In May, the London Knights became MasterCard Memorial Cup champions for just the second time in franchise history. The green and gold capped off their impressive Ontario Hockey League playoff run by traveling to Red Deer, Alberta from May 19-29 to capture junior hockey’s most coveted prize.
London opened the tournament with a convincing 6-2 win over the host Red Deer Rebels. The Knights went on to dominate the Western Hockey League champion Brandon Wheat Kings, 9-1, in the second game, and then finished round robin play with a 5-2 victory over the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League.
The Knights’ perfect round robin record earned them a bye to the Memorial Cup final where they once again faced the Huskies. Trailing 2-1 with just over four minutes left in the third period, Christian Dvorak scored for the Knights to send the game into overtime. Matthew Tkachuk played the role of the overtime hero, toe dragging and firing the puck into the top of the net 7:49 into extra time to send Knights fans and players alike into a celebratory frenzy.
Mitch Marner led all scorers in the tournament with 14 points in four games and was awarded the Stafford Smyth Memorial Trophy as the Memorial Cup’s most valuable player. Marner added the award to the long list of accolades he earned this season. The Toronto Maple Leafs’ prospect was also named the OHL and Canadian Hockey League player of the year.
The Knights didn’t lose a game after April 1 and ended the season on a 17-game winning streak.
Story and photo submitted by the London Knights
