The Laval Rocket will head back to Toronto with a bitter taste after a costly collapse in Game 2 of their series on Friday night.
Pascal Vincent’s squad squandered a two-goal lead, surrendered four power-play goals, and fell 6–2 as the series was evened at 1–1.
Vincent didn’t need a deep post-game breakdown to identify where things went off track, with Laval piling up 48 penalty minutes and handing the Marlies 10 power-play opportunities.
Laurent Dauphin led the Rocket offensively with a goal and an assist, while Joshua Roy also scored. Kaapo Kähkönen made 26 saves on 32 shots in the loss.
For Toronto, Easton Cowan powered the attack with a three-point night that included a goal. Logan Shaw, Vinni Lettieri, Luke Haymes, Cédric Paré and Noah Chadwick all scored, while William Villeneuve added three assists. Goaltender Artur Akhtyamov stopped 29 shots in his first start of the series.
Game 3 shifts to Coca-Cola Coliseum in Toronto on Sunday afternoon.
Laval opened the game with energy, generating five shots in the first six minutes and building early pressure.
That push carried into a two-man advantage, where Samuel Blais came close on multiple looks, but Akhtyamov kept the Marlies out.
Midway through the first, the Rocket struck first in unusual fashion. After a chaotic sequence in front of the net, Easton Cowan inadvertently redirected the puck into his own goal, with Dauphin credited for the opening tally.
Just over a minute later, Laval doubled its lead on the power play. Joshua Roy buried his second of the playoffs, pouncing on a loose puck behind the net and sliding it under Akhtyamov. Dauphin and Luke Mittelstadt picked up assists.
Toronto answered quickly. Less than a minute later, Vinni Lettieri set up Logan Shaw, who drove the net and lifted a shot over Kähkönen to cut the deficit in half.
The middle frame belonged to Toronto’s power play, as Laval repeatedly put itself in difficult situations.
At 5:35, Lettieri tied the game with a heavy one-timer from the man advantage.
The Marlies then took control late in the period, again capitalizing on the power play. Luke Haymes finished a feed from Ryan Tverberg in the slot to give Toronto a 3–2 lead with under two minutes remaining in the second.
The Marlies carried their momentum into the third period and struck quickly. Just one minute in, Cowan took the puck in his own zone, weaved through the Laval defense and finished with a backhand to extend the lead.
From there, Toronto managed the game comfortably.
Cédric Paré added an empty-net goal at 3:59 to push the lead further, and Noah Chadwick capped the scoring on a two-man advantage as the game slipped out of reach for Laval.
After a strong start in Game 2, Laval was ultimately undone by penalties and Toronto’s power-play efficiency.
The series now heads to Game 3 on Sunday at Coca-Cola Coliseum, with both teams locked at one win apiece.
