New-look Knights find win column, eye big weekend

Knight Watch: The boys are back in town, as Cowan, Barkey, Bonk return from NHL camps; London offense on the attack in Owen Sound; Medvedev gets second win; It’s Barrie and Guelph this weekend …

Easton Cowan made his season debut Wednesday after returning from NHL camp with the Toronto Maple Leafs. (Photo: Matt Hiscox Photography).

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The London Knights may have stumbled out of the gate given the preseason expectations, but some top-end reinforcements are officially back — and you can expect the wins to follow.

Denver Barkey and Oliver Bonk, who were returned from the Philadelphia Flyers late last week, entered the lineup Wednesday against the Owen Sound Attack. And so, too, did Easton Cowan, the reigning OHL Most Outstanding Player who is back from the Toronto Maple Leafs.

All three made an impact in their season debuts.

Cowan scored a shorthanded goal (he had seven such tallies last year); Bonk scored a goal and assisted on the overtime winner; and Barkey picked up an assist on Sam Dickinson’s third period power play goal.

London led the league in powerplay efficiency last season, and now that many of those contributing players have returned, the man advantage will once again be a dangerous weapon this year. On Wednesday, they scored on one of their two opportunities.

Winnipeg Jets prospect Jacob Julien had three assists Wednesday, giving him five points in five games to start the season. He set up Sam O’Reilly’s overtime winner, a nice passing play in which the Edmonton Oilers first-round draft pick redirected the puck past Attack netminder Carter George.

In London’s net, Alexei Medvedev wasn’t overly busy, but he made some timely third period saves in recording his second win of the season.

Blake Arrowsmith scored again Wednesday. He’s found the back of the net in three of the four games he’s played this season.

The Knights had started the year with just one win through their first four games, getting outshot — and out-chanced — in all four. But it was a different story Wednesday, as they finished with 41 shots on goal, 36 of which came in the opening two periods. They had just four shots in the third period and needed only the one shot in overtime.

In prospect news, goaltender Finn Wilson has joined the GOJHL’s London Nationals, and he recorded a win in his debut Wednesday. Meanwhile, on Wednesday afternoon a pair of young Knights (Logan Hawery & Caleb Mitchell) were selected to compete at the 2024 U17 World Challenge (Nov. 3-9 in Sarnia).

Evan Van Gorp stepped up with some big names away at NHL camps, tallying three goals and five points in his first four games. (Photo: Matt Hiscox Photography).

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UPCOMING GAMEDAYS

Friday (Oct. 11, 7:00pm) vs. Barrie Colts (3-2-0-0, 4th in Central)

The Colts have a strong team this season — one that’s expected to compete for an OHL championship. And they’ve shown signs of that talent during the first few weeks. Cole Beaudoin (Utah) and Emil Hemming (Dallas) both have five points through three games. On defence, Tristan Bertucci, another Dallas prospect, was a big offseason acquisition from Flint, while Beau Akey (Edmonton) is another talent — and he’s healthy after playing just 14 games last season. Gabriel Eliasson (Ottawa) will be hard to miss at 6-foot-7, while Sam Hillebrandt is among the upper echelon of OHL goaltending talent. Also keep an eye out for St. Thomas native Parker Vaughan, who was the fifth overall pick in the most recent OHL draft. And watch for Dylan Wakely, an Edmonton Oilers prospect who was acquired by the Colts in a trade with the North Bay Battalion Wednesday, who could make his Barrie debut Friday.

Saturday (Oct. 12, 4:00pm) vs. Guelph Storm (2-2-0-0, 2nd in Midwest)

For the second straight season, Guelph’s best player will start the season in the NHL. Following the footsteps of Matthew Poitras with Boston last year, Jett Luchanko has made the opening night roster for the Philadelphia Flyers. The London-born forward was the 13th overall pick in the most recent NHL draft. Poitras’ absence last year gave Luchanko an opportunity, and he ran with it, so Guelph will be looking down the bench for someone else to step up this time around. Cam Allen (Washington) has five points through four games and could be a candidate for the OHL’s top defenseman come season’s end. Overager Max Namestnikov has 153 career points and will be relied upon offensively. Big forward Vilmer Alriksson (Vancouver) is also someone who can contribute. Former London Jr. Knight Parker Snelgrove enters his sophomore season and has one goal through four games.

(Photo: Matt Hiscox Photography).

A LOOK AT THE LOCALS

- Former London Jr. Knight Jett Luchanko is starting the year in the NHL. The Guelph Storm forward had 74 points last season and was selected 13th overall by the Philadelphia Flyers in the 2024 draft. He’ll make his NHL debut Friday night as the youngest player in Flyers history at 18 years and 51 days old.

- Niagara IceDogs forward Ryan Roobroeck has found the score sheet, finding the back of the net twice against Oshawa Friday night (and adding another against Brampton on Sunday).

- Komoka’s Beckham Edwards has five goals through his first six games with the Sarnia Sting. He had three goals and four points over three games last week, earning him OHL Rookie of the Week honours.

- Flint forward Matthew Wang scored his first of the season Wednesday night against Kitchener.

- Edwards (Sarnia Sting), Carter Hicks (Windsor Spitfires) and Parker Vaughan (Barrie Colts) were selected to compete at the 2024 U17 World Challenge (Nov. 3-9 in Sarnia).

KNIGHTS BY THE NUMBERS

1 - Cohen Bidgood and Noah Aboflan are the latest Knights to score their first career OHL goals.

9 - London leads the OHL with nine powerplay goals. William Nicholl and Evan Van Gorp have both scored a pair.

23 - Despite only playing in three games, Sam Dickinson leads the Knights with 23 shots on goal. He’s averaging 7.6 shots per game. He led the team with 233 shots last season (3.4 per game).

AROUND THE OHL

- Former London Knights defenseman Bryce Montgomery signed an entry level contract with the Carolina Hurricanes.

- The Niagara IceDogs are the last remaining undefeated team in the OHL with a 4-0 record, scoring 20 goals during those contests. That earned them a spot in the latest CHL Top Ten Rankings at 8th.

- The Erie Otters have announced they will retire Connor McDavid’s number 97 during a ceremony on January 10.

- Oshawa Generals forward Callum Ritchie is starting the season with the NHL’s Colorado Avalanche.

- Goalies Jack Ivankovic (Brampton) and Owen Flores (Niagara) have both been suspended four games for fighting during a game on Oct. 6. Flores played 23 games with the Knights during the 2021-22 season.

- The Barrie Colts acquired overage forward and Edmonton Oilers prospect Dylan Wakely from the North Bay Battalion for Shamar Moses and two draft picks.