London Knights blank Peterborough to open OHL Championship Series

Zach Bowen made 24 saves for his first playoff shutout as the London Knights struck first in the OHL Championship series.

London blanked the Peterborough Petes 3-0 at Budweiser Gardens on Thursday night.

Ryan Winterton scored once and added an assist to lead the way offensively but made plays on the defensive side of the puck all game as well.

Winterton now has goals in seven consecutive games and has at least one point in nine straight playoff games.

Winterton leads London in playoff scoring with 12 goals and 24 points.

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The teams came through a scoreless and hard-hitting first period thanks to the work of Bowen and Londoner Michael Simpson in the Peterborough net. They combined for 19 stops in the opening 20 minutes.

In keeping with the old adage that good defence will create offence, a tremendous back check by Winterton got the puck going the other way on the stick of Denver Barkey. The second-year London forward carried that puck behind the Peterborough net and fed it in front to Easton Cowan and he opened the scoring by burying a wrist shot to give the Knights a 1-0 lead at 14:55 of the second period.

Even before that goal, Bowen made a sensational pair of saves as he stopped an Owen Beck shot moving to his right and then had to lunge back to his left to snare another Beck shot on the rebound.

The score stayed that way through more Bowen and Simpson stops until London rookie Jacob Julien ripped a shot wide of the Petes net and then batted the ricochet off the end boards with a backhand for his second goal of the post-season.

Winterton finished the scoring with another empty-netter. He scored into an empty net in all four of the victories in the series against Sarnia.

The Knights were without goaltender Brett Brochu who remains out day-to-day with a lower body injury.

The Petes were without their captain Shaun Spearing who suffered a broken jaw in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference final against the North Bay Battalion and Jonathan Melee out with a lower body that he suffered against North Bay.

London outshot Peterborough 32-24.

Bulldogs vs Bulldogs

The 2021-22 Hamilton Bulldogs deserved a better fate at the 2022 Memorial Cup in Saint John, N.B. By the time they reached the ultimate tournament in major junior hockey, they were a battered team. Key players had major injuries that they were playing through and Hamilton ultimately lost to a well-rested Sea Dogs team that had been bounced in the first round of the QMJHL playoffs.

Every player on that Bulldogs team wanted another chance.

For five of them, the possibility is still alive.

Goerge Diaco, Ryan Humphrey and Ryan Winterton of the Knights will be facing former teammates Avery Hayes and Gavin White of the Petes and the winning trio or duo will return to the Memorial Cup tournament.

Peterborough forward Jonathan Melee is a sixth former player from the 2021-22 Hamilton roster. Melee was traded to the Petes in a deal for Mason McTavish on Jan. 9, 2021.

Up next

Game 2 of the OHL Championship Series will take place at Budweiser Gardens on Saturday, May 13 at 7 p.m.

After that the series will shift to Peterborough, Ont., for Game 3 on Monday, May 15 at 7 p.m. and Game 4 on Wednesday, May 17 at 7:30 p.m.

Coverage can be heard beginning 30 minutes before the drop of the puck on 980 CFPL, at www.980cfpl.ca and on the Radioplayer Canada app.