The break was short-lived for the Eagles of Nice. Between two Ligue Magnus matches, the Niçois had an appointment with the Coupe de France on the ice in Briançon. Without success.
For their debut in this new edition of the Coupe de France, the Eagles of Nice faced the Red Devils of Briançon. Two teams that had faced each other ten days earlier in the championship and had seen the Niçois logically win (5-2) at home. In a completely different context, the Maralpins traveled this time to the Hautes-Alpes. For their 7th match in 20 days, the Eagles seemed to struggle physically, as evidenced by the heavy defeat suffered at the end of the match on Sunday against the Boxers of Bordeaux.
Just 48 hours later, recovery was insufficient for the men of Pascal Margerit. Although the team’s level of play remains high, as evidenced by the start of the match and the opening goal by Loïc Coulaud shortly before the quarter-hour mark, the rest of the game was much more complicated.
Briançon raises the intensity and manages to speed up the pace of the game. More aggressive, the locals equalize at the half-hour mark despite several numerical disadvantages. Chrystopher Collin scores once, then doubles his tally five minutes later (2-1). The Niçois try to hang on but are behind in their interventions.
However, in the third period, Charles-Antoine Roy rekindles the suspense and manages to equalize, somewhat against the run of play, from a good service by Mathieu Desgagnés and Robin Johansson (2-2 in the 48th minute). At this point, one might think that everything is not over and that the Eagles can pull off a small feat considering the match dynamics.
An expectation of short duration since the Maralpin goalkeeper of the evening, Alexis Shank, has to concede a third time to a shot by Mathis Despatie (3-2). The Red Devils regain the upper hand and seal the game two minutes later through the unstoppable Chrystopher Collin, who completes a hat-trick three minutes from the end of the match. The fifth goal by Chase Dubois is anecdotal, 30 seconds from the end of a match that the Niçois failed to handle over time.
The Eagles of Nice are therefore eliminated in the round of 32 (5-2) and will be able to focus on their two upcoming Ligue Magnus matches this week: the first against the Ducs d’Angers on Friday, and the second at home against the Brûleurs de Loups of Grenoble on Sunday. Two title-contending teams they will need to try to destabilize to maintain a place on the podium.
