London Knights take down Erie for second win in as many days

A four-goal second period powered the London Knights past the Erie Otters 7-1 on Saturday, Oct. 17, at Erie Insurance Arena.

Add that to the 4-1 win over the Sudbury Wolves one night earlier in London, and the Knights had themselves a dominant weekend, outscoring two opponents by a combined 11-2.

“We have been looking after the puck a lot more,” said London assistant coach Rick Steadman. “Whether it is getting pucks out or getting pucks deep. When you make another team play 200 feet, it is hard on them.”

As they did less than 24 hours earlier, the veterans led the way for London.

Evan Van Gorp grabbed a clearing attempt in front of the Otters’ net late in the first period. He put a spinning backhand past Erie goalie David Egorov for a 1-0 Knights lead at the first intermission.

London came out quickly in the second. Carson Harmer took a Ryan Brown pass, skated across the high slot and snapped a shot into the Otters’ net only 46 seconds after the puck dropped.

Less than five minutes later, Harmer found the puck in a pile and tapped it through Egorov to push the Knights’ lead to 3-0.

London goalie Brian Cooke made his biggest save of the game on an Erie rebound try, sliding from left to right and kicking the puck away with his right pad. That sparked a rush the other way. Marcus Nordmark carried the puck into the Otters’ zone on his off wing and found Jaxon Cover for Cover’s third goal of the season. It was 4-0 Knights with just over five minutes left in the second.

“I feel like those [saves] just kind of happen,” Cooke explained. “I was just fortunate enough to get there. And then to have the guys go down the ice [and score], I felt that was a big moment in the game.”

Erie’s Liam Beamish was given a five-minute major and a game misconduct for cross-checking late in the period. Nordmark made the Otters pay, scoring on the power play with 16.8 seconds left in the second to send London into the third period with a 5-0 lead.

Ryan Brown picked up his third assist of the game on that goal.

Brown then fed Cover at 4:39 of the third for Cover’s second goal of the game, Brown’s fourth assist and a 6-0 lead.

Ty Henry broke through for the Otters on a power play with 6:33 left. London’s Mike Zakharov finished the scoring with his first goal of the season, cashing in a rebound with just under five minutes remaining.

Cohen Bidgood had a pair of assists for the Knights and London defenceman Cooper McAslan was a plus-4.

The Knights outshot the Otters 40-29. Those 40 shots were one shy of London’s season high.

The Knights went 2-for-2 on the power play and 2-for-3 on the penalty kill.

They are now 7-1-0-1 on the season.