Laval Rocket's Lucas Condotta suspended one game after 10th fight major

Lucas Condotta’s one-game suspension landed at the worst possible moment for Laval: the Rocket had already clinched a playoff berth, the regular season was ending, and one of their most physical veterans was forced out of the lineup for the finale at Toronto. The AHL Player Safety Committee issued the ban on April 19 after Condotta picked up his 10th fighting major of the season, triggering the automatic penalty under Rule 23.7.

That matters in Laval because Condotta was not just another forward. The AHL lists him as the Rocket’s captain, and his 2025-26 line, 70 games played, eight goals, 10 assists, 18 points and 94 penalty minutes, shows exactly what Laval lost for a night: leadership, edge and a forward who had spent the season in the middle of the team’s most demanding minutes. With the Rocket entering the final weekend six points clear atop the North Division, the suspension did not threaten their standing, but it did interrupt the lineup stability teams want heading into the playoffs.

Laval’s identity has been built around that playoff edge for years. The Rocket reached the Eastern Conference Finals in 2022 and again in 2025, and the atmosphere at Place Bell has become part of the franchise’s draw, with an average of 9,740 fans per home game in a February feature. Condotta has been part of that culture too, and losing him for the final regular-season game took away one of the players most associated with the physical, loud, postseason style the Rocket try to carry from night to night.

The timing also underscored how quickly the AHL’s lineup picture can change once fighting majors pile up. Bridgeport’s Hunter Drew and Hershey’s Justin Nachbaur also drew automatic one-game suspensions this season under the same rule, a reminder that the league has drawn a hard line once a player reaches that 10-fight threshold. For Laval, the practical effect was immediate: the captain sat, the final tune-up came without him, and the Rocket moved toward the playoffs knowing their tone-setting forward had already served his one-game penalty before the bracket began.