Around the OHL: London is the early favourite
With the NHL currently on lockout,
the fate of the season is up in
the air. But, we know the London
Knights are set for the Ontario
Hockey League season to be
played at Budweiser Gardens. The
expectations for the OHL champs
are high as they should be.
Last year the London Knights overachieved; the fact that they walked away with the best record in the OHL and were ultimately one goal away from winning the Memorial Cup is more than I could have ever predicted, especially with a coaching change midway through the season. I labeled them as being one year away from regaining the title as Memorial Cup champs or the number-one team in the Canadian Hockey League. Going into this year's season, I stand by that comment by saying that this is their year.
Their defence will be the best the franchise has ever seen, better than their "untouchable" 2005 roster. Olli Maatta, Scott Harrington, Tommy Hughes, Kevin Raine and Tyler Ferry will all be returning. Nikita Zadorov from Russia and Paxton Leroux out of Peterborough will add a big presence to the blue line. I'm a firm believer that defence wins championships, and that's where this team thrives.
With two strong goaltenders, who will see the ice more this season: Kevin Bailie or Jake Patterson? Bailie would be my number-one pick to start the season, because he spent last year playing for the Oshawa Generals, a team that wasn't solid defensively. He is used to seeing a lot of pucks throughout the game and it will be interesting to see how he plays with a strong defence in front of him. Patterson, on the other hand, split the season with the Knights and the London Nationals (Jr.); he was solid with the Knights, but he posted mediocre numbers with the Nationals, going 0-3, with a 6.50 goals against average and a .804 save percentage allowing 18 goals in four games. Throughout his six games with the Knights, he went 2-2, allowing seven goals against with a 1.85 goals against average and a 0.929 save percentage. Not too bad, but my money is on Bailie to be the regular starter for London.
How is London going to do when it comes to getting the puck into the net? Well, they are going to have to look at the kids of yesterday to lead this season; Max Domi, Bo Horvat, Josh Anderson and Chris Tierney. A couple of fresh faces on the offence will make the third and fourth line very interesting to watch — we'll see if they can handle this hockey crazy city. When it comes to grit on the team, there isn't much, just those Rupert twins.
Concluding, I would like to make note that the last NHL lockout (2005) was very generous to the London Knights: OHL Championship, Memorial Cup and set multiple records. Hockey fans don't look forward to the lockout, although history says the London Knights do.
Last year the London Knights overachieved; the fact that they walked away with the best record in the OHL and were ultimately one goal away from winning the Memorial Cup is more than I could have ever predicted, especially with a coaching change midway through the season. I labeled them as being one year away from regaining the title as Memorial Cup champs or the number-one team in the Canadian Hockey League. Going into this year's season, I stand by that comment by saying that this is their year.
Their defence will be the best the franchise has ever seen, better than their "untouchable" 2005 roster. Olli Maatta, Scott Harrington, Tommy Hughes, Kevin Raine and Tyler Ferry will all be returning. Nikita Zadorov from Russia and Paxton Leroux out of Peterborough will add a big presence to the blue line. I'm a firm believer that defence wins championships, and that's where this team thrives.
With two strong goaltenders, who will see the ice more this season: Kevin Bailie or Jake Patterson? Bailie would be my number-one pick to start the season, because he spent last year playing for the Oshawa Generals, a team that wasn't solid defensively. He is used to seeing a lot of pucks throughout the game and it will be interesting to see how he plays with a strong defence in front of him. Patterson, on the other hand, split the season with the Knights and the London Nationals (Jr.); he was solid with the Knights, but he posted mediocre numbers with the Nationals, going 0-3, with a 6.50 goals against average and a .804 save percentage allowing 18 goals in four games. Throughout his six games with the Knights, he went 2-2, allowing seven goals against with a 1.85 goals against average and a 0.929 save percentage. Not too bad, but my money is on Bailie to be the regular starter for London.
How is London going to do when it comes to getting the puck into the net? Well, they are going to have to look at the kids of yesterday to lead this season; Max Domi, Bo Horvat, Josh Anderson and Chris Tierney. A couple of fresh faces on the offence will make the third and fourth line very interesting to watch — we'll see if they can handle this hockey crazy city. When it comes to grit on the team, there isn't much, just those Rupert twins.
Concluding, I would like to make note that the last NHL lockout (2005) was very generous to the London Knights: OHL Championship, Memorial Cup and set multiple records. Hockey fans don't look forward to the lockout, although history says the London Knights do.
