Lightning win streak now at 9; Nats jump out to playoff lead

Gameday in 5: A look to the week ahead — and a recap of the week that was (Feb. 27-March 5) — for London’s teams and athletes.

The London Nationals won three straight last week to go up 3-0 in their first-round playoff series against the St. Thomas Stars. (Photo: Bruce Laing).

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London Knights

The Knights split their two games last week, including a second straight one-goal win over rival Windsor in extra time. In doing so, London clinched the Midwest division and remained two points up on the Spitfires for top spot in the Western Conference.

Playing in Windsor Thursday, the Knights outdueled the Spitfires in a tightly-contested game, winning 4-3 in a shootout which required an extra round. Jacob Julien got the scoring started in regulation, putting London up 1-0 in the first period. Windsor took over in the second, scoring twice for a 2-1 lead heading into the third.

Brody Crane wasted no time in tying the game in the final frame, though, scoring 50 seconds into the third. Following a Spitfires power play goal, Ruslan Gazizov tied the game at 3-3 less than two minutes later to force overtime. After a scoreless extra frame, the shootout went 6 rounds with Oliver Bonk scoring the game-winner and Brett Brochu stopping the Spitfires’ final chance to secure the win.

After a close game Thursday, the Knights lost 6-1 to the Sarnia Sting on Friday. Down 3-0 in the second period, Ryan Winterton scored a power-play goal to put London on the board. The Sting offense didn’t let up in the third, as the team scored three more times while shutting out the Knights for a convincing win.

Up next:

The Knights (41-16-2-0) return to action Thursday for a game in Barrie. They’ll continue their road swing with two more while the Brier curling event takes place at Budweiser Gardens through March 12. London currently holds a two-point advantage over Windsor for first place in the Western Conference.

Thurs. Mar. 9 (7:30pm @ Barrie Colts)
Fri. Mar. 10 (7:05pm @ Sudbury Wolves)
Sun. Mar. 12 (2:00pm @ North Bay Battalion)

London Nationals

The Nationals took a commanding 3-0 series lead over St. Thomas last week, winning all three contests in their first round playoff matchup against the Stars.

Game 1 was a close affair, with the Nationals coming out on top 3-2 in overtime on Wednesday. After a scoreless first period, Lucas Chard notched a short-handed goal to give the Nats the lead. Rylan Bowers doubled London’s lead, but the Stars fought back in the third, scoring twice to force overtime. The extra period nearly went the full 20 minutes. The winner? Lucas Carson at the 18:49 mark to give London the Game 1 win.

The Nationals then beat the Stars on their home ice in Game 2, a 6-3 victory at the Joe Thornton Community Centre on Friday. The Nats’ Nolan Milne opened the scoring, and Lucas Chard doubled the lead shortly after. With London leading 2-1 to start the second period, the Stars tied things on the power play, but Chard’s second of the game put the Nats back out front. The Nationals then scored three goals in the third and held the Stars to a single marker to go up 2-0 in the series. Bradyn Santavy logged his second of the playoffs, while Brayden Thompson and Talan Palmer each notched their first of the postseason.

London then took a commanding 3-0 series lead on Saturday back home, winning 5-2 in front of the Western Fair faithful. The Nationals scored the icebreaker — for the third straight game — as Nolan Milne notched his second of the postseason. After allowing two power-play goals in the second, the Nationals bounced back in the third and scored three unanswered markers to win the game. Sam O’Reilly scored twice, Rylan Bowers tallied the game-winner, and Riley Wood scored an empty netter.

Up next:

The Nationals, the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference, will look to dispatch the Stars (No. 7) for a first-round playoff sweep on Tuesday in St. Thomas. Ahead 3-0 in the series, London has three chances this week (if necessary) to advance to the second round.

GOJHL Playoffs (First Round) - London Nationals (2) vs. St. Thomas Stars (7) (London leads 3-0)
Game 1: London 3 vs. St. Thomas 2 (OT)
Game 2: London 6 @ St. Thomas 3
Game 3: London 5 vs. St. Thomas 2
Game 4: Tues. March 7 (7:30pm @ St. Thomas Stars)
Game 5: Wed. March 8 (7:00pm vs. St. Thomas Stars) (if necessary)
Game 6: Fri. March 10 (7:30pm @ St. Thomas Stars) (if necessary)
Game 7: Sat. March 11 (7:00pm vs. St. Thomas Stars) (if necessary)

London Lightning

The Lightning won both of their games last week to improve to 13-2 on the season, good for top spot in the NBLC standings.

London began the week with a convincing 105-89 win over the Sudbury Five on Thursday. After building a 30-21 lead by the end of the first quarter, the Lightning never trailed from that point on. It was a convincing win over the second-place team in the league — and on their home court.

Terry Thomas scored a season-high 31 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for the Lightning. Marcus Ottey tallied 16 points and 6 rebounds, while Cameron Lard scoring 14 with 7 rebounds for London, who played shorthanded (nine players) with Elijah Lufile missing the contest and Jeremiah Mordi away competing with the Nigerian national team.

The Lightning were even more shorthanded on Saturday, missing Justin Jackson due to injury, in their first trip back to The Auditorium to play the KW Titans since they hoisted the championship trophy last spring. It wasn’t pretty (they shot just 35%), but the Lightning came away with a win, holding off the Titans 97-89. Mareik Isom led the charge with a season-best 28 points, while Terry Thomas dropped 23. Jordan Burns had a double-double (16 points, 10 assists), while Cam Lard grabbed a game-high 16 rebounds.

Up next:

The Lightning (13-2) get some well-deserved rest before they return to action on Sunday — again back at The Auditorium for a rematch against the Titans. London is 2.5 games ahead of Sudbury, who boasts a 10-4 record overall and a 6-4 mark against NBLC-only opponents.

Sun. March 12 (2:00pm @ KW Titans)