that beat Kähkönen to tie the game 1-1.
Laval answered almost immediately.
Just 51 seconds later, Beck restored the Rocket lead on the power play. Taking a pass from Laurent Dauphin on the zone entry, Beck drove into the slot and slipped a shot under Akhtyamov’s right arm for his second goal of the afternoon.
Blais earned his second assist on the play as Laval carried a 2-1 advantage into the second intermission.
Toronto refused to fade in the final period.
Marc Johnstone won a battle behind the net before finding Johnson alone in the slot, where he beat Kähkönen to even the score early in the third.
Moments later, the Rocket narrowly avoided falling behind when Sean Farrell swatted away a dangerous chance after Jacob Quillan maneuvered around Kähkönen.
The reprieve was brief.
Following a faceoff win by Logan Shaw, William Villeneuve moved the puck to Lettieri, who blasted a slap shot past Kähkönen to give Toronto its first lead of the game.
Laval had more than nine minutes remaining to respond but struggled to generate sustained pressure or quality scoring opportunities as the Marlies closed out the victory.
Rocket head coach Pascal Vincent made one lineup change for the elimination game, inserting defenceman Aiden Dubinsky in place of the injured David Reinbacher.
The loss ends Laval’s postseason run in the second round after the club battled through a tightly contested series against Toronto.
