It didn’t end the way they wanted, but the London Knights gave it their all in 2021-22 and provided fans with exciting hockey all season long – a welcome reprieve from COVID-19. Londoners were thrilled to have junior hockey back, and the Knights once again won more often than not.
Things ended with a thrilling Game 7 matchup against the Kitchener Rangers. After a hard-fought first-round playoff series, and dominant play from London in the final 20 minutes, it was Kitchener who got the right bounces in overtime to win the series and move on in the OHL playoffs.
There was plenty worth celebrating for the Knights in 2021-22, and it all began with a season-opening nine-game winning streak – in their first action since March of 2020. London held first place in the Midwest Division for nearly the entire season.
The Knights’ all-star goalie, Brett Brochu, represented Canada at the World Junior Championships over the holiday break, and although the tournament was cut short due to COVID-19, the London netminder managed to earn a win in round robin play before things shut down.
Isaiah George and Ruslan Gazizov also had the opportunity to represent the club on a different stage. The pair of defensemen participated in the CHL top prospects game.
It was quite the year, meanwhile, for the Knights’ top two scorers, Luke Evangelista and Antonio Stranges. Evangelista tallied 55 goals in the regular season, becoming just the fifth player during the Hunter ownership era to reach the 50-goal milestone.
Stranges showed off his skills on a near-nightly basis. On three separate occasions, he scored goals that went viral on social media. All were similar, and all were highlight reel-worthy, as he skated coast-to-coast, eluding defenders and knocking home nifty goals. The clips blew up on social media, with shares and posts from ESPN and the NHL, among others (Stranges also led London in scoring in their playoff series).
Overall, the Knights finished 39-22-5-2 during the regular season, good for the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference heading into playoffs. Evangelista led the team in scoring with 111 points (fourth most in the league). His 55 goals were tops in the OHL. Brett Brochu finished third in the league with a .911 save percentage. He also made a triumphant return for Game 1 of the playoffs after missing 44 days of action due to an ankle injury that required minor surgery.
Stranges tallied 84 points, including 31 goals, while Sean McGurn had 73 points (20 goals, 53 assists). Cody Morgan, the fourth Knight to average a point per game, finished with 30 goals and 71 points while playing in all 68 regular season contests (the only Knight to do so).
Contributions by London Knights
