The wisdom of a veteran never goes unnoticed in sports.
Cliff Pu returned from Buffalo Sabres’ training camp and helped to propel the London Knights to their first win of the season on Saturday night in Saginaw, MI.
Pu set up the first goal of the game and the last goal of the game in a 3-2 overtime victory at the Dow Event Centre.
After logging all kinds of minutes in every situation, Pu was sent out as the Knights and Spirit started overtime and after a quick jaunt into the Knights’ end, Evan Bouchard pushed the puck to centre and Pu raced ahead to join him, creating a 2-on-1. Bouchard fed Pu in the high slot and he deked in tight on Saginaw goalie, Evan Cormier and then dished back to Bouchard who was stopped on his first and second attempts, but stayed with the puck and chipped a third try into the back of the net for the game winner.
Two veterans. Loads of wisdom and know how, and the first Knights’ victory of the season.
“Last year I had a big role with the team and this year I get to learn from Dale Hunter again and work to produce offense and play a two-way game,” said Pu.
The Toronto native was eighth in OHL scoring as an 18-year old in 2016-17 and with six Knights’ players still away with their own respective NHL teams, he resumed his job as catalyst almost from the drop of the puck.
Pu found Adrian Carbonara cutting into the slot and rifled a pass that would have been good enough for a bullseye in any sport asking you to hit a target. Carbonara directed the puck past Spirit goalie Evan Cormier to put the Knights ahead 1-0.
At the other end of the ice, stood Jordan Kooy in the London crease.
Entering what will be his first full season in the Ontario Hockey League, the 17-year-old doesn’t quite qualify for the description of veteran, but thanks to a bit of a baptism by fire last year, Kooy was forced to grow up fast in the Knight net. He had a more than a few wily moves against Saginaw in a 39-save performance.
Kooy held the fort through a period and a half before Spirit forward, Kyle Bollers forced a turnover and fed Max Grondin in the slot to tie the game.
The Knights and the Spirit entered the third period locked at 1-1, but Josh Nelson put London back in front almost immediately. Nelson exploded on a loose puck outside the Spirit blue line, split the two defenders in front of him and fended them off his he went hard to the net and backhanded the puck high to the stick side past Cormier.
With ZZ Top and Wynona Judd playing concerts that started at the same time as the game, there wasn’t a full house to stand up and take notice of Nelson’s heroics, but the big contingent of Knights’ fans in attendance sure did.
The 2-1 lead lasted 24 seconds as Kyle Bollers of the Spirit ripped a backhand of his own into the London net to even the score at 2-2.
Saginaw had a tremendous chance to push the momentum their way after Alex Turko of the Knights was given a five-minute major for cross-checking on Marcus Crawford, who used his own veteran smarts to stay down on the ice before popping back up and quarterbacking the man-advantage for Saginaw.
London didn’t sit back on the penalty kill and actually created two short-handed chances and drew a penalty which helped to get them through the Spirit power play unscathed.
That set the stage for overtime and the Bouchard and Pu combination to net the winner.
London will be in Sault Ste. Marie on Sunday to play the Greyhounds, who are going through a lean weekend with many of their veterans away with NHL clubs. The ‘Hounds dropped their home opener to Oshawa on Saturday.
Broadcast time on AM980, at AM980.ca and on the Radioplayer Canada app at 1:30 p.m.
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