Jury still out on talented Knights, preseason favourites

Knight Watch: It was an up and down first half for London, but the potential is real; The ‘Sams’ (Dickinson, O’Reilly) are success stories; London entered break with momentum. Columnist Jake Jeffrey breaks down the first half …

(Photo: Matt Hiscox Photography).

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Expectations were high for the London Knights heading into the 2023-24 season. And though the team hardly dominated in the first half, all things considered, it was a decent showing prior to the holiday break for the franchise that reached the OHL Finals last spring.

Of course, there aren’t many better ways to head into the holiday break than a three-win weekend, which is what the Knights accomplished last weekend — capped off with an emotional come-from-behind overtime win over Sudbury on Sunday.

Winners of five of their last six, London has the fourth best record in the OHL through its first 32 games. The Knights are one of just four teams in the league with 20 victories thus far.

“We got to 20 wins by Christmas, so we’re pretty happy about that,” Knights forward Max McCue said. “Considering we were a bit up and down at the start, we’re finding our groove at the right time.”

The Knights have lost back-to-back games on four occasions this season, but they’ve yet to drop three straight. Losing five of seven in late November was likely their toughest stretch, but they’ve since followed that up with wins in five of their last six.

“It’s better to go through those bumps and adversity earlier in the year,” McCue said, “and then catch stride later in the year. And hopefully your best games are in the playoffs.”

London’s powerplay is among the league’s elite, operating at 32.5 per cent for the season, just a hair back of Saginaw for tops in the OHL.

A big reason for that success? Moving Oliver Bonk to the bumper position on the powerplay. All six of his goals this season have come with the man advantage, while Kasper Halttunen leads the entire OHL with 12 powerplay goals.

The Knights have been dangerous while shorthanded, as well, ranking second in the OHL with 10 shorthanded tallies. Denver Barkey is tied for the OHL lead with four shorthanded markers. Easton Cowan, who assisted on all four of those goals, has scored three of his own.

For better or worse, London has had plenty of practice with the man down, as only the Mississauga Steelheads have been shorthanded more times than the Knights this season.

Defenseman Oliver Bonk, who is competing with Team Canada at the World Junior Championship, has been crucial to the success of the Knights’ powerplay unit in the first half. (Photo: Matt Hiscox Photography).

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Scoring depth is something London lacked in the early going, as they relied on just a few players for a bulk of their offence. But that has changed over the last month and a half, as players like McCue, Jacob Julien and Ruslan Gazizov have found their scoring touch. The Knights have six players with double digit goals, with Halttunen’s 20 leading the way.

‘The Sams’ (Dickinson and O’Reilly) have earned invites to the CHL Top Prospect game in Moncton, NB in January. Both players are expected to be chosen in this year’s NHL draft. Dickinson, who has eight goals and 26 points in 32 games (and a team best plus-18 rating), will likely be one of the first handful of OHLers selected. O’Reilly, meanwhile, is quickly climbing the rankings, and he leads all first-year OHLers with 27 points.

Knights assistant coach Rick Steadman says that O’Reilly versatility has really stood out in his first full season with the team.

“He’s been great for us,” Steadman said. “He’s been penalty killing for us really well, and he’s putting up a lot of even-strength points. We’ve even had him in the shutdown role for us.”

Steadman likens O’Reilly’s development to that of former Knights like Luke Evangelista and Robert Thomas, players who were able to make the most of their opportunities and contribute despite not being on the first powerplay unit and playing top minutes.

Sam O’Reilly has certainly been a first-half success story for the London Knights. (Photo: Matt Hiscox Photography)

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Looking around the Western Conference, the Kitchener Rangers have been a bit of a surprise. They’ve pulled out in front of the Midwest Division through the first half of the season with a nine-point edge over the Knights at the holiday break. London dropped its only meeting of the season thus far with Kitchener, but the two teams will meet five more times in the second half.

The Soo Greyhounds have also solidified themselves as contenders, as they currently lead the West Division, six points ahead of the Memorial Cup host Saginaw Spirit. The Hounds and Spirit are two of the hottest teams heading into the break.

The OHL trade deadline is noon on Jan. 10, 2024. There is a roster freeze in effect until after Christmas, and players participating in the World Junior Tournament aren’t eligible to be moved until the tournament wraps up.

Guelph will be a team to watch in the second half. They had a good start to the season — despite missing several top players. Washington Capitals prospect Cam Allen has yet to play a game this season, and he was an anchor on the Storm blueline last year.

Contending teams have begun circling those who appear poised for a rebuild. The Flint Firebirds and North Bay Battalion, for instance, are two teams that could move some assets ahead of the January deadline.

The Knights made a decent splash last year, picking up Ryan Winterton from the Hamilton Bulldogs. Winterton was just over a point per game but was an integral part of London’s playoff run, tallying 13 goals and 29 points through 21 games. The biggest priority for London is likely on the defensive side of the game.

Sam Dickinson has lived up to the hype, and the defenseman is expected to be an early pick in this spring’s NHL Draft. (Photo: Matt Hiscox Photography).

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A LOOK AT THE LOCALS

Strathroy’s Hunter Haight, a Minnesota Wild prospect, has 14 goals and 38 points through 30 games with the Saginaw Spirit. There was a 12-game span in late November and early December where he scored nine goals.

Ilderton’s Owen Van Steensel has enjoyed a jump in production to start the season. He has 15 goals and 35 points for the North Bay Battalion, and he’s closing in on 100 career OHL points.

Jett Luchanko is catching the eye of scouts ahead of the NHL draft. Playing a larger offensive role with the Guelph Storm this season, the former London Jr. Knight player has 10 goals and a team-leading 34 points. He’ll be heading to the CHL Top Prospects game in the new year.

Sam Sedley, from nearby St. Marys, has 34 points through 31 games and is currently third in OHL scoring among defencemen.

Ryan Roobroeck, the second overall pick in the most recent OHL draft, leads all rookies with 11 goals this season for the Niagara IceDogs. Nine of those goals came during an 11-game stretch in October and November.

KNIGHTS BY THE NUMBERS

6 - London has six players who have cracked double digits in goals: Kasper Halttunen (20), Denver Barkey (17), Jacob Julien (14), Max McCue (12), Easton Cowan (12), and Ruslan Gazizov (12).

27 - Sam O’Reilly leads all OHL rookies with 27 points.

7 - Max McCue has goals in seven straight games, tying him for the longest goal scoring streak in the OHL this season. Kitchener’s Carson Rehkopf scored 12 goals during a seven-game streak back in October.

3 - A trio of London Knights players are playing in this year’s World Junior tournament. Easton Cowan and Oliver Bonk are with Canada, while Kasper Halttunen is skating for Finland. Canada will play the Finns to open the tournament on Boxing Day.

KNIGHTS PROSPECT PIPELINE

With the GOJHL’s London Nationals, Blake Arrowsmith (3rd round in 2023) has nine goals and 19 points. Defenseman Peter Fagan (3rd round in 2023), meanwhile, has eight goals and 19 points.

Jared Woolley (FA signee), who already has a pair of goals with the Knights this season, has six goals and 21 points with the GOJHL’s St. Thomas Stars. Also with the Stars, goaltender Alexei Medvedev (2nd round in 2023) has backstopped the team to eight victories so far this season.

Brendan Gerber (6th round in 2023) is 6th in GOJHL rookie scoring with 33 points for the Elmira Sugar Kings. 

Cohen Bidgood (7th round in 2023) has made the most out of his change of scenery, going from the Chatham Maroons to the St. Marys Lincolns. He’s 10th in scoring among GOJHL rookies.

AROUND THE OHL

The top three scorers in the OHL play for the Kitchener Rangers: Carson Rehkopf (55), Hunter Brzustewicz (55), Matthew Sop (55). Rehtkopf has scored a league-leading 31 goals in 31 games. Kitchener has scored an OHL-high 146 goals this season.

The Erie Otters look poised for their first playoff appearance since their OHL championship season in 2017. They currently sit in 7th place with a 14-12-4-0 record. They haven’t won more games than they’ve lost since that 2016-17 season.

The top five teams through the first half all come from the Western Conference. It’s the Kitchener Rangers (24-8-2-0), Soo Greyhounds (22-8-2-1), Saginaw Spirit (20-9-0-1), London Knights (20-11-0-1) and Guelph Storm (19-12-1-1).