One goal against in five games. And counting.
The North Bay Battalion continued to stymie opposing offences as they shut out the London Knights 4-0 on Sunday afternoon at the North Bay memorial Gardens.
The Battalion have allowed exactly one goal against in the month of March.
It was a memorable one. It was Owen Sound Attack forward Antonio Tersigni’s first in the Ontario Hockey League and it came in a 4-1 Battalion victory over the Attack on March 8. Other than that, it has been four shutouts for North Bay.
Two have come from Londoner Charlie Robertson, and the other two have been recorded by the OHL leader in both goals against average and save percentage, Dom DiVincentiis.
DiVincentiis stopped all 27 shots by the Knights for his fourth shutout of the season. Londoner Michael Simpson of the Peterborough Petes leads the league with five.
The Battalion scored two goals 28 seconds apart in the opening period as Anthony Romani and Kyle McDonald both found the back of the Knight’s net in the first period, before the seven minute mark. It was Romani’s 20th goal of the season and McDonald’s third in three games. He signed an NHL entry-level contract with the Dallas Stars on March 10.
Seattle Kraken prospect Kyle Jackson made it 3-0 at 6:03 of the second period as he scored his 30th goal and picked up his 80th point.
Liam Arnsby finished the scoring into an empty net with 1:35 to go.
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Logan Mailloux and Liam Arnsby were assessed game misconducts for participating in a second fight in the same stoppage. Both stand to receive automatic two-game suspensions.
London and the Windsor Spitfires now sit tied for first place in the Western Conference. The Spitfires currently own the tiebreaker against the Knights. The clubs will meet twice on the final weekend of the regular season.
More magic from Marner
Mitch Marner’s goal against Edmonton is bouncing around feeds on whatever platform anyone has open, but it’s his performance in Saturday’s game that has eyes wide open. Marner’s goal and three assists in Toronto’s 7-4 win at home to the Oilers gave him 17 points in an eight-game span. Averaging more than two points per game was what the former Knight did on a regular basis when he was in the OHL, but to do it for any stretch of games in the National Hockey League is rare. Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux are the only NHL players to average more than two points per game for an entire season. They did it a combined 16 times (Gretzky – ten times; Lemieux – six times).
Charlie Robertson’s shutout streak
Londoner Charlie Robertson didn’t see the net against his hometown team on Sunday. Robertson currently has a shutout streak of 133 minutes and 29 seconds that dates back to February 25. Former Knights goalie Adam Dennis is the general manager in North Bay and selected Robertson in the 7th round of the 2021 OHL Priority Selection. The former Jr. Knight has posted back-to-back shutouts against the Oshawa Generals and Niagara IceDogs and has three shutouts on the year. He has also posted a 3.21 goals against average and a .886 save percentage in 18 appearances this season. Robertson played in the 2023 Top Prospects Game with Oliver Bonk and Denver Barkey of the Knights.
Up next
The Knights will end eight straight games on the road on Wednesday, March 15, in Guelph, Ont.
So far, London is 2-4-1 over the nearly three weeks away from Budweiser Gardens.
The Knights are 3-1-1 against the Storm this season. Guelph is battling with Flint, Owen Sound and Kitchener for spots, five through eight in the Western Conference.
London will be home for the first time since late February when they host the Kingston Frontenacs on Friday, March 17 at 7 p.m. at Budweiser Gardens.
Coverage will begin at 6:30 p.m. on 980 CFPL, at http://www.980cfpl.ca and on the Radioplayer Canada app.
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