Joseph Serpa’s second goal of the game gave the Kitchener Rangers a 4-3 overtime win over the London Knights on Saturday at Budweiser Gardens.
The teams battled to a 3-3 draw as they hurtle toward the end of the regular season.
The Knights are trying to keep their spot atop the Midwest Division and took a temporary 11 point lead over both the Guelph Storm and the Owen Sound Attack. Both teams had games later in the day on Saturday.
Kitchener is facing life or death. The two points they earned in London lifted them eight points clear of the ninth place Erie, as the Rangers, Otters and Sarnia Sting vye for the final two playoff spots in the Western Conference.
Jackson Parsons made 46 saves in goal for the Rangers. London, Ont., native Aiden Berry made 22 saves in his first home start for the Knights.
London earned goals from Gerard Keane, Liam Gilmartin and Sean McGurn. McGurn’s goal was his 20th on the year and tied the game 3-3 with less than ten minutes remaining in the third period.
Keane missed tying a Knights record by one second but managed to tie the game five seconds into the second period when the puck bounced past Rangers goalie Jackson Parsons to make it 1-1. Doug Synishin owns the London record for fastest goal to begin a period. He scored four seconds into the third period when the opposing centre during the opening faceoff tried to push the puck past Synishin and missed. Synishin grabbed the puck, took two strides and blasted a shot past the goalie from outside the blue line.
Serpa with two, Adam Zidlicky and Mitchell Martin had the goals for Kitchener.
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The season series between the teams has been one of two waves. London won the first five games and the Rangers posted victories in the next four.
The teams will meet one more time on Wednesday, April 13, at Budweiser Gardens.
The wall of Flores
Owen Flores of the London Knights had himself quite a week in goal for the London Nationals.
In games against LaSalle, Komoka and the St. Marys Lincolns Flores stopped 95 of 96 shots, posted two shutouts and picked up three wins.
The 17-year old from Antioch, IL, has played 16 total games for the Nationals this season and has 13 appearances with the Knights. Flores was a sixth round pick of London’s in the 2020 OHL Priority Selection.
Willms defeats Nelson and Centorame
The University of New Brunswick captured the Atlantic championship in men’s University hockey on March 25 when they beat St. Francis Xavier 3-1 and the London Knights were well-represented.
Jason Willms is in his first year at UNB. Josh Nelson is in his first season with the X-Men and Santino Centorame is a fifth-year senior with St. FX. All three spent time in London, Ont., in their OHL careers.
In fact, Willms and Nelson were traded for each other in 2020 in a deadline deal between the Knights and the Barrie Colts. Both UNB and St. FX have qualified for the University Cup national championship, which will begin March 31 in Wolfville, N.S.
Up next
The Knights will complete three games in three days on Sunday, March 27, in Guelph, Ont., against the Storm. Guelph will be playing their third game in as many days as well.
The clubs have played nine times in 2021-22. Guelph has won six of those games.
London needs to earn 11 points in their final ten games to clinch the Midwest Division.
Coverage will start at 6:30 p.m. on 980 CFPL, at http://www.980cfpl.ca and on the Radioplayer Canada app.
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