Knights primed for Attack in first round

Knight Watch: London squares off against No. 8 seed Owen Sound — and star goalie Carter George — in Round 1 of OHL playoffs; Columnist Jake Jeffrey previews the matchup — and has predictions for each OHL series …

(Photo: Matt Hiscox Photography).

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The London Knights completed another dominant regular season as they look to repeat as OHL Champions.

En route to their second straight Hamilton Spectator Trophy as the top regular season team, they finished with 112 points, the second highest total in franchise history.

They also clinched their sixth straight Midwest Division title, setting up a first-round matchup with Owen Sound.

On paper, the series is very much in London’s favour. They won all six games in the season series, and haven’t lost to the Attack since February of 2023, a stretch of 12 straight victories. However, most of the games this season were close (other than a one-sided affair in their most recent meeting). Three games needed overtime or a shootout to solve.

Carter George (Los Angeles Kings) was a big reason the Attack snuck into the postseason. He can steal a game (or two) in net, but a lot will need to go right for Owen Sound if they hope to play spoiler in this one.

The Knights have two pretty good netminders of their own. Austin Elliott finished with an eye-popping record of 32-1-0-0, leading the league in save percentage and goals-against average. Aleksei Medvedev was also among the league leaders in several categories, and he led all rookie goalies with 22 wins.

Special teams was once again a driving force of London’s success, as they sported the league’s top penalty kill (84.9%) and were second-best on the powerplay (27.5%) in the OHL. They scored a league-high 325 goals overall — a three-goal upgrade from last year.

Landon Sim was the only Knight to hit 30 goals this season, with both Sam Dickinson and Easton Cowan coming one goal shy of the milestone. The Knights had eight players score at least 20, and had 14 score at least 10.

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OHL Playoffs: First Round — London Knights (1) vs. Owen Sound Attack (8)

Game 1: Fri. March 28 (7:00pm @ London)
Game 2: Sun. March 30 (2:00pm @ London)
Game 3: Tues. Apr. 1 (7:00pm @ Owen Sound)
Game 4: Thurs. Apr. 3 (7:00pm @ Owen Sound)
Game 5: Fri. Apr. 4 (7:00pm @ London) (If necessary)*
Game 6: Sun. Apr. 6 (2:00pm @ Owen Sound) (If necessary)*
Game 7: Tues. Apr. 8 (7:00pm @ London) (If necessary)*

(Photo: Matt Hiscox Photography).

KNIGHTS BY THE NUMBERS

91 - Sam Dickinson’s 91 points is the most in a single season by a defenseman in Knights franchise history.

180 - For the second straight year, the Knights allowed the fewest goals in the OHL. They allowed 180 against this season, 17 fewer than their total of 197 last year.

65 - Easton Cowan’s multi-season point streak of 65 games lasted more than a calendar year.

14 - Denver Barkey set the franchise record with 14 shorthanded goals, one more than linemate Easton Cowan.

A LOOK AT THE LOCALS

- It was a tremendous sophomore season for Ryan Roobroeck of the Niagara IceDogs. Despite not being eligible for the NHL draft until 2026, he scored 41 goals and 87 points to help the IceDogs return to the playoffs for the first time since 2019.

- Kitchener Rangers defenseman Cameron Reid enjoyed a big boost in production. The draft-eligible defenseman from Aylmer had 14 goals and 54 points with the blue shirts this season.

- Strong rookie seasons from Komoka’s Beckham Edwards (Sarnia Sting) and Perth County’s Carson Harmer (Saginaw Spirit). Edwards tallied 25 goals and 45 points, while Harmer was second in rookie scoring with 50 points.

(Photo: Matt Hiscox Photography).

AROUND THE OHL

East

Brantford (1) vs North Bay (8) - Brantford in 4
The Bulldogs had a pair of players hit 100 points, including Nick Lardis (Chicago Blackhawks) who scored 71 goals. That should be enough to power them past a young rebuilding Battalion squad. 

Barrie (2) vs Niagara (7) - Barrie in 5
The IceDogs return to the playoffs for the first time since 2019, and although they are better than most seven seeds you'll see, they face a real tough team in Barrie. It should be a good learning experience for a young Niagara team who should challenge for a championship next season. 

Kingston (3) vs Sudbury (6) - Kingston in 5
This was Kingston’s best regular season since 2016. Jacob Battaglia and Tuomas Uronen both had 90 points, and they also added top-end playoff experience from the Saginaw Spirit. The Wolves have some firepower, but not enough depth to match up with the Fronts. 

Oshawa (4) vs Brampton (5) - Oshawa in 6
This is another tight first-round series in the East. Both have the potential to challenge for an OHL Championship, but one will have their season end in the opening round. This one could be a coin flip, but I give the advantage to Oshawa.

West

London (1) vs Owen Sound (8) - London in 4
The top team in the OHL against the playoff team with the fewest points. This should end as you’d expect — although goaltender Carter George could keep things tighter than they appear on paper. 

Windsor (2) vs Sault Ste. Marie (7) - Windsor in 5
The Spitfires return to the playoffs and open as favourites in this one. The Soo finished the season with five straight wins and could surprise the Spits with a win or two in this one, but I expect Windsor to pull through.

Kitchener (3) vs Flint (6) - Kitchener in 5
The Rangers exceeded expectations and finished with the second-best record in the OHL. Flint is a tough team for a sixth seed, but I expect the Rangers’ top guns to be the difference. Can Jackson Parsons continue his strong play? If so, the Rangers should be able to extend their streak of first-round series wins to four. 

Saginaw (4) vs Erie (5) - Erie in 6
This is the tightest series in the West, and it features an all-USA matchup. Saginaw has home ice, and the experience of a Memorial Cup Championship last year. The duo of Michael Misa and Zayne Parekh will be relied on heavily. Could it come down to goaltending — where Erie has the edge with Noah Eliden? Saginaw’s overage starter, Andrew Oke, has been out with an injury since late February.