After a 3-1 victory on home ice on Friday, the London Knights hit the road Sept. 9 for the short ride west on the 402 to face the Sting in Sarnia, Ont., as their four-game pre-season schedule continues on Saturday night.
London got goals from Landon Sim, Bryce Montgomery and a determined empty-netter from Easton Cowan that saw him tugged off his skates only to score anyway, as well as an 18-save performance from goaltender Brett Brochu in the win.
The two rivals won’t see each other again after Saturday’s game until Dec. 30 in London, Ont., where they will start a run of six games from that point until the end of the regular season.
Players to pay attention to on the Knights
Owen Willmore and Zach Bowen
With Brochu playing the entire first game of the home-and-home with the Sting, there is an excellent chance both Willmore and Bowen will see time in Sarnia, Ont., in the second game. Willmore is a 14th-round pick of London’s from 2020 who got a chance to play while Brochu was injured late last year and impressed. Willmore has great size and an excellent competitive streak and played in six games for the Knights last year. The St. Thomas, Ont., native won’t turn 18 until December and could get much more work in 2022-23, especially if Brochu signs a pro deal. Bowen signed with the Knights on Sept. 9 and is 17. He impressed London with his play in EOJHL and CCHL last season and they selected him in the 4th round of the 2022 OHL Priority Selection.
The 2022 draft class
Luca Testa received his first taste of the OHL in the pre-season opener. He made smart plays all night and created two quality scoring chances late in the game. Sam O’ Reilly and William Nicholl were the Knights’ 2nd and 3rd round choices respectively and will very likely see the ice in Sarnia, Ont. O’Reilly is a physical player with a great offensive skill set. Nicholl is a smooth skater with a high IQ who has a knack for making the right play at the right time.
Players to pay attention to on the Sting
Porter Martone was Sarnia’s first-round pick in 2022 also has some OHL bloodlines. His dad Mike played for the Peterborough Petes in the mid-90s and scored the OHL championship winning goal in overtime in 1996 in Game 7 against the Guelph Storm. Porter was selected fifth overall and has the ability to grow into a dominant player in the league over the next few years.
Marcus Limpar-Lantz was selected 99th overall in the CHL Import Draft in 2022. His uncle is Anders Limpar who played for Sweden twice in the World Cup of soccer in 1990 and 1994. Sweden finished in third place in 1994.
How to listen
Coverage will begin at 7 p.m. at 980cfpl.ca and on the Radioplayer Canada app.
After the game, the Knights will be off until Sept. 23, when they will host the Erie Otters at Budweiser Gardens at 7 p.m. London will play the Otters in Clinton, Ont., on Sept. 24 to end their pre-season slate.
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