ROUND TWO, GAME TWO PREVIEW: Kitchener Rangers vs. London Knights

ROUND TWO, GAME TWO PREVIEW: Kitchener Rangers vs. London Knights

London, ON – The Kitchener Rangers look to grab a win against the Knights in game two of the series. The Rangers and Knights are arguably one of the top rivalries in all of junior hockey and game one showed lots of that. The best-of-seven series continues in London this Saturday for a 4 pm puck drop at The Budweiser Gardens before the series moves to Kitchener this Tuesday and Thursday for games three and four.

• TV: Rogers Channel 20 (Kitchener
• Video Stream: OHL Live on CHL TV
• Radio: 570 AM CKGL
• Live Stats
• Live Tweets

SCHEDULE

Game 2: Sat., April 13 at London, 4:00 PM

Game 3: Tues., April 16 at Kitchener, 7:00 PM

Game 4: Thurs., April 18 at Kitchener, 7:00 PM

* Game 5: Fri., April 19 at London, 7:00 PM

* Game 6: Sun., April 21 at Kitchener, 2:00 PM

* Game 7: Tues., April 23 at London, 7:00 PM

* If necessary

Kitchener Rangers Playoff Tickets:
Tickets for Game 3, and 4 are on sale now; you can purchase your seats online here. Fans can also call 519-578-1570 or you can purchase tickets in person at The Aud Box Office Sponsored by White Way Plumbing located at 400 East Avenue in Kitchener.

HEAD-TO-HEAD

Game One:

In a back-and-forth game, the London Knights finished on top with a final score of 5-3. Luke Ellinas, Eduard Šalé (Seattle Kraken- 1G, 1A), and Hunter Brzustewicz (Calgary Flames- 1G, 2A) scored the goals for the Rangers, while Cameron Reid tallied an assist and Filip Mešár (Montreal Canadiens) contributed two assists. Kaleb Lawrence (Los Angeles Kings) and Max McCue (Columbus Blue Jackets) each recorded a goal and assist for the Knights. Isaiah George (New York Islanders) and Oliver Bonk (Philadelphia Flyers) found the back of the net, while Denver Barkey (Philadelphia Flyers) also scored. Jacob Julien (Winnipeg Jets) and Jackson Edwards (Boston Bruins) providing two assists each. Easton Cowan (Toronto Maple Leafs) extended his point streak to 41 straight games with an assist.

Playoff Statistics:

Kitchener

Overall Power Play: 3^rd in the OHL at 30.4%

Away Power Play: 7^th in the OHL at 27.3%

Overall Penalty Kill: 3^rd in the OHL at 84.6%

Away Penalty Kill: 5^th in the OHL at 81.2%

London

Overall Power Play: 5^th in the OHL at 28.6%

Home Power Play: 2^nd in the OHL at 33.3%

Overall Penalty Kill: 4^th in the OHL at 84.2%

Home Penalty Kill: 9^th in the OHL at 76.9%

SCOUTING THE RANGERS (41-23-4-0) 86 points 68 GP

4^th in the Western Conference, 5^th in the OHL

Rangers’ Watch:

• Filip Mešár (Montreal Canadiens), currently holds the league’s top position as the leading point-scorer and ranks second in the CHL during the playoffs boasting one goal and 11 assists for a total of 12 points. Mešár has contributed points in six out of seven playoff games he’s played this year and has tallied five power play assists, putting him in a three-way tie for first place in the OHL. Over two playoff seasons in the league, the winger has participated in 16 games, accumulating a 2-14-16 stat line.
• Eduard Šalé (Seattle Kraken) has found his groove in the playoffs. He has the second most points for the Rangers in the playoffs and shares the fourth position league-wide with four goals, and six assists, totaling 10 points. Šalé has contributed one power play goal, a game-winning goal, and one first goal, in addition to four power play assists. The Czech native has recorded points in five of the playoff matches.
• Aylmer native Cameron Reid has accumulated four assists in his first seven OHL playoff appearances. Reid currently tops the league among true rookie defencemen for playoff points. During the regular season, he played 49 games, scoring two goals and providing 21 assists, totaling 23 points, including two power play assists. The defenceman is currently on a three-game point streak, contributing three assists during this span.

Matthew Sop

The Ontario Hockey League announced this week that Kitchener Rangers’ forward Matthew Sop is the 2023-24 recipient of the Leo Lalonde Memorial Trophy awarded to the League’s Overage Player of the Year as voted by OHL General Managers. Matthew Sop played 67 games in his overage season collecting 43 goals and 47 assists for a total of 90 points. Sop has been a key contributor to the Rangers’ attackers through his four seasons playing a total of 203 games having 76 goals and 93 assists for 169 points.

Goaltending:

Jackson Parsons:

Jackson Parsons has played every playoff game this season for the Rangers recording a 3.38 goals-against average and a .891 save percentage in the seven games. In game one of round two, Parsons saw 30 shots allowing four.

SCOUTING THE KNIGHTS (50-14-1-3) 104 points 68 GP

1^st in the Western Conference, 1^st in the OHL

Knights to Watch:

• Max McCue (Columbus Blue Jackets) is tied with Denver Barkey (Philadelphia Flyers) as the top Knights playoff point-getters with a 2-5-7 stat line. The Sudbury native has one power play goal and one insurance goal in the playoffs. McCue was drafted by the San Jose Sharks in the 2021 NHL Draft unable to sign his entry-level contract with the Sharks, McCue signed with the Columbus Blue Jackets on March 1^st. Since March 1^st, the winger has played 15 games having five goals and 13 assists for 18 points going pointless in three games (regular season and playoffs).

• Denver Barkey (Philadelphia Flyers) sits aside McCue on the Knights’ points leaderboard after five playoff games with three goals and four assists for seven points registering a point in every game. Barkey has one power play assist, a game-winning goal, and an insurance goal.

• Isaiah George (New York Islanders) has registered two goals and two assists for four points in the first five playoff games. Playing 68 games this regular season George had a 6-24-30 stat line having two first goals, one game-winning goal, and one insurance goal with two short-handed assists and a +24 plus/minus. George signed his entry-level contract on September 13^th with the New York Islanders.

Goaltending:

Michael Simpson:

Michael Simpson has played all five playoff games for the Knights and has a 2.31 goals against average (3^rd in the league) and a .910 save percentage (4^th in the league). In game one of this series, Simpson saw 25 shots allowing three to finish the game with a 3.00 goals against average and a .880 save percentage.

BROADCAST COVERAGE

Saturday’s game vs the London Knights will be televised live throughout Kitchener and the Waterloo Region on Rogers TV, cable channel 20, and can be watched across the province of Ontario on the Super Sports Pak on channel 470 for cable subscribers. The game will be streamed live online on OHL Live on CHL TV. Additionally, fans can listen to Saturday’s action on the radio on CityNews 570 AM CKGL.

UP NEXT:

The Rangers get home ice at The Aud for games three and four. Game three is set for Tuesday, April 16^th, at 7 pm. Game four is on Thursday, April 18^th at 7 pm. You won’t want to miss the best rivalry in junior hockey at the best arena in junior hockey. Make sure you secure your seats for round two and prepare to Rock the Aud! You can get your tickets by visiting The Aud Box Office Sponsored by White Way Plumbing or online here.

For inquiries, contact:

Lindsay Eastwood
Manager of Communications and Team Services
Kitchener Rangers Hockey Club
613-793-0168
[email protected]

Photo Credit: Tiffany Luke / Kitchener Rangers