This Friday, the Eagles of Nice had a rendezvous at the rink of the Dukes of Angers. A crucial match in which all hopes were allowed given the context in Ligue Magnus.
The end of the regular phase is approaching and the stakes are growing match after match. Still in the running for a playoff spot, the Eagles of Nice had an appointment in Anjou this evening. The Dukes, second in the Ligue Magnus standings, have nothing left to play for at the end of this regular season. It’s quite the opposite for the Eagles of Nice, who are fighting with Chamonix and Cergy-Pontoise for the last two qualifying spots.
While the previous nine encounters have all favored the Dukes, the context allowed hope for a positive result. Especially since the team from Nice had recently achieved a great shutout at home against Chamonix on Tuesday. “We are going to play a match against a strong team from Angers on their turf. Our team is decimated by injuries but motivated and in a very good dynamic. We have nothing to lose; if we take points, it will be a pure bonus,” stated the new Eagles coach Pascal Margerit. Speaking of injuries, the former assistant refers to the absence of Marc-André Lévesque since the end of 2024. An absence that allows the former Canadian captain to take on the role of assistant to the new coach.
As you understood, Frantisek Stolc was let go last week by the club’s management after the Eagles’ poor series of results over the months of December and January.
The game shifts in four minutes
The mission was therefore clear: take whatever there was to take. And the Dukes didn’t leave much… Despite a solid beginning of the match in the defensive phase, the Eagles struggled to create opportunities in attack. Conrad Molder managed to keep the score during the first half of the first period, but what had to happen happened. Angers eventually found the net through Parker Colley. On the goal, Nice was penalized. A difficult situation to handle which benefited the Dukes once again. This time, it was Robin Gaborit who made the difference. The Angevin forward even scored a brace less than two minutes later, bringing the score to (3-0).
All was not lost, however, as the Eagles managed to reduce the gap on one of their rare opportunities through Joseph Broutin (3-1).
The Maralpins responded in the second period. More active offensively, the players from Nice tested Matthew O’Connor, who remained impenetrable. On one of the rare fouls whistled, Nice unfortunately conceded a fourth goal. The serial scorer from Angers, Braeden Shaw (31 goals this season), placed the puck into the Azurean net. This time, hopes of a comeback seemed to be definitively fading. And when in the final period, Nicolas Ritz further extended the score to (5-1), the game was practically over. The last goal by captain Nicolas Ruel didn’t change that.
The Eagles of Nice were defeated (5-2). In their misfortune, it can be noted that the Eagles remain in 7th place of the Ligue Magnus thanks to the underperformance of their competitors in the playoffs. Now the players from Nice have a big week to recover before the final sprint. Next meeting for the Eagles is on Sunday, February 9, for the reception of Grenoble, the undisputed leader of the championship. Kick-off at 5:30 p.m. at the Jean-Bouin rink.