OHL Weekend Notebook: Oct. 16, 2024
Reviewing a Thanksgiving long weekend’s worth of OHL action, with top storylines from across the league.
Knights get the group back together, go 3-0 last week
The London Knights are back. Oliver Bonk and Denver Barkey made their returns from the Philadelphia Flyers while reigning OHL MVP Easton Cowan is back from the Toronto Maple Leafs and the returns were immediate. A pair of other NHL prospects made an impact as well, with Sam O’Reilly scoring the OT winner on Wednesday night in Owen Sound as the Knights beat the Attack 5-4. They returned home and bested the Barrie Colts 5-4 and the Guelph Storm 5-1. San Jose Sharks prospect Sam Dickinson was the hero in Friday’s win over Barrie as he scored a hat-trick before Evan Van Gorp came up with the game winner. Edmonton Oilers draftee William Nicholl was the first star of Saturday’s win, scoring twice while adding an assist.
What a weekend 🔰 pic.twitter.com/WxiOe0Mlg9
— London Knights (@LondonKnights) October 13, 2024
Bulldogs put rough weekend in the rearview mirror
The Brantford Bulldogs suffered back-to-back home losses at the hands of Owen Sound and Windsor last weekend, but made those a distant memory with the way they played this past week, defeating Sarnia 5-1 on Wednesday before taking consecutive road wins in Ottawa and Kingston. The top unit of Calvin Crombie, Nick Lardis and Patrick Thomas was unstoppable, with Crombie emerging as the Cogeco OHL Player of the Week with 10 points (1-9–10) across the three wins, feeding Lardis who scored six goals in that span. Crombie set up Cole Brown’s last minute game-winner on Sunday in Kingston, a game that saw goaltender Ryerson Leenders stand tall with 30 saves as Brantford was outdone on the shot clock. The Dogs are back up into fourth on this week’s Power Rankings.
Wakely makes instant impact with Colts
Dalyn Wakely joined the Barrie Colts and wasted no time getting involved in the offence, recording five points (3-2–5) in his first two games. The Edmonton Oilers prospect scored a pair of shorthanded goals in his debut on Friday in London as the Colts came up just short. He helped them beat the Brampton Steelheads 4-2 at home on Saturday, scoring and adding an assist. Wakely has some newfound chemistry with Dallas Stars prospect Brad Gardiner in the Colts lineup as the two combined for nine points over the weekend. Barrie is up to #2 on this week’s OHL Power Rankings.
Moses steps in and produces for Battalion
While Dalyn Wakely is off to a hot start with the Barrie Colts, Shamar Moses put up numbers of his own, turning in six points (2-4–6) through his first three games in green. The 2025 NHL Draft prospect recorded a goal and two helpers on Friday in Niagara as the Troops came out on the short end of a 7-5 score. He was the first star on Sunday afternoon in North Bay, recording a goal and an assist as the Battalion beat the Owen Sound Attack 4-2 in a Thanksgiving clash. Moses was the 19th overall pick of the 2023 OHL Priority Selection and is looking like a great return for a player with the pedigree of Wakely.
Shamar Moses enjoying a productive first week in green! 🪖@OHLBattalion | #NHLDraft pic.twitter.com/BJfxPb8fA6
— Josh Sweetland (@joshsweetland) October 14, 2024
High-scoring Spitfires hold down first place
The Windsor Spitfires own the league’s top offence, one that kept firing last week as Windsor emerged as. the first place team in the OHL with a record ot 6-1-1-0. Windsor passed a big test on Friday in Brampton, beating the Steelheads 7-5 thanks to two goals and an assist from Ilya Protas while Noah Morneau came up with a shorthanded third period game-winner. The Spits showed they’re beatable on Saturday in Erie, letting a 3-1 lead evaporate as the Otters scored five unanswered in the third to win 6-3. Windsor was back in control on Monday afternoon at home, defeating the Oshawa Generals 5-2 as Protas was good yet again while captain Liam Greentree had a goal and three helpers. The Spits are one of the big surprises of the opening month of the season. They look to keep the wins coming on the road in Guelph and Owen Sound this week.
Thanksgiving win for the #OHL’s first place @SpitsHockey 🍂 pic.twitter.com/JyHcLXo23R
— Ontario Hockey League (@OHLHockey) October 14, 2024
Rangers with points in six straight
The Kitchener Rangers suffered a 12-2 loss in Windsor on Sept. 28th and ever since they’ve been much, much better. Kitchener has points in six consecutive games, capturing five of a possible six points on the road this past week. The Rangers defeated the Flint Firebirds 3-2 on Wednesday, dropped a 5-4 shootout loss in Sault Ste. Marie on Friday and beat the defending Memorial Cup champion Saginaw Spirit 7-4 on Saturday. Overage returnee Trent Swick had a great week, recording six points (3-3–6) over six games including a pair of game-winners. Adrian Misaljevic was productive on Saturday, scoring twice while adding two assists in the Ranger win. Kitchener made the tough decision to part ways with overage fan favourite Antonino Pugliese last week after Swick returned from the Vegas Golden Knights organization.
A late third period blast from @GoldenKnights prospect Trent Swick continues an impressive debut weekend for the @OHLRangers overager, tallying another game-winner for the Blueshirts 🎥 pic.twitter.com/dynmckuAOQ
— Ontario Hockey League (@OHLHockey) October 13, 2024
Scrappy Sting won’t go away
The Sarnia Sting put up a good fight over the weekend, taking three of four points against older, more experienced teams in Oshawa and Flint. Sarnia picked up a point in a 4-3 shootout loss to the Oshawa Generals in Friday before battling back for three unanswered in the third to defeat the Flint Firebirds 6-5 on Sunday afternoon. Easton Wainwright came up with two goals and an assist on Sunday while sophomore forward Ryan Brown scored a pair of third period goals to get the Sting back even. Rookie Alessandro Di Iorio put home the winner as Sarnia carries momentum into a weekend road trip with stops in North Bay, Sudbury and Sault Ste. Marie.
Hounds earn some much-needed victories
Entering the week with a 1-4 record, the Soo Greyhounds managed to come out on top against the Kitchener Rangers and rival Saginaw Spirit. The Hounds prevailed over Kitchener 5-4 in a shootout behind two goals and the shootout-winner from Travis Hayes before rookie Carson Andrew stepped up with the late winner in Saginaw on Sunday as the Soo won 3-2. Overager Charlie Schenkel was in the crease for both wins. The Greyhounds are in Sudbury on Wednesday night before a stretch of four straight at home in the coming weeks.
THE GREYHOUNDS RETAKE THE LEAD!
With less than two minutes remaining in the game Carson Andrew snipes one home to give the @OHLHoundPower a 3-2 lead 🚨#OHL | @CHLHockey pic.twitter.com/zcnIGS9NOz
— Ontario Hockey League (@OHLHockey) October 14, 2024
Generals trying to find their way early
The Oshawa Generals didn’t start the season overly well in 2023-24 and eventually emerged as Eastern Conference champions. The Gennies had a tough weekend on the road in the West Division, managing to beat the Sarnia Sting 4-3 in a shootout before dropping encounters with the Flint Firebirds and Windsor Spitfires. Highlights from the weekend included rookie netminder Isaac Gravelle’s first OHL win in Sarnia, while Anaheim Ducks prospect Beckett Sennecke scored his first of the season in Monday’s loss at Windsor. Sophomore forward Owen Griffin leads the Generals in scoring with nine points (2-7–9) through eight games, three more than he registered over 61 games as a rookie. Recent addition Colby Barlow is still looking for his first point in a Generals uniform as Oshawa enters a new week with a home-and-home set against winless Peterborough on Thursday and Friday.
It took overtime and a shootout, but Gravelle secures his first OHL W ‼️#OSHvsSAR pic.twitter.com/cp21LVsOUV
— Oshawa Generals (@Oshawa_Generals) October 12, 2024
Petes still looking for first win
Wins continue to evade the Peterborough Petes, who came up short against Sudbury, Guelph and Owen Sound last week. With an OHL championship sporting a veteran-laden squad in 2023, the cyclical nature of the OHL has resulted in the Petes being one of the league’s younger squads as coach Rob Wilson and his assistants try to develop the next wave of talent in maroon and white. Offence has been hard to come by, evidenced by a 1-0 shutout loss at the hands of the visiting Sudbury Wolves despite racking up 40 shots on goal Thursday night. The Petes lack a point-per-game producer through seven contests, with 16-year-old Colin Fitzgerald among their leaders with four (3-1–4) to his credit. A home-and-home with a scuffling Oshawa Generals club looms on the schedule for Thursday and Friday as the Petes try and pounce on their age-old rival.
The Petes are on the board!🔥
Shanty Bay native, Caden Taylor rips one to put @PetesOHLhockey back within two!#OHL | @CHLHockey
— Ontario Hockey League (@OHLHockey) October 12, 2024
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