The Belleville Senators defeated the Laval Rocket 3-2 on Friday night, punching their ticket to the Calder Cup.
Wyatt Bongiovanni and Egor Sokolov scored for the Sens
The Senators weren’t able to score in the first period, despite a pair of power plays, but the Rocket were able to find the back of the net, taking a slim lead into the next period.
During the second, the Rocket would grab their second goal of the night, and Belleville would come back with their first, keeping the Rocket’s lead razor thin as the teams moved into the third period.
In the third period, the Sens struck back with a late goal to tie the game, and a final game-winner with less than a minute left on the clock, sinking Laval’s playoff hopes while sending the Senators to the Calder Cup.
Belleville Sens head coach Dave Bell was proud of the team earning their playoff spot, and put focus on the contribution of Egor Sokolov to the team’s win.
“Obviously, our power play sputtered. We had some looks early, but didn’t capitalize and I was getting a bit worried,” said Coach Bell. “I think after the first, we kind of got our legs, managed the puck better, went north a bit more, then took over. Then a huge goal by our leading ‘everything guy’ who steps up and gets a big goal.”
The Senators are back in action at Place Bell facing the Rockets one more time on Saturday.