Jacob Fowler earns first career AHL shutout

You can see Jacob Fowler getting his second straight start.

Nice gesture of confidence from Vincent on his young protégé.

The Rocket started the game like a lion, setting the tone quickly.

With just over two minutes left in the game, Jared Davidson scored directly after Florian Xhekaj won the face-off.

Well, it wasn’t as powerful as Ovechkin’s shot on the face-off, but it had good velocity all the same.

The first period really went Laval’s way.

After 20 minutes, the shots were 11-6 in favor of the Rocket.

Fowler wasn’t tested much, but he held down the fort.

The Monsters had only one real chance to score, which obviously came from little Trey Fix-Wolansky.

For once, it wasn’t the first trio that stood out for the Rocket, but the 4th trio of Xhekaj, Davidson and Luke Tuch. A line I like, by the way.

Once again, the second period went in Laval’s favor.

Cleveland was limited to six short shots, just like in the first 20 minutes, while the Rocket recorded nine.

In this period, captain Lucas Condotta doubled his team’s lead with a precise shot:

Rafaël Harvey-Pinard and Xavier Simoneau were credited with an assist.

After 40 minutes of play, the score was 2-0 for Pascal Vincent’s team.

After five playoff periods against Cleveland, Laval has yet to be beaten five-on-five, which is pretty impressive.

Cleveland simply wasn’t in the game in Game #2.

Laval completely outclassed the Columbus Blue Jackets’ club team.

With just over 13 minutes left in the game, Quebec’s Alex Barré-Boulet scored his first goal of the playoffs.

Sean Farrell picked up his 3rd point of the series, while Laurent Dauphin was also credited with an assist.

And finally, Gustav Lindstrom nailed the coffin with a goal.

Dauphin and ABB each collected an assist on the goal.

The Rocket held the fort for the rest of the game and were able to shutout, thanks to Fowler’s fine work (19 saves).

The Rocket dominated the shots and gave their opponents no chance.

With this victory, the Rocket took a 2-0 lead in the series and will play the remainder of the series in Laval.

The next game is Sunday at 3:00 p.m.

Extensions

– Florian Xhekaj is indispensable to the Rocket, especially in the series. I don’t need to tell you that he doesn’t hesitate to hand out body checks, but his physical presence and versatility give the Rocket plenty of chances. And to think he’s a pro rookie who played mostly on the fourth line.

– Once again, Laval’s defensive brigade was solid, limiting the Monsters’ scoring chances.