How the Rocket avoided the humiliation of a 10-game losing streak

Posted On: December 13, 2023

LAVAL | The Rocket hit a slump with a losing streak that ended with a win over the Hartford Wolf Pack on Saturday. And it had to stop here.

• Also read: Dobes had his best weekend

“We were heading for the tenth defeat in a row, we talked about it among ourselves and we didn’t want to go there because it is a point that really hurts,” admitted Tobie Paquette-Bisson after the team’s training on Monday in Place Glocke .

What’s particularly interesting about this 5-1 win over the Wolf Pack, one of the best teams in the American League, is that the team only allowed 26 shots, which is usually too many shots.

“We played well defensively, we lost a few fewer balls and therefore took fewer shots. Our goalkeeper made fewer rebounds, which also contributes to him taking fewer shots. It is also the game in which we blocked the most shots,” summarized head coach Jean-François Houle.

Do it better

During this nine-game losing streak, the team still lost twice in overtime and twice in penalty shootouts. This means that she scored points, but more importantly, that she was in the game.

“We don’t want to be satisfied with just one point, we want to have a winning mentality and not give anything away to the other team,” emphasized goalkeeper Jakub Dobes.

It also seems that morale remained high despite this seemingly endless sequence.

“We always kept a good attitude even when we lost,” assured Tobie Paquette-Bisson, who would have liked to play faster.

The Rocket won’t return to action until Friday when they visit the Lehigh Valley Phantoms.

Unacceptable

The low point of this dark period came on Wednesday with a 5-2 loss to the Belleville Senators, in which the Rocket had their worst game of the season, at home no less.

“Our players knew that what we showed in front of our fans on Wednesday was unacceptable. “They showed on Friday and Saturday that they are capable of playing good hockey,” emphasized Houle.

“We now have to show a certain amount of consistency so that we don’t play yo-yo. Consistency is the hardest thing in the American League when it comes to roster changes.”

The youth of the team also makes it difficult to maintain consistency.

“We have young players, so sometimes the defense is a little superior,” admits Paquette-Bisson. With the development coaches, we have been focusing on playing well defensively since the beginning of the year.”