Knight Watch: Is London all-in to win in 2023?

The Knights, Western Conference leaders and winners of 19 of their last 21 games, are going for it. They’ve already made a pre-trade deadline move, and there may be more to come. Columnist Jake Jeffrey has the latest …

(Photo: Matt Hiscox Photography).

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The London Knights have moved their chips to the centre of the table, so to speak, having already added a pair of OHL champions from the Hamilton Bulldogs prior to the trade deadline.

The Knights earlier this week acquired forwards Ryan Winterton and Ryan Humphrey, who won the league title last year — alongside London’s co-captain, George Diaco, who played a fair amount with both forwards last season. In exchange, the Knights sent first-round pick Luca Testa to Hamilton, along with Carson Lloyd, who had been playing with the GOJHL’s London Nationals, and a 2026 draft pick. Testa is a tough player to part ways with, as he has a bright future in the league, but he isn’t quite an impact player yet. Humphrey and Winterton are.

Humphrey already got his first point as a Knight, picking up an assist in Tuesday’s overtime victory over Guelph. Winterton is expected to make his Knights debut Friday night against his former team. The forward has yet to play this season, as he’s been recovering from injury, but the Seattle Kraken prospect had 46 points in 37 regular season games last year — and then contributed just over a point per game during Hamilton’s playoff run. 

In Testa, London parted ways with one of their first-round picks from last year’s draft — but they only gave up one actual draft pick in the deal. The Knights definitely still have pieces to move if they see an opportunity to improve. The addition of a shutdown defensemen, or some further scoring depth upfront, could be welcome — but only if the price is right. The Knights already have a fairly deep group on the blueline, so the addition of another would be on a want basis, rather than a need.

With the additions this week, it looks all but certain that the Knights will be keeping Brett Brochu through the remainder of the season, letting him graduate the OHL as a London Knight and giving him an opportunity to continue his climb among the franchise’s elite.

Brochu is third in wins (78), behind Gene Chiarello (84) and Tyler Parsons (93). He’s fifth in shutouts with seven, and he’s second all-time in goaltender assists with eight. Steve Mason holds that current benchmark with 11. If it wasn't for the lost season to COVID-19, Brochu would likely be atop most goaltending categories.

London will likely look to manage Brochu’s workload a bit, keeping him busy while not burning him out. Zach Bowen has been solid when called upon, and a healthy and well-rested Brochu will be integral for a lengthy playoff run.

Things are once against looking very tight in the Western Conference. Kitchener and Windsor also added via the trade market this week, and Sarnia picked up a couple of pieces before Christmas. Saginaw has been at or near the top of the conference all season, while Owen Sound also boasts a strong squad. I am sure more moves will come before next week’s deadline (Jan. 10).

Knights forward Mathieu Paris scored his first OHL goal last week in Sarnia. Logan Mailloux will miss Friday’s tilt as he serves the final game of his three-game suspension.

The OHL has announced a new date for London’s game against Flint that was postponed in December. The two teams will now play at Budweiser Gardens Feb. 6.

Newly-acquired Ryan Humphrey, shown here in front of the net, has 14 points in 25 games (24 with Hamilton). He notched an assist in his London Knights debut Tuesday, Jan. 3. (Photo: Matt Hiscox Photography).

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UPCOMING GAMEDAYS

Friday (Jan. 6, 7:00pm) vs. Hamilton Bulldogs (14-14-4-0, 4th in East)

Days after completing a multi-player trade, the Knights and Bulldogs will face off with some familiar faces in new uniforms. Coming off an OHL championship, the Bulldogs are now looking to rebuild, and they got a great prospect in Luca Testa, London’s first-round pick from last year. Overagers Logan Morrison and Avery Hayes are still with Hamilton, and they’ve scored 20 and 27 goals, respectively, this season. The next highest scorer on the team is Ottawa Senators prospect Jorian Donovan with eight. Londoner Noah Nelson has a pair of goals this season, and Friday will be his first opportunity to play in front of a hometown crowd.

Saturday (Jan. 7, 7:05pm) @ Saginaw Spirit (23-10-2-0, 2nd in West)

The Spirit enters the weekend tied with Windsor for the division lead — and a point behind London for top spot in the Western Conference. Strathroy native Hunter Haight has been dominant since coming to Saginaw. Pavel Mintyukov is the OHL’s top scoring defensemen, and he leads Saginaw in points, as well, with 51. Rookie Michael Misa, meanwhile, leads all first-year players with 38 goals. Forward Matyas Sapovaliv had seven points at the World Junior Championships to help Czechia secure the silver medal. He’s a second round pick of the Vegas Golden Knights.

Sunday (Jan. 8, 2:07pm) @ Soo Greyhounds (11-14-6-4, 5th in West)

Captain Bryce McConnell-Barker leads the way in most categories for the Soo, with 19 goals and 41 points. Jordan D’Intino, another Londoner on the Greyhounds roster, has 13 goals this season. D’Intino is currently on a five-game point streak where he has four goals and two assists. Goalie Charlie Schenkel is among the league leaders in goals-against average and save percentage. The Greyhounds, currently in the final playoff spot, will likely be jostling with Guelph for eighth spot the rest of the way.

A LOOK AT THE LOCALS

Michael Simpson is the reigning OHL Goalie of the Week.

Brett Harrison, who was recently acquired by Windsor, has a 12-game point streak going entering action this weekend.

Hunter Haight has a point in all 10 games he’s played with Saginaw, recording seven goals and 18 points with his new team.

Former Elgin-Middlesex Canuck Zander Veccia scored the overtime winner in Mississauga’s win over Hamilton. He has three goals in his last six games.

A pair of London Junior Knights have made Team Ontario ahead of the Canada Winter Games. Ryan Roobroeck and Parker Snelgrove will play for the province at the games in PEI in February.

KNIGHTS BY THE NUMBERS

7 - George Diaco scored 27 goals last season. Ryan Winterton or Ryan Humphrey assisted on seven of them. Diaco also assisted on four of Winterton’s 20 goals last year.

3 - With the addition of Winterton and Humphrey, the Knights now lead the league in Ryans with three. Ryan Del Monte will return to the club this week after representing Germany at the World Juniors. There are seven other Ryans currently on an OHL roster, so there’s also time for another addition before next week’s deadline …

2 - Brett Brochu has allowed two goals or fewer in each of his last five starts. He’s only allowed more than two goals once in his last 10 starts.

12 - Diaco has a dozen points on his current six-game point streak, including four goals.

610 - Sean McGurn has taken 610 faceoffs this season, almost 200 more than the next highest Knight. At 57.2 per cent, he’s among the league’s top players in the faceoff circle.

AROUND THE OHL

January 3 was a big day for trades, as four deals went down — including three that were fairly sizable. Londoner Brett Harrison got dealt from Oshawa to Windsor, giving the Spitfires another offensive weapon. The Spits also bolstered their blueline by adding Sudbury captain Jacob Holmes. The Soo sent Tyler Savard to Barrie, meanwhile, and Kitchener landed Guelph forward Danny Zhilkin.

On New Year’s Day, Niagara and Erie completed a trade with the IceDogs sending former second overall pick Pano Fimis to the Otters.

OHL’s Top performers for December ...

Kitchener’s Francesco Pinelli was the Player of the Month with eight goals and 21 points in nine games. 

Defensemen of the Month went, once again, to Saginaw’s Pavel Mintyukov, who had 14 assists and a pair of goals in 10 games. He sits third in OHL scoring with 51 points. He was also the D-Man of the month in October and November.

Goaltender of the Month went to Barrie’s Anson Thornton, who won five of his six starts with a .945 save percentage and one shutout.

Zayne Parekh of the Saginaw Spirit was December’s Top Rookie. The defensemen had six goals and 10 points in 10 games. The 16-year-old was the 19th overall pick in last year’s OHL draft.