Ice hockey: Rouen qualifies for the final phase of CHL | Europe and World
Rouen started Rungsted (5-1) last Wednesday, but it is necessary to confirm for this second leg in order to qualify for the knockout stages of CHL. The context is different on the outside. Not that you have to fear a hostile crowd: In this “Bitcoin arena”, the atmosphere is a bit virtual… There is no doubt that the leaders of the CHL prefer the atmosphere of Île Lacroix for the final phase. We still expect to see the champions of Denmark, accustomed to this rather discreet support, display a better level. They also recovered their experienced leader, international Nichlas Hardt, injured since the start of the season and returned to the game this weekend. Rouen did not play in the meantime, as his trip to Chamonix was canceled two hours before the start due to an ice problem in the alpine rink.
The start of the match has indeed nothing to do with that of last Wednesday. Rouen is technically imprecise, sometimes causing successive pallet losses on the same action. Rungsted clearly dominates and yet it is the Dragons who open the scoring with success on a fast counterattack. Kelsey Tessier shifts Joël Caron whose shot is blocked by the defensive return of Nikolaj Rosenthal. The puck hits the back of the balustrade and Tessier pulls it back into the slot where it bounces off Loïc Lampérier’s stick or leg as it moves. The referees validate the maize after checking the video (0-1). La comes a minute later from the Danish fourth row, who had had more limited playing time than his French counterpart in the first leg: right-winger Sebastian Sørensen crosses for Daniel Madsen all alone at the far post, but his recovery hits the cross-bar !
The Danes dominate the rest of the last third against a team from Rouen who works but concedes a penalty from Andrew Johnston on a pallet recovery at the blue line. Nicholas Hardt and Fredrik Bjerrum have two good opportunities in the slot but Matija Pintaric is proving to be very solid. Rungsted is trying to put traffic in front of the Slovenian goalkeeper and is clearly more dangerous than the last week, but more effective. The record would be ideal for the men Fabrice Lhenry when entering their locker room if it had not been for these two stupid penalties conceded in the last 33 seconds: Dylan Yeo gives a cross-check behind Rozenthal’s back, then Mark Flood hangs Persson behind the cage as the siren is held back!
Rouen is therefore back on the ice 3 against 5, and it is a great sign of confidence to see Joran Reynaud appear for the start. The young center delayed by 25 seconds entering the zone, then clears the first rebound off. The puck then goes to the goalkeeper Ville Kolppanen, in no hurry, but who plays the puck outside the trapeze drawn on the ice in violation of the new international regulations! A careless mistake that annihilates the double numerical superiority of his team! We then have the feeling that everything is rolling for the Dragons tonight. In the sixth minute of play, they set up a quick counterattack. Anthony Guttig gets the better of André Pison – striker converted to defense by the suspension of Gammelgaard – and manages a backhand pass with finesse that Vincent Nesa – who previously did the hardest by passing behind defender Tim Daly – did more than to push into the empty cage (0-2).
But the incorrigible Dylan Yeo – who has accumulated unruly since the start of the Magnus League – still takes a penalty for a ping. Nesa joined him in prison for the same fault. Again at 5 against 3, the Danes do not let the opportunity pass: Morten Jensen sends a powerful slap halfway up, on the mitten side of Pintaric (1-2). Everything is restarted.
The game is one-sided, in the Rouen area. Just after the middle of the match, Fredrik Bjerrum comes to screen in front of the goalkeeper, behind the back of passive Dorion, and deflects the shot from the wrist of the blue line of Joachim Holten Møller (2-2). It was only after this goal conceded that the Rouennais returned to the attack, but being present in the perimeter. They get a little scared when the referee points to a Danish ghost before changing his mind immediately and apologizing because he has probably confused the puck with a shadow or a butt. The puck actually never came home as Pintaric barred a shot from an impossible angle and the Zebra saw that he was in possession of a defender two yards from the net.
Rouen then balances the game and even takes a very clear rise in the last minutes of the second half. A throw from Reynaud’s blue hits the crossbar. Guttig takes a good backhand shot that can give Nesa an empty goal on the rebound, but he is outstripped by the defender. David Gilbert misses the wide open target thirty seconds before the break. The reaction from the French champions was very good, but it came a bit late after wasting a two-goal lead.
Rouen is working well on the return to the ice, but possession is still returned to the Danes. As in every period, it is the Dragons who mark the first. After a duel won in the gang by Joris Bedin, Andrew Johnston’s cross was deflected by Rolands Vigners between the goalkeeper’s boots (2-3). The local coach Erik Hjalmarsson claims an offside to the referees who explain to him that there is no possibility of “challenge” for this fact of play in CHL.
Take a but a little while every third, it seems to cut Danish legs. But the indiscipline returns at the most unexpected moment when Johnston mows down Gustafsson while Rouen is in a long streak installed in the offensive zone. Rungsted’s power play is installed but Pintaric is holding on in this decisive streak. At 5 against 5, the champions of France generally master the situation. A loss of puck in the defensive zone of Yoann Salve causes concern, but Vincent does not end up countering the blue paddle to relieve his team. The clock is largely in favor of the Dragons, who only need one point in any case (for the skeptics, see article 8.4.4.6 of the CHL rules for the case of a tie against Donetsk). Kelsey Tessier dispels the last doubts by locating the deserted nets (2-4).
Last week, Rungsted hadn’t expressed his potential in phases and had stuck in his own wheels with his indiscipline. Tonight, it was Rouen who gave this impression… but who won all the same! In the final phase of the Champions League, it will not be possible to catch these kinds of faults. Working on discipline will be essential, even if thinking that Yeo will settle down at his age is a bit of a utopia. At the end of November, against European leaders, the Dragons should improve in all areas, offensively (where things are going better) and defensively (where the Normans seem a little limited without Chakiachvili). There is a sector where Rouen is still at the top level, and this match reminded us once again: in front of the net with Pintaric.
Post-match commentary :
Erik Hjalmarsson (Rungsted coach): “From a past match, from my point of view they have a goal of the skate and an offside goal, it’s debatable. But we should have been more efficient and scored more goals, because we scored. “
Fabrice Lhenry (Rouen coach): “The first half, we were really marked, our goalkeeper really saved us. We weren’t really ready to play at this level. Luckily on came out at 1-0 and it was thanks to him. In the second half, we took a lot of penalties but we were able to defend well, it was complicated. I found my team in the last five minutes of the second period. The third period was more balanced, but it took a while to get going. We are not going to be optimistic, we will wait for the draw but we know that we will come across a big team. We will be an outsider but we will do our best to perform. We made the play-offs three years ago, we are happy to do it again to compete at a very high level. “
Rungsted – Rouen 2-4 (0-1, 2-1, 0-2)
Tuesday October 12, 2021 at 8:30 p.m. at the Bitcoin Arena in Rungsted. 1001 spectators.
Referees: Kenneth Nielsen and Rasmus Toppel (DAN) assisted by Niklas Knøsen and Emil Dalsgaard (DAN).
Penalties: Rungsted 4 ‘(2’, 2 ‘, 0’); Rouen 12 ‘(4’, 6 ‘, 2’)
Frame shots: Rungsted 40 (17, 11, 12); Rouen 19 (6, 7, 6).
Evolution of the score:
0-1 to 03’59: Lampérier assisted by Tessier and Caron
0-2 to 25’51: Nesa assisted by Guttig and Gilbert
1-2 to 28’03: Jensen assisted by Andersson and Persson (double sup. Num.)
2-2 at 30’36: Holten Møller assisted by Bjerrum and Rosenthal
2-3 to 44’40: Vineyards assisted by Johnston and Bedin
2-4 to 59’24: Tessier assisted by Yeo (empty cage)
Rungsted
Attackers:
24-21-15 Frederik Bjerrum (-1) – Hampus Gustafsson (-2, 2 ′) – Nikolaj Rosenthal
43-40-90 Nichlas Hardt (-2) – Marcus Olsson (-2) – Mattias Persson (-1)
19-17-22 Henrik Hetta – Gustav Green (+1) – Rasmus Andersson (-1)
71-46-27 Mathias Hansen – Daniel Madsen (-1) – Sebastian Sørensen (-1)
Defenders:
33-7 Morten Jensen (-1) – Mathias Røndbjerg (+1)
20-76 André Pison (-1) – Tim Daly (-3)
4-65 Joachim Holten Møller – William Back (-1)
Guardian :
81 City Kolppanen (2 ′) [sorti de 58’43 à 59’24]
Alternate: David Grubak (L). Absent: Jacob Gammelgaard (suspended).
Rouen
Attackers:
67-71-6 David Gilbert – Anthony Guttig – Vincent Nesa (2 ′)
27-90-96 Loïc Lampérier (+2) – Kelsey Tessier (+2) – Joël Caron (+2)
91-61-37 Rolands Vigners (+1) – Andrew Johnston (+1, 4 ′) – Joris Bedin (+1)
15-5-14 Kaylian Leborgne – Joran Reynaud – Quentin Tomasino
Defenders:
8-41 Dylan Yeo (+1, 4 ′) – Enzo Cantagallo (+1)
44-10 Sacha Guimond – Marc-André Dorion
21-36 Yoan Salve (+2) – Mark Flood (C, +2, 2 ′)
Guardian :
69 Matija Pintaric
Substitutes: Valentin Duquenne (L), Théo Gueurif. Absent: Florian Chakiachvili (broken finger).