The London Knights are regular season champions for the second consecutive season.
With the 2005 Memorial Cup Championship team looking on, the London Knights clinched the Hamilton Spectator Trophy and first overall in the Ontario Hockey League for the second straight season.
London defeated the Guelph Storm 7-3.
Easton Cowan set up four of the London goals and Sam Dickinson scored twice and added to assists to draw within four of the Knights all-time single season recored by a defenceman.
Cowan has a total of eight assists in just two games.
London has now won five games in a row and has six games left before the start of the playoffs.
Max Namestnikov used to cheer on his brother from the seats in London when Vladislav Namestnikov played for the Knights from 2010-2012. Max opened the scoring in front of the London crowd to very little fanfare as took a pass at the side of the Knight net and shot high to make it 1-0.
The Knights tied the game just over four minutes later as Sam O’Reilly scored his fifth goal in three games to tie things 1-1.
It was O’Reilly’s 27th goal of the year which moved him into a tie with Easton Cowan and Landon Sim for the team lead.
O’Reilly went hard into the end boards later in the period. He was able to get up but left the ice and did not return.
London blew the game open in the second period as they scored three times. The first three goals were all orchestrated by Cowan.
He found Sam Dickinson for a one-timer on a power play for Dickinson’s 80th point of the year to put the Knights up 2-1.
Dickinson became just the second Knight in team history to pass the 80-point mark in a single season.
Cowan then sent Logan Hawery in on a breakaway where Hawery slipped the puck through the legs of Colin Ellsworth for his eighth goal in 28 games this season and London led 3-1.
Cowan set up Kasper Halttunen on another Knights power play at 9:24 of the second period to add to the London lead. Will Nicholl then sped down right wing and sent a pass into the slot to Dickinson for his second of the game and a 5-1 lead through 40 minutes.
A power play goal got Guelph their second goal of the game at 11:38 as Carter Stevens put a low slap shot into the back of the Knight net. That made it 5-2 for London.
The Storm pulled the goaltender with over five minutes remaining and Evan Van Gorp scored his 18th of the year into the empty net.
Just 11 seconds later, Rene Van Bommel took a puck to the net and scored his fourth goal in two games.
Guelph defender Rowan Topp scored the final goal of the night with 20.8 seconds left on the clock.
The goal was reviewed for possible goaltender interference but it stood and ended the scoring.
Hawery and Jaxon Cover assisted on the goal giving Cover his first point in the OHL.
Shots were 38-38.
London was 3-for-5 on the power play and 5-for-6 on the penalty kill.
Austin Elliott named OHL Goaltender of the Week
For the second time this season, Austin Elliott has been named OHL Goaltender of the Week.
Elliott posted a 5-0 shutout win over the Brantford Bulldogs and followed that with a 3-2 victory over the Kingston Frontenacs in a game that gave London head coach Dale Hunter his 1000th win.
Elliott put up a .967 save percentage in the two games and currently leads the OHL in both overall save percentage and goals against average.
Up next
London and Guelph meet again on Wednesday, March 12 in at the Sleeman Centre.
The game will be the final regular season meeting between the two clubs.
Coverage will begin at 6 p.m., on 980 CFPL, at 980cfpl.ca and on the iHeart Radio and Radioplayer Canada apps.
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