It’s go time for the House of Green.
The London Knights will face off against the Windsor Spitfires in their first game of the regular season at Budweiser Gardens on Friday.
With six rookies on the roster, London has a young team this year, but that also means they have a lot of fresh talent.
“We’ve got three really good young 16-year-olds that we believe are going to be very, very good players,” said Mark Hunter, the team’s general manager.
With Captain Evan Bouchard at training camp with the Edmonton Oilers, forward Alex Formenton at camp with the Ottawa Senators, and defenceman Adam Boqvist training with the Chicago Blackhawks, London will be missing a few key players for Friday’s game.
It’s unclear if any of those players will be returning to the Knights.
Although it puts a little extra pressure on the team, Hunter said it’s special to see players graduate to the NHL.
“You get the Max Domis, the Bo Harvats, the Mitch Marners, the Nazem Kadris. I could go on and on. I’m sure I missed quite a few players there,” Hunter said.
“It’s special to us and I know it really touches a lot of fans because they feel part of helping them grow as young men,” he said.
“Standing back and watching Hockey Night in Canada on a Saturday night and seeing those boys, there’s nothing better.”
The Knights are currently ranked second in the CHL, and with a preseason record of 3-1, London is looking good heading into the regular season.
“Are they going to be a first-round pick in the National Hockey League draft? A second-round pick?” he said.
“Part of our responsibility is to develop them and get them drafted.”
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You can hear Friday’s game on Global News Radio 980 CFPL, starting with the pregame at 6:30 p.m. Puck drop is at 7:30 p.m. Mike Stubbs will have the call.
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