In the Coliseum of the Amiens Gothiques, the Nice Eagles did not stand a chance. Another disappointment after the matches against Angers and Marseille.
For their third game of the week, the Eagles were up against a serious contender this season. Amiens, accustomed to playoff seasons, is a team that doesn’t quite suit the players from Nice. With only one victory in the last seven encounters, the Azuréens’ record is not very glorious. And tonight, it got even worse.
In the first period, the Eagles struggled. By creating only a few rare chances, the Maralpins exposed themselves to a penalty. It came in the 13th minute from a player well-known on the French Riviera, Jasper Larinmaa. The Finn proved decisive once again against his former teammates, just as he did in the first encounter of the season. Raphaël Garnier, starting tonight, pushed back the Amiens assaults and allowed his team to go to the locker room with only a one-goal deficit (1-0).
The second period was more balanced, at least at the beginning. Nice became more proactive and attempted to equalize. But Taran Kozun was vigilant. Voted man of the match for the Gothiques, the Canadian goalkeeper thwarted Nice’s attacks. And once again this season, the Eagles would get burned in a matter of minutes. Eight, to be precise! During this span, Frantisek Stolc’s men conceded a harsh 4-0. First, within seconds in the 9th minute through Janis Svanbergs, followed by Justin Bergeron. Two minutes later, Gauthier Gibert widened the gap. Then Jasper Larinmaa again sealed the fate for his former teammates. By the break, Nice was trailing (5-0).
A late surge of pride
For the final 30 minutes, the provoked Nice Eagles began to respond. Despite the excellent performance of Taran Kozun, who made 14 saves in the third period alone, Nice finally broke their scoreless streak. The Czech Adam Raska, in his first season in France, led the way. Well-assisted by Nicolas Ruel, he narrowed the gap. The duo even repeated their feat three minutes later to score Nice’s third goal. Meanwhile, Justin Bergeron also completed his brace. Nice also scored through Julien Msumbu.
In the end, Nice was defeated (6-3). The third loss of the week in as many matches. On Tuesday, the Eagles will face Rouen for another challenging match. The kick-off is at 8 PM at the Jean Bouin ice rink.
