Royals set to host historic clash with London Knights this weekend in Victoria

Inside the Clash of the Kingdoms: Breaking Down the CHL’s Premier Season Series and Why the NHL Will be Watching Closely.

What to Know About the Pre-Season Series Between Two Prospective 2026-27 Canadian Hockey League Contenders

Traditional pre-season games rarely attract attention beyond the teams involved. It is an opportunity for player evaluations following Training Camps and coaching and development before games begin to count. However, this September, much of that will not be the case when the London Knights arrive in Victoria for a two-game series, which has been appropriately dubbed the “Clash of the Kingdoms” at the Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre.

The series features enough NHL talent, 2027 draft prospects and organizational storylines to make it one of the most intriguing events on the Canadian Hockey League’s schedule this season. From an NHL scouting perspective, it is difficult to find a better matchup anywhere in North America.

For fans in Victoria, it is an opportunity to watch a collection of NHL-calibre talent, typically only assembled during the Memorial Cup or the latter stages of the playoffs. It also gives an active Vancouver Canucks fanbase a sneak peek into the future of their beloved NHL franchise.

Why this Series Matters

The London Knights have spent more than two decades establishing themselves as the benchmark franchise in North American major junior hockey. Their track record speaks for itself. The organization, led by Mark and Dale Hunter, consistently develops National Hockey League prospects, competes for league championships, and regularly enters seasons with legitimate Memorial Cup aspirations (most recently winning the 2025 Memorial Cup). Their roster construction, development model, and winning culture have become a blueprint across the CHL. Since 2005, no team in the world has developed more NHL prospects than the London Knights.

Victoria enters the season with similarly high expectations in the Western Hockey League. Since a change in hockey operations following the 2023 season, the Royals have quickly established themselves among the league’s premier organizations. After returning to the playoffs in 2024, Victoria captured the B.C. Division title in 2025 and entered last season as one of the early favourites to contend for a WHL championship before losing 7 junior-eligible players to new legislation allowing CHL players to be paid and play in the NCAA. This exodus included starting goaltender Johnny Hicks, who went on to backstop the University of Denver to an NCAA national championship in 2026. In the last two seasons, the Royals have produced five NHL Draft picks, including first-round selections Cole Reschny and Keaton Verhoeff.

Both organizations enter the Clash of the Kingdoms following massive off seasons that have reshaped their rosters. With significant additions on each side, the series will provide an early look at two teams expected to be among the CHL’s strongest contenders this season.

Ten National Hockey League Drafted Players Will Be Playing

Perhaps the biggest attraction is simply the amount of talent expected to be on the ice, with a total of 10 NHL drafted prospects between the two teams. These prospects will represent 8 respective NHL franchises. For comparison, the 2026 Western Hockey League finals had a combined total of 10 NHL prospects between the powerhouse Everett Silvertips and Prince Albert Raiders.

Some of these prospects include:

Alexei Medvedev (VAN), Jacob Vandeven (BOS), Maksim Sokolovskii (PHI), Ryan Brown (DAL), Jaxon Cover (OTT), Vladimir Proskurin (STL), Filip Novak (CBJ) and WHL leading goal scorer, Cameron Schmidt (DAL).

This concentration of drafted players is uncommon for a preseason series.

A Look into the Future for the Canucks

For Vancouver Canucks fans in town, the weekend provides a rare opportunity to watch the organization’s top goaltending prospect and potential future netminder.

Selected by the Canucks in the 2^nd round (47^th overall) in the 2025 National Hockey League Draft, Alexei Medvedev enters the season as one of the Canadian Hockey League’s most intriguing goaltending prospects. His combination of size, athleticism, and poise helped establish him as one of the top goaltenders available in his draft class, and he now carries the expectation of becoming an important part of Vancouver’s long-term plans between the pipes. During his 2025 run, Medvedev was named to the 1^st All Rookie Team for the OHL on his way to an Ontario Hockey League Championship and Memorial Cup. He was signed to an entry-level contract by the Canucks shortly after his first NHL Development Camp in July of 2025.

“He’s a calm, calm kid, big kid, moves well in the net and does, never seems to get rattled”, said Canucks Director of Scouting Todd Harvey. “He has that presence in there that makes the team in front of you play a little calmer. We thought he was our guy. We kind of targeted that, and that was a good pick”.

Thomas Drance of The Athletic named Medvedev the 8^th best prospect for the Canucks following the 2026 NHL Draft.

The Clash of the Kingdoms offers Canucks fans an early glimpse of that future in a highly competitive environment. Facing one of the WHL’s deepest offensive lineups, Medvedev will be tested in front of his future fan base.

7 Top Rated Skaters for the 2027 NHL Draft

Beyond the players who have already heard their names called at the NHL Draft, this series will also feature several of the most closely watched players eligible in 2027. Victoria will lead the way Team USA World Junior Showcase invite, Odin Vauhkonen, Team Canada U18 Hlinka-Gretzky invite, Ludovic Perreault, 2024 8^th overall WHL Draft selection and Team Canada U17 World Hockey Challenge silver medalist, Jacob Schwartz.

London will showcase prospects such as Team Finland Hlinka Gretzky bronze medallist, Luca Santala, and former USA National Team Development Program player, Kane Barch.

For many scouts, September serves as the first meaningful opportunity to compare elite draft-eligible players in a rare crossover setting before the season begins. Having seven highly regarded 2027 prospects competing in the same series is exceptionally uncommon.

A Battle Between Two of the Canadian Hockey League’s Top Coaches

James Patrick vs. Dale Hunter.

There have been very few, if any, coaches with stronger resumes in North American amateur hockey than James Patrick and Dale Hunter.

As players, Patrick (1,280 GP) and Hunter (1,407 GP) sit 89^th and 45^th respectively, on the all-time NHL games played record book.

James Patrick was originally the 9^th overall pick in the 1981 NHL Draft (two selections after London’s Vice-President and General Manager, Mark Hunter) before going on to play 21 seasons in the NHL, including experience at the international level having played for the famous 1987 Canada Cup team with Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux. Following his playing career, Patrick became an NHL Assistant Coach for the Buffalo Sabres and Dallas Stars for 11 seasons before being named Head Coach of the Winnipeg ICE. In Winnipeg, Patrick led the ICE to the Scotty Munro Trophy as WHL regular season champions with a 51-10-1 record in 2023. He has twice been named WHL Coach of the Year and has developed several NHL drafted players along the way, such as Zach Benson, Connor Geekie, Matt Savoie, Carson Lambos, Cole Reschny and Keaton Verhoeff.

Across the bench, Dale Hunter’s resume is the most accomplished in Canadian junior hockey history. Originally selected 41st overall by the Quebec Nordiques in the 1979 NHL Draft, Hunter went on to play 19 NHL seasons with the Nordiques, Washington Capitals and Colorado Avalanche. A two-time NHL All-Star, he remains one of the most respected competitors of his era. Following his playing career, Hunter purchased the London Knights along with his brother Mark, and Columbus Blue Jackets Director of Pro Scouting, Basil McRae. Under his leadership, the Knights have captured 6 Ontario Hockey League championships and 3 Memorial Cup titles while consistently producing elite NHL talent. Hunter has coached and developed many NHL players, including Patrick Kane, John Tavares, Mitch Marner, Matthew Tkachuk, Bo Horvat, Evan Bouchard, and Easton Cowan. He became just the second coach in CHL history to reach 1,000 wins with a .670 winning percentage and accomplished the feat with 667 fewer games played than Brian Kilrea, who holds the all-time record of 1,194 wins.

For Labour Day weekend, Victoria becomes the centre of the Canadian Hockey League. Two championship-calibre organizations, ten NHL Draft picks, seven top prospects for the 2027 NHL Draft and decades of coaching experience combine to create a preseason event. It will be the first of its kind as an inter-league showcase that has already drawn attention across North America.