Ligue Magnus: Nice Eagles not rewarded against Loups Brûleurs

Opposed to the Ligue Magnus leaders, the Nice Eagles delivered a full game without managing to find the breakthrough. Grenoble justified their status by winning at Jean-Bouin (2-0).

Ten days after the thrashing suffered in Isère and the defeat conceded at Gap the Nice Eagles had the opportunity to restore their honor at home. Facing them, the Grenoble players arrived on the French Riviera as undisputed leaders of the Ligue Magnus with two games in hand. Proof that the task would be very difficult tonight at Jean-Bouin.

From the kick-off, Grenoble showed itself very enterprising. The Eagles were present on the pucks to create the first chances. Strong from their five home victories since the start of the season for one defeat against Rouen, the Nice players were not intimidated by the Wolf Burners. Without domination on either side, the two teams sized each other up in the first five minutes before things accelerated. The two goalkeepers Jordan Kooy and Alexis Shank were called upon. While Grenoble seemed in control, Nice created more chances thanks to very committed players like Samuel Régis and Hugo Nogaretto. Despite a very good start to the match, it was the Isère team that opened the scoring on a defensive mixup by the Nice players. Jules Lefebvre found himself down leaving Alexis Shank on his own facing Téo Sarlieve who scored with finesse (0-1, 16th).

Despite this, the Côte d’Azur players showed patience and seemed capable of getting back into it in the second period. After managing a power play well, the Nice players found themselves in turn with a man advantage without finding the breakthrough. The game was getting harder and penalties were piling up preventing tonight’s opponents from deploying their game. Physically, Grenoble seemed a step above at the end of the second period without dominating the match. Very solid defensively, the Wolf Burners left almost no shooting lanes for the Maralpin players, leaving the score at 0-1 before the final period.

The Nice Eagles came back with a bang

The Côte d’Azur players had to take risks to try to get back in it. More aggressive in their zone, the players of Pascal Margerit and Marc-André Levesque put the visitors under pressure and brought more speed in the offensive phase. Again on the power play twice, the Nice players created plenty of chances without managing to fool Jordan Kooy (MVP of the match with 31 saves). The match tightened again without either team making the difference. Until the 55th minute and a goal by Antoine Fertin who adjusted the Nice goalie with a long-distance shot. In complete control, the Grenoble players perfectly managed the end of the match by protecting their house despite the man advantage in the last three minutes to win (2-0).

Far from having played a bad match, the Nice Eagles suffer a second consecutive defeat before heading to the Angers Dukes. Another big challenge in the championship against which they will need to be able to raise the intensity to avoid slipping down the Ligue Magnus standings.