Latest news with #LondonKnights
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
'He Meant A Lot To Me': Easton Cowan On Mitch Marner Leaving Maple Leafs For Golden Knights
Toronto Maple Leafs prospect Easton Cowan has followed Mitch Marner's junior footsteps, winning a Memorial Cup with the London Knights of the Ontario Hockey League, but he hasn't been in contact with the player yet since Marner joined the Vegas Golden Knights after nine seasons with the Leafs.
Yahoo
11-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
No NCAA for Aleksei Medvedev: A Sigh of Relief for The London Knights & Their Fans
Aleksei Medvedev will not be joining the NCAA, much to the relief of London Knights fans. His decision to forgo college hockey leaves the door open for him to continue his career in major junior hockey, maintaining the Knights' strong roster. Medvedev's prowess in between the pipes provided his team with stability last year during the regular season. He served as the backup in the playoffs to Austin Elliott, en route to another OHL Championship and Memorial Cup victory. Advertisement Recently, there has been a lot to celebrate in the Medvedev household. The 6-foot-3 netminder signed his entry-level contract with the Vancouver Canucks on Thursday. The total value of his contract is $2.7 million with a cap hit of $923,333. He will also earn $97,500 as a signing bonus in all three years of his deal. With an entry-level contract in hand, London management and their fans don't have to worry about their star goaltender heading to the NCAA. It's a new landscape between the CHL and NCAA, and players from the CHL signing their entry-level contract will become a bigger deal now. Vancouver drafted Medvedev 47th overall in the second round of the 2025 NHL Draft. He was the fourth goaltender off the board and the first from the OHL, beating out Brampton Steelheads' Jack Ivankovic (picked 58th overall by Nashville). Advertisement Austin Elliott cannot return to the OHL due to having aged out of the league, meaning Medvedev will be the projected starter for London next season and is in for a significantly heavier workload. The Hockey News site editor Izzy Cheung had the opportunity to speak with Medvedev at Canucks development camp, where he spoke about his time in Russia before coming over to Canada at the age of 14, and how he's had to work on his coordination as he continues to grow. Cheung's piece can be found here. Make sure you bookmark THN's OHL site for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns, and so much more. Also, be sure to leave a comment at the bottom of the page and engage with other passionate fans through our forum. Adam Novotny, Projected Top Prospect In The 2026 NHL Draft, Signs With Peterborough Petes Adam Novotny, Projected Top Prospect In The 2026 NHL Draft, Signs With Peterborough Petes Last season, one of the Advertisement OHL's top performers came from the 2024 CHL Import Draft. Ilya Protas was selected third overall by the Windsor Spitfires. He formed an unstoppable duo with Liam Greentree, scoring 50 goals and 124 points in the regular season. Dale Hunter Named Canada World Juniors Head Coach Dale Hunter Named Canada World Juniors Head Coach After two consecutive disappointing fifth-place finishes at the World Junior Championships, where they lost to Czechia in the quarterfinals in 2024 and 2025, Hockey Canada needs to regain its dominance at the junior stage.
Toronto Star
11-07-2025
- Sport
- Toronto Star
Hockey Canada turns to Hunter brothers after back-to-back world junior letdowns
So, perhaps it's no surprise that Hockey Canada has turned to Dale and Mark Hunter, fresh off winning their third Memorial Cup with the London Knights, to take the reins for the next world junior men's hockey championship.
Yahoo
10-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
London Knights' owner named Team Canada's head coach at 2026 World Juniors championship
Dale Hunter is owner and head coach of the London Knights and last month, led the team to its third Memorial Cup victory. (Isha Bhargava/CBC - image credit) The long-time owner of the London Knights has been named head coach of Canada's national junior hockey team for an international championship next year, Hockey Canada announced on Thursday. Dale Hunter will lead the Canadian team to the 2026 International Ice Hockey Federation World Junior Championship, and his brother Mark Hunter will serve as a member of the team's management group, when it's held in Switzerland in May 2026 Advertisement "Dale's resume speaks for itself: three Memorial Cups, three OHL Coach of the Year awards and two international gold medals," Alan Millar, general manager of the team's program of excellence, said in a news release. "His passion for this program runs deep, and we feel he is the best candidate to lead us to a gold medal in Minnesota." This is the second time the London Knights' bench boss has been roped as the national team's head coach. He previously served in the role for the 2020 world junior hockey championship in the Czech Republic, where the team won a gold medal. Hunter has won multiple national and provincial coaching honours, and most recently, led the London Knights to their third Memorial Cup victory last month, after beating the Medicine Hat Tigers 4-1. Advertisement Hunter has coached the Knights in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) for 24 straight seasons since 2001 and has served in various roles for the franchise. Dale Hunter will be head coach of Team Canada at the 2026 World Junior Championships, this is his second time serving in this role after leading the national team to a gold medal win in 2020. (Nathan Denette/Canadian Press) In his role on the management group, Mark will assist the team's executives with all hockey operations-related matters, including supporting player evaluations and the selection process. "Mark led Canada to a World Juniors gold medal in 2020 and has built one of the premier franchises in the Canadian Hockey League, with unparalleled on-ice success and player advancement," said Scott Salmond, senior vice-president of high performance and hockey operations. Advertisement "Alan and Mark provide a stable backbone for our National Junior Team and I'm confident they will build a staff and roster that Canadians can be proud of come December." Team Canada's juniors will start preparing for the 2026 championship at the World Junior summer showcase in Minnesota from July 27 to Aug. 2. They will join Finland, Sweden and the United States.
Yahoo
10-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Dale Hunter Named Canada World Juniors Head Coach
After two consecutive disappointing fifth-place finishes at the World Junior Championships, where they lost to Czechia in the quarterfinals in 2024 and 2025, Hockey Canada needs to regain its dominance at the junior stage. Before commencing their summer showcase camp later this month, the first step was to appoint a head coach for the 2026 tournament. Who better to lead the team back to the top than one of major junior hockey's most decorated coaches? Advertisement London Knights Head Coach and President Dale Hunter has been named Canada's Head Coach for the 2026 World Junior Championship. His brother, London Knights GM Mark Hunter, will also be a part of the management group. The Knights were the best team in major junior hockey in Canada, with many thanks from their coach. Hunter ensures his players play a detailed, structured style of gameplay, one that is characterized by a high level of physicality and assertiveness. London has won back-to-back OHL Championships. After losing in the finals of the 2024 Memorial Cup tournament, the team got their redemption, and beat Gavin McKenna's Medicine Hat Tigers 4-1 in the finals to take home the 2025 Memorial Cup. Advertisement Another successful OHL campaign is in the books for Dale Hunter, who now has five OHL Championships and three Memorial Cup rings as a head coach. Additionally, he became the most winningest coach in Memorial Cup history this past spring. Dale Hunter Becomes Winningest Coach In Memorial Cup History Dale Hunter Becomes Winningest Coach In Memorial Cup History Dale Hunter is one of the most accomplished coaches in the CHL. In terms of former and current CHL coaches, you'd be hard pressed to find a record that can stand toe to toe with Hunter's. Hunter has experience behind the bench as the head honcho for Canada at the World Juniors. He coached the team to a gold medal victory in 2020. Canada roared back in the third period, scoring three unanswered goals to beat Russia 4-3. Akil Thomas was the hero with less than five minutes to play in regulation with a beautiful backhand finish. Canada needed to find the best coach possible to lead their country into battle on enemy soil. The 2026 tournament will be played in Minnesota, and you know the American fans will be cheering for Canada's downfall all tournament long. New York Rangers Prospect Signs With Sudbury Wolves New York Rangers Prospect Signs With Sudbury Wolves Exciting news for the Advertisement OHL's Sudbury Wolves. The team is bringing some Russian talent to their defense lineup for the upcoming season, and this player comes with impressive NHL lineage. London Knights Sam O'Reilly Involved In NHL Trade Between Edmonton & Tampa Bay London Knights Sam O'Reilly Involved In NHL Trade Between Edmonton & Tampa Bay The OHL currently has a trade freeze in place so their players don't have to worry about getting dealt to a new team while they enjoy their summer and off-season training.
