Knights' Night: No home ice this year for Knights, who travel to Owen Sound for first round
CREDIT: ANDREW STEPHENSON OF BOLT MEDIA AND THE LONDON KNIGHTS
Now that the London Knights are in the playoffs, they have to work as hard as they can to secure a spot in advancing to the next round of games.
It wasn't the end to the regular season the London Knights were hoping for.
After stringing together six straight wins between March 1 and March 10, the wheels fell off in the last weekend of the season.
The Knights played three games in three consecutive days, losing two of them.
That opened up a window of opportunity for the Owen Sound Attack to capture the fourth seed in the Western Conference.
And they didn't pass it up.
The Attack won their last six games of the season, including an impressive 9-4 win over the Sarnia Sting, to clinch the fourth spot. They finished 38-22-3-5.
Meanwhile, the Knights ended up 39-25-2-2.
The final weekend of the season began with a tough 4-2 loss to the Sarnia Sting at home on March 16.
The Knights found themselves in a 3-0 hole before the end of the first period, and couldn't get their legs under them to mount a comeback.
Alex Turko and Tyler Rollo scored the lone goals for London.
Just a day later, Evan Bouchard led the charge in Saginaw, scoring the overtime winner in a 4-3 victory over the Sting.
Turko and Rollo both also scored in the winning effort.
That win put London's destiny in their own hands. With a win over the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds on March 18, the Knights would clinch the fourth spot in the West.
Unfortunately, the Greyhounds are just about unbeatable this season.
With the home crowd behind them at the Essar Centre, the Greyhounds beat London 6-3 in the final game of the season for both teams.
Bouchard, Rollo and Josh Nelson scored for the Knights.
With the goal, Bouchard finished the season as the highest scoring defenceman in the league, with an impressive 87 points in 67 games.
That also put him in eighth spot among all OHL skaters.
With his terrific season, Bouchard is expected to be a top-ten pick in the 2018 draft. He will be a huge part of the Knights' playoff run.
Overall, it was a disappointing final few games for London, who will now travel to Owen Sound for games one and two.
When the math is all done, London finished just two points back of their first-round opponent.
And what a first-round matchup it will be.
In six games this season, London got the best of Owen Sound, winning four.
A big part of this series will come down to the Knights shutting down superstar Nick Suzuki.
The 18-year-old was a first-round draft pick of the Las Vegas Golden Knights last year (13th overall).
He's had an excellent season in Owen Sound.
Suzuki finished the regular season as the OHL's fourth leading scorer, amassing a remarkable 100 points in 64 games.
Kevin Hancock is also a player to watch for the Attack, with 69 points of his own this year, in 53 games.
As well, Aidan Dudas (65 points in 68 games) and Allan McShane (65 points in 67 games) round out an impressive forward core.
Like last season, when the Knights played their first-round matchup against the eventual Memorial Cup winning Windsor Spitfires, this series could go either way.
That one went seven games, and there's no reason to believe this one couldn't, either.
Games one and two were March 22 and March 24 at the Harry Lumley Bayshore Community Centre.
The series swings back to Budweiser Gardens for games three and four on March 26 and 29.
The real work starts now for the London Knights.
Now that the London Knights are in the playoffs, they have to work as hard as they can to secure a spot in advancing to the next round of games.
It wasn't the end to the regular season the London Knights were hoping for.
After stringing together six straight wins between March 1 and March 10, the wheels fell off in the last weekend of the season.
The Knights played three games in three consecutive days, losing two of them.
That opened up a window of opportunity for the Owen Sound Attack to capture the fourth seed in the Western Conference.
And they didn't pass it up.
The Attack won their last six games of the season, including an impressive 9-4 win over the Sarnia Sting, to clinch the fourth spot. They finished 38-22-3-5.
Meanwhile, the Knights ended up 39-25-2-2.
The final weekend of the season began with a tough 4-2 loss to the Sarnia Sting at home on March 16.
The Knights found themselves in a 3-0 hole before the end of the first period, and couldn't get their legs under them to mount a comeback.
Alex Turko and Tyler Rollo scored the lone goals for London.
Just a day later, Evan Bouchard led the charge in Saginaw, scoring the overtime winner in a 4-3 victory over the Sting.
Turko and Rollo both also scored in the winning effort.
That win put London's destiny in their own hands. With a win over the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds on March 18, the Knights would clinch the fourth spot in the West.
Unfortunately, the Greyhounds are just about unbeatable this season.
With the home crowd behind them at the Essar Centre, the Greyhounds beat London 6-3 in the final game of the season for both teams.
Bouchard, Rollo and Josh Nelson scored for the Knights.
With the goal, Bouchard finished the season as the highest scoring defenceman in the league, with an impressive 87 points in 67 games.
That also put him in eighth spot among all OHL skaters.
With his terrific season, Bouchard is expected to be a top-ten pick in the 2018 draft. He will be a huge part of the Knights' playoff run.
Overall, it was a disappointing final few games for London, who will now travel to Owen Sound for games one and two.
When the math is all done, London finished just two points back of their first-round opponent.
And what a first-round matchup it will be.
In six games this season, London got the best of Owen Sound, winning four.
A big part of this series will come down to the Knights shutting down superstar Nick Suzuki.
The 18-year-old was a first-round draft pick of the Las Vegas Golden Knights last year (13th overall).
He's had an excellent season in Owen Sound.
Suzuki finished the regular season as the OHL's fourth leading scorer, amassing a remarkable 100 points in 64 games.
Kevin Hancock is also a player to watch for the Attack, with 69 points of his own this year, in 53 games.
As well, Aidan Dudas (65 points in 68 games) and Allan McShane (65 points in 67 games) round out an impressive forward core.
Like last season, when the Knights played their first-round matchup against the eventual Memorial Cup winning Windsor Spitfires, this series could go either way.
That one went seven games, and there's no reason to believe this one couldn't, either.
Games one and two were March 22 and March 24 at the Harry Lumley Bayshore Community Centre.
The series swings back to Budweiser Gardens for games three and four on March 26 and 29.
The real work starts now for the London Knights.