LONDON WINS 2015-2016 OHL CHAMPIONSHIP
For the third time in five years, the London Knights are Ontario Hockey League Champions.
With a goal from Christian Dvorak, 18 saves from Tyler Parsons and an OHL record setting 13th straight playoff victory, the Knights earned a 1-0 victory at the Meridian Centre in St. Catharines to take the Rogers OHL Championship Series in four-straight games.
The first period saw the London Knights get something that they didn’t see at all in Game 3; a power play. Niagara sent the Knights to two of them in the opening 20, and yet, it was at even strength that London scored the first goal of the game.
Matthew Tkachuk was hit in the face and knocked down in the IceDogs’ zone and for a split second, and everyone on the ice seemed to turn their attention to him. That was all the time Mitch Marner needed to find Christian Dvorak and the Knights’ co-captains combined to open the scoring 1-0.
The second period saw the Knights fire all kinds of pucks at the Niagara net but saves from Alex Nedeljkovic and a ping off the post by Aaron Berisha kept the score the same heading to period three.
The goalies continued to be big stories as the third period wore on. Nedeljkovic made saves and had a C.J. Yakimowicz shot go off the cross bar. Tyler Parsons robbed Stephen Harper to the right of the Knights net with 7:50 remaining in what might have been the biggest save of the night.
The Knights limited Niagara to just five shots in the third period to close out the series.
As co-captains, Mitch Marner and Christian Dvorak accepted the J. Ross Robertson Cup, their first pass was to a player who had not played a single game with the team this season. Jacob Buch was a fifth round pick of the Knights in 2014 who was diagnosed with a rare form of bone cancer.
Buch tweeted, “Pretty unbelievable feeling being able to lift the cup and celebrate with the @GoLondonKnights congrats to the org and players on the win.”
Marner tweeted back, “You’re a part of this bud glad to have you with us
