After two games in Davos and Switzerland where he's faced a heavy shotload, Rouen Dragons goalie Dany Sabourin reflected on his own play and that of his team.

by Jakob Meijer

STOCKHOLM – In their first Champions Hockey League campaign, the Rouen Dragons have had a tough start with two road losses in three days. In their ever first CHL game they were defeated by Swiss team HC Davos by a score of 4-1, and then two days later in Stockholm they lost again, this time 4-0 to Djurgarden. 

Rouen have struggled on offence, but no one can say that their defence and especially Canadian goalie Dany Sabourin haven't done their job. In Davos, Sabourin had a sweaty night and stopped 36 of 40 shots. And in Sunday's game against Djurgarden, Sabourin was once again the reason why Rouen were still in the game after two periods. In total he stopped 34 of 38 shots, giving him a save percentage of 89.74 after two CHL games. 

Thirty-five-year-old Sabourin, who played 59 NHL games for the Calgary Flames, Vancouver Canucks and Pittsburgh Penguins between 2003 and 2009, was not happy with Sunday's result, but he hopes his team can do better now that they are heading back home to France for two games in Rouen. 

“We're gonna need to win. Now we're going home and we are gonna work hard for two weeks, before Djurgarden and Davos come to us, and till then we must improve our game.” 

What do you think of your own game against Djurgarden? 

“I'm happy with my game. There's maybe one goal I'd like to have back, but overall I think I played a good game.” 

How important is the CHL for you and Rouen? 

“This is a good experience for our team, for everyone – the young guys and even the older ones. We learn a lot every game. It's gonna be good for our national championship. Obviously, our goal is to pass the first round in CHL, and we know it's gonna be a hard task, but we have to go for it anyway.” 

So what do the Dragons have to do better compared to your first two games? 

“A lot of things. But one thing I liked tonight is that we didn't stop. We were down by four goals, but the guys never stopped. They played to the end. And we had a few good chances but the puck didn't go in. It was the same in Davos. We hit the post, and their goalie was good, like Mikael Tellqvist tonight – he was awesome. We need to bury a few goals, that's for sure. And I need to stop more pucks.”