OHL Preseason Recap: Sept. 20

Sarnia Sting vs. London Knights

Sarnia and London had a physical affair inside the Budweiser Gardens Friday night. The second period featured two spirited fights between Dylan Luecke versus Liam Spencer and J.J. Franceschetti against who else but the enforcer Ryder Boulton.

It was all London in the early going as they rolled to a 6-3 victory. The Knights put up six on the scoreboard before Sarnia notched their first of the game with 57 seconds left in the second period.

Game Notes:

-This game featured a double hat trick, one by London forward Evan Van Gorp (who finished with four points) and one by Sarnia forward Ryan Brown.
-Knights forward Kaedan Johnston recorded his third consecutive multi-point game with three points, bringing him up to eight points in three preseason games. 
-London’s 2024 first-rounder Logan Hawery notched a goal and an assist and was a plus-4. 
-Alexei Medvedev stopped 13-of-13 in the half-game he played.

North Bay Battalion vs. Ottawa 67’s

If you look at the boxscore, this game looks like it must’ve been a snooze fest. Battalion forward Jacob Therrien had the only penalty in the game and the 67’s narrowly outshot the Battalion 19-17.

North Bay got the better of Ottawa, defeating them 4-0, and scored on one of their only two shots in the second frame.

Game Notes:

-North Bay goaltender Charlie Larocque was the first star of the game, recording a 19-save shutout. He’s allowed one goal on 29 shots thus far in the preseason. 
-Battalion forward Jacob Therrien had the only multi-point performance with one goal and one assist.

Related: OHL preseason roster breakdown: Ottawa 67’s

Soo Greyhounds vs. Sudbury Wolves

The Greyhounds and Wolves game was the polar opposite of North Bay versus Ottawa. Well, at least it was exciting for one team and their fans.

Sault Ste. Marie scored the opening goal and headed into the second period with a 1-0 lead. But then Sudbury exploded and outscored them 9-3 during the next 40 minutes. The Wolves won the shot share, 42-15 in their favor, and won the special teams battle going 4-for-7 on the powerplay and 5-for-6 on the penalty kill.

Game Notes:

-Six Sudbury Wolves recorded multi-point games — Spencer Horgan, Chase Coughlan, Blake Clayton, Hudson Chitaroni, Luca Di Giantommaso, and Nick DeAngelis. 
-Chase Coughlan led the game with five points, bringing his preseason totals to nine points in four games for the most in the OHL.
-The Sault Ste. Marie native, Hudson Chitaroni, torched his hometown team with four points.
-Greyhounds forward Brady Martin registered two points and was 60% on faceoffs. He’s now batting 57% on the draw in the preseason with over 70 faceoffs taken in three games.
-2024 fourth-rounder Carson Andrew has now scored in back-to-back games for the Sault Ste. Marie.

Oshawa Generals vs. Erie Otters

The Oshawa Generals’ 4-1 lead after the first period against the Erie Otters proved enough to secure them the 5-3 victory. The Generals outshot the Otters 32-30 and were a perfect 5-for-5 on the penalty kill. However, Erie played this game with only 10 forwards and five defensemen.

Game Notes:

-2025 NHL draft-eligible forward Owen Griffin recorded two points and has now scored in all four preseason games. He leads Oshawa with seven points in the preseason.
-Oshawa veteran forward Matthew Buckley also recorded a two-point performance, has scored in all three (four goals total) of his preseason games, and sits one point back of Griffin with six.
-Otters forwards Malcolm Spence and Brett Hammond each registered two points.
-Erie’s Wesley Royston was assessed a five-minute charging penalty and a game misconduct with under 20 seconds left in the game. It’s the third game in a row where he’s recorded a five-minute penalty on the scoresheet and leads the OHL preseason in penalty minutes with 19.

Related: Five OHL Players Feature in Bob Mackenzie’s Preseason Top-20 NHL Draft Prospects

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