The London Knights begin the pre-season tonight at home to the Sarnia Sting.
London has three goalies, 19 forwards and eight defencemen on their roster. Defenceman and Leafs’ prospect, Nic Mattinen is entering his third year with the Knights and talked this week about how training camp changes once you have been through it before.
Here is a look at the all of the players vying for spots in 2017-18.
Goalies
Tyler Johnson – Posted a 3.25 GAA and .900 save percentage as Tyler Parsons’ backup last season.
Jordan Kooy – Appeared in 11 games as a 16-year-old, going 8-2 with a .927 save percentage.
Connor Hicks – Overage goalie who spent last year in Flint, splitting goalie duties with Garrett Forrest.
Forwards
Cliff Pu – Led the Knights in scoring with 35 goals and 86 points in 2016-17.
Robert Thomas – Third in team scoring last year. Selected 20th overall by St. Louis in June NHL Draft.
Sam Miletic – Led the Knights in goals a season ago with 37. Heading into overage year.
Max Jones – First-round pick of the Anaheim Ducks. He can play in the NHL or the OHL this year.
Alex Formenton – Speedy forward set for bigger role after being selected in second round by Ottawa.
Adrian Carbonara – Overage forward known for his size showed off plenty of skill a year ago.
Liam Foudy – Knights’ first-round pick in 2016 earned more and more playing time as last year went on.
Cole Tymkin – Rainy River native, heading into second year, provides great grit and toughness.
Josh Nelson – Off to a flying start in training camp. Possesses good speed and skill.
Richard Whittaker – Put up good numbers with London Nationals. Knights’ 4th rounder in 2016.
Billy Moskal – GOJHL Western Conference Rookie of the Year. Was London’s 2nd round pick in 2016.
Alex Turko – Eighth-round pick of the Knights in 2015. Played 10 games in London & 47 in St. Thomas.
Harrison Cottam – Lit up GOJHL Horsehoe with 62 pts in 49 games. Free agent signing last December.
Lucas Rowe – Knights’ first-round pick in 2017. Play for OHL Cup Champion, Mississauga Reps.
Dalton Duhart – London’s third-round pick in 2017. Scored five goals in four games at the OHL Cup.
Jesper Bratt – New Jersey Devils’ sixth rounder from Sweden has speed and a great shot.
Emmet Pierce – Huge winger (6’6″, 192 lbs) is just 16 and played for the Quinte Red Devils last year.
Ian McKinnon – Whitby native played 17 games with Charlottetown of the QMJHL last year.
Jake Robinson – Eighteen-year-old free agent invite is from Thunder Bay.
Defencemen
Victor Mete – Draft pick of the Montreal Canadiens will be the leader on the blue line this year.
Evan Bouchard – Entering his draft year as a late birthday.
Nic Mattinen – Draft pick of the Maple Leafs entering third season. Big body with a big shot.
Jacob Golden – Brought along slowly last season, but showed enough to be drafted by the NHL’s Wild.
Riley Coome – Went from AA hockey two years ago to the GOJHL last year. Now trying to crack Knights.
Andrew Perrott – Second-round pick of the Knights in 2017. Son of former OHLer and Leaf, Nathan Perrott.
Ryan Bangs – London’s third rounder in 2016. Played for CCHL Champ Carleton Place Canadiens in ’16-17.
Tim Fallowfield – Named to GOJHL’s West All-Rookie team last year while playing in St. Thomas.
Fans attending tonight’s game against the Sting at 7:30 p.m. at Budweiser Gardens are asked to arrive a little earlier than normal as they will have to pass through new metal detectors on their way into the building.
London will play in Sarnia tomorrow, Sept. 2. They will complete the pre-season when they play the Erie Otters in London on September 15 and in Komoka on September 16.
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