Red-hot Knights face red-hot foes in big weekend

Knight Watch: Nine wins in a row for London, who face Sarnia (twice) and Windsor this long weekend; Zach Bowen OHL Goalie of the Week; Knights back in CHL Top 10 Ranks. This and much more from hockey columnist Jake Jeffrey …

(Photo: Matt Hiscox Photography).

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A Valentine’s Day win over Kitchener helped London leapfrog Windsor for top spot in the Western Conference standings, but it was only temporary, as the Spitfires replied with a 6-5 overtime win over the Flint Firebirds Thursday. That put them back at one point ahead of London entering the weekend (though the Knights have a game in hand).

And make it nine straight wins for the green and gold, who are doing their part in keeping up with the also red-hot Spitfires in the West. Those two teams will face off against each other on Family Day Monday — and then three more times before the season is over. London is also just three points behind Ottawa for first place overall in the OHL standings.

With Brett Brochu still nursing an injury, Zach Bowen continues to hold down the fort in the Knights’ net. The rookie netminder now has 14 straight wins. Brochu has not played since leaving the game against Kitchener last week.

Bowen turned aside 57 of 59 shots in wins over Erie (8-1) and Guelph (5-1) on the weekend, and although he wasn’t overly busy against the Rangers earlier this week, he made some key saves — including a big one in overtime to help London beat Kitchener (4-3) for the fourth time this season.

Impressively, Bowen’s only been on the hook for one loss this season, against North Bay in late October. For his recent efforts, he was named OHL Goaltender of the Week. Sean McGurn, meanwhile, was also recognized by the league as the OHL’s top Player of the Week. He had five goals and 13 points over four games.

It’s a big weekend ahead for the Knights, who will face two of the hottest teams in the Western Conference — first, a home-and-home series with the Sarnia Sting, and then a highly-anticipated matchup with the Windsor Spitfires Monday afternoon (Family Day).

Sarnia was one of the most active teams at the trade deadline, bringing in a handful of top talent in Sasha Pastujov, Luca DelBelBelluz, Ethan Del Mastro and Christian Kyrou. They are 11-5 since the start of 2023, propelling them to third place in the Western Conference.

The Spitfires have been one of the conference’s top teams all season, and they also made some key acquisitions at the deadline, making them even more dangerous. Shane Wright scored twice against London in their last meeting, but he hasn’t played since Feb. 2 due to injury. Regardless of their injury struggles, though, the Spitfires have won eight straight games.

London’s current goalie situation is reminiscent of the 2005-06 season, where overage goalie Adam Dennis handled a majority of the goaltending duties (57 starts in a 68-game regular season schedule). But with Dennis battling an injury, London turned to 17-year-old rookie netminder Steve Mason.

Mason won five straight starts, including victories over top teams in Peterborough and Kitchener. That helped London keep pace in the standings and also caught the eye of the Columbus Blue Jackets, who were so impressed with his play they took him in the third round of that year’s NHL draft.

With nine straight wins, the Knights got themselves back into the CHL Top 10 Rankings for the first time in over a month. They’re currently the 9th-ranked team in the CHL.

Zach Bowen has won 14 straight and has stepped up further in the absence of an injured Brett Brochu. He was named OHL Goaltender of the Week. (Photo: Matt Hiscox Photography).

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UPCOMING GAMEDAYS

Friday (Feb. 17, 7:00pm at home) & Saturday (Feb. 18, 7:05 pm on road) vs. Sarnia Sting (27-17-4-2, 2nd in West)

The Sting got back into the win column in a major way Wednesday night with a 9-1 win over Guelph. It’s the third time in their last eight games that they’ve won by more than six goals. Sarnia has six players playing at above a point-per-game pace. Sasha Pastujov has 18 goals and 52 points in 28 games since joining the Sting in a trade from Guelph. Luca DelBelBelluz and Ethan Del Mastro have both been solid additions as well, and Christian Kyrou is always an offensive threat from the backend. He’s third among OHL blueliners with 54 points. World Junior gold medalist Benjamin Gaudreau is one of the top goalies in the OHL, and he’s more than capable of stealing a game for his team. Nolan Burke has netted a pair of hat tricks this season, one of which came against London. After this weekend, the Knights and Sting will still play two more times.

Monday (Feb. 20, 2:00pm) vs. Windsor Spitfires (36-12-3-1, 1st in West) (Windsor plays Mississauga on Saturday)

The Spits have won eight straight heading into their weekend, neck-and-neck with the Knights atop the Western Conference standings. Captain Matthew Maggio leads the OHL in both goals (42) and points (88). Dorchester’s Brett Harrison, who is coming off a hat-trick Thursday, has 15 goals and 28 points since joining the Spits at the deadline. Their other big deadline acquisition, Shane Wright, has been out of the lineup since the beginning of February. Wright has six goals and 14 points in seven games with the Spits, but he hasn’t played since Feb. 2. The injury isn’t expected to be serious, so we could very well see him back in the lineup this weekend. Both London and Windsor have a win in the season series thus far, and in both previous games the losing team was held to a single goal. Ryan Abraham is back in the lineup after missing more than two months. He has a goal and five assists in his first four games back. Alex Christopoulos has seven goals in his last five games, while Jacob Maillet has five in his last five. Former Knight Mathias Onuska is also back from injury. He won his first start last weekend after being sidelined in early January — and won again Thursday vs. Flint.

A LOOK AT THE LOCALS

Former London Junior Knight Jordan D’Intino has hit the 20-goal mark with the Soo Greyhounds.

Make it a seven-game point streak for Oshawa Generals forward Dylan Roobroeck. The former London Junior Knight has five goals and seven assists over that stretch.

Owen Sound defensemen Sam Sedley, from nearby St Marys, is seventh in OHL scoring among blueliners with 43 points.

The London Junior Knights are ranked 7th in the U16 OHL Cup Top Ten Rankings, the top rated ALLIANCE team.

KNIGHTS BY THE NUMBERS

6 - With a goal and two assists last Friday night, Logan Mailloux has four goals and six points in his last two games against the Erie Otters. 

2 - Mailloux scored his second overtime winner of the season in London’s win over Kitchener, giving him 20 goals on the campaign.

6 - George Diaco has two goals and 10 points during his current six-game point streak.

4 - Denver Barkey has four goals in his last four games.

1 - William Nicholl scored his first OHL goal in London’s win over Kitchener last week. The 16-year-old was playing his first game with the Knights. He has 19 goals and 60 points with the GOJHL’s St. Thomas Stars this season.

AROUND THE OHL

As a result of a long-term closure of their home arena, the Hamilton Bulldogs are making a temporary move to Brantford. The team will play out of the Brantford Civic Centre through the 2025-26 seasons, with an option to extend the agreement for three additional one-year terms.

The Kitchener Rangers have made a change behind the bench, relieving head coach Chris Dennis of his duties last week. General Manager Mike McKenzie will take over, while former Knight Dennis Wideman will stay on as an assistant coach. The Rangers won their first two games with their new coach before losing in overtime to London Tuesday night.

The Ottawa 67’s dropped both their games against the Gatineau Olympiques, who currently have the fourth-best record in the QMJHL.

Three OHL teams are in the CHL Top Ten Rankings this week: Ottawa (8th), London (9th) and Windsor (10th). The North Bay Battalion were an honourable mention.

Saginaw Spirit first year defenseman Zayne Parekh scored his 19th and 20th goals of the season Wednesday, passing London Knights defenceman Rick Corriveau’s 1987-88 OHL record for goals by a 16-year-old rookie defenceman.