London Knights Award Winners

The London Knights held their annual awards banquet Saturday night in London. Four of the Knights players eligible for the 2011 NHL Entry Draft took home hardware on Saturday.

Here are your winners :

The next great Russian could be picked in June

Vladislav Namestnikov, London Knights (OHL): What he lacks in size (5-11 1/2, 170), he compensates for in straight-ahead speed. At the World Under-17 Challenge, he produced 8 goals and 10 points in five games. He'd represent his country at the World Under-18 Championships, too, notching 7 points in seven games. Namestnikov would continue his rapid ascent up the Russian ladder playing against men in Russia's 2nd division with Khimik Voskresensk, scoring 11 goals and 17 points in 26 games in 2009-10.

"Vlad plays a high-energy, two-way game," Edwards told NHL.com. "He's very aggressive on the forecheck and backcheck and has the ability to beat defenders outside and cut back to the net. He has an excellent wrist shot that he can release with accuracy on the rush."

Alexander Khokhlachev, Windsor Spitfires (OHL): Khokhlachev is the most physical of the five Russians. He offers good hockey sense, a solid positional attack and some leadership to boot.

"He'll take a hit to make a  play and he's not at all afraid," Edwards said. "I've seen him get hit hard a few times and he just bounces right back into the play. His energy level is always there, and he's always working hard. Down the stretch for Windsor, he's played well. He's a skilled forward."
Check out the full story on nhl.com

OHL Playoffs - Day 8

Niagara 4 Brampton 1 - Niagara wins series 4-0 (Prediction - Niagara in 5)

Well, this is the second sweep in the OHL playoffs thus far and Niagara did dominate this one.

Andrew Agozzino scored twice while Freddie Hamilton added 2 assists for the Ice Dogs. Brampton goaltender Cody St Jacques just didn't have his best in this game, allowing 4 goals on 11 shots in 23 minutes of action. Matej Machovsky came on in relief and shut the door the rest of the way but it was too late.

Dougie Hamilton finished this series with 1 goal and 5 assists while Ryan Strome added 1 goal and 2 assists. For Brampton, Barclay Goodrow went pointless in 4 games.

Niagara now awaits the winner of the Oshawa and Kingston series as their next opponent.

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Sudbury 5 Ottawa 3 - Sudbury wins series 4-0 (Prediction: Ottawa in 5 games)

If you asked most people outside of Sudbury, you would have found few people that would have had Sudbury winning a single game let alone sweeping the 67's. But shockingly, it happened.

So what went wrong for Ottawa? That's the million dollar question. And I am sure that will be dissected over, and over, and over in Ottawa for days to come.

Sudbury has 3 draft eligible defensemen in Justin Sefton, Charlie Dodero and Frank Corrado who went pointless last night but were all on the plus side. Not only were they solid in game 4, but throughout the series.

They got timely saves when they needed them from Alain Valiquette. And they also got timely goals when needed, and last night it was Michael Sgarbossa who provided a pair of goals to give him 4 goals and 8 assists in the 4 game series.

Things don't get any easier for the Wolves though. They now have to face the league's regular season champs and the Memorial Cup Host Mississauga St Mikes Majors in the next round. A preview of that series will follow the completion of round one.

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Saginaw 4 Guelph 3 - Series tied 2-2

Saginaw went into Guelph trailing 2-1 in the series and after falling behind 2-0 they went to work. They scored a short handed goal, a 5 on 5 goal and 2 power play goals to take the lead and make it hold up for the victory.

Ryan O'Connor lead the way offensively with 2 assists while Mavric Parks stopped 30 of 33 shots for the Spirit. Brandon Saad added a single assist while Vincent Trocheck went pointless for Saginaw.

It was also a game of specialty teams with Saginaw going 2 for 3 on the power play while Guelph went 1 for 6.

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London 5 Owen Sound 2 - Series tied 2-2

This series is going exactly as i suspected it would and that Michael Houser and Jared Knight would have to play key roles for the Knights to win this series. And they are getting just that.

Houser stopped 36 of 38 shots and once again made big saves when he was counted upon. As for Knight, he played primarily a shut down role last night yet was still able to add 2 goals.

Joey Hishon remains virtually invisible in this series scoring only 1 goal, and that coming after his shadow Stephen Sanza left game 3 with an injury. Owen Sound needs Hishon scoring if they are going to take this series.

Seth Griffith added a goal for London while Vladislav Namestnikov added an assist. For Griffith, that was his third goal to go along with 4 assists. Knight now has 4 goals and 2 assists in the series.

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Are Houser, Harrington and Griffith taking a back seat to Namestnikov ?

In short, the answer is yes. That's not to say the 3 draft eligible players are not having a good season. But the fact is that rookie Vladislav Namestnikov is having a great season. You could even say that all four are being overshadowed by Jared Knight (Boston Bruins).

Projected to be a first round pick in the 2011 NHL entry draft, Namestnikov has gone quietly about leading his team in goals, points and plus/minus (team stats) and trails only  Knight in assists. He is also now tied with Knight for the team lead in power play goals.

Much was talked about the comparisson between Namestnikov and Ilya Kovalchuk prior to the season. While he doesn't quite have the speed that Kovalchuk has, or that patented shot, when you watch Namestnikov skate with the puck, you see glimpses of what Kovalchuk can do.

Which brings us to Seth Griffith, usually paired on a line with Namestnikov. Unless you followed Griffith with the St Marys Lincolns of the GOJHL, you probably wouldn't have known his name. He did play 17 games with the Knights last season and put up 3 points in 17 games. nothing to write home about, but in the playoffs he put up 7 points in 10 games.

I followed him through his days with the Lincolns and said here in the preseason to watch him as a sleeper. He now trails only Namestnikov and Knight in all offensive categories. He was named OHL player of the week a couple of weeks ago and has been my first star of the week for draft eligible players twice.

There is no question that Griffith brings offensive ability to the game. He can even play the point and quarterback the powerplay. But the question that will always come into play is size.

Scott Harrington came into the season ranked in my survey of OHL General Managers and scouts as the defenseman that would be taken first in the NHL Entry Draft. It's been a bit of a dissappointment for Harrington this season as he hasn't been able to keep his development curve on an upwards trend.

But things have improved markedly for Harrington since trade deadline day most notably because of increased ice time. With the trade of Michael D'Orazio, he now leads all Knights defensemen in every offensive category, a part of his game that should have taken the next step this season. While he has surpassed last season totals, he's only just done that.

Of concern is his discrepency in the plus/minus department, dropping from a plus 25 a season ago, to a minus 13 to date this season.

Which brings us to goaltender Michael Houser, who was passed over in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft, likely due to the limited number of starts he's had in the OHL backing up Michael Hutchinson (Boston Bruins). Coming into the season, Houser was again expected to be the Knight's back-up, this time to Igor Bobkov (Anaheim Ducks). You may remember Bobkov from Team Russia in the Subway Super Series, or the Gold Medal Russians from the World Junior Championships.

But Houser stole the show from training camp and the number one position has been his all season, playing in 49 of the Knights 59 games to date. He sits 12th in the entire league in goals against average and 8th in save percentage but is among the leaders in draft eligible goalies. He is 4th in both wins and minutes played in the entire league and first in both categories among draft eligible players. But Houser's name still doesn't get mentioned in the same sentence as the other draft eligible goaltenders. We'll have to wait until June to see if NHL scouts see something in Houser.

When trade deadline approached and passed, the Knights had traded away most of their veterans for only draft picks in return. Jared Knight took a quiet leadership role on the ice and these four followed. Many questioned whether the Knights could still make the playoffs. They've done better than that. They've led a group of young players to pulling within 2 points of the Windsor Spitfires (after last nights action) and home ice advantage in the first round of the playoffs.

For Houser, Harrington and Griffith, they may just be garnering some quiet attention.

Namestnikov blends Russian, North American styles

"When I was 4 years old, my mom and dad put me on skates," Namestnikov told NHL.com. "I grew up watching my dad and uncle and they were a big influence. When I was here, the best advice I was given came from my dad. He told me to keep my head up because it's really physical. I'm used to the little surfaces of ice, and in Russia it's a little different, but I'm accustomed to that, too."
Full story here

NAMESTNIKOV EAGER TO REPRESENT RUSSIA

By RYAN PYETTE THE LONDON FREE PRESS

Vladislav Namestnikov has a six-foot-six, 240-pound fountain of Russian world junior hockey information at his disposal every day.
But he never uses it.

“Igor (London Knights teammate and goalie Igor Bobkov) lives right across the street from me,” said the Knights’ rookie forward and leading scorer, “but I’ve never talked to him about the world juniors.
“We’ve talked a lot, though, and when I first got here and didn’t know anyone, it was nice having someone around.”

Maybe they’ll start discussing the grand mid-season tourney next week when it starts to look a little more real.

Full story on londonknights.com

Windsor Spitfires and London Knights player updates

I was in Windsor last night for what was an exciting game between these to rivals. Coach Dale Hunter tried juggling lines up for the Knights who are having trouble scoring goals early this season putting Jared Knight, Vladislav Namestnikov and Seth Griffith on a line.

Goaltender Michael Houser, coming off of a shut out Friday night was great in net despite allowing 4 goals. Houser is very good with his lateral movement, his rebound control, is quick getting back up on his feet, directs shots very well out of danger, is excellent at picking up shots through traffic. If there is one thing he needs to work on its handling the puck. Although he was overlooked in the draft last year, he will garner a lot of attention in 2011.

London's Seth Griffith had a good weekend with 4 assists and a plus 4 in two games. Last night in Windsor he showed his grittiness, excellent passing ability, his quickness at getting into the forecheck and a very good defensive game. In six games, Griffith has yet to score his first goal of the season, but now has 6 assists in 6 games.

Russian import Vladislav Namestnikov is quietly finding his game. The smooth skating center man had a learning process playing in North America for the first time but seems to be finding his game. He leads the Knights now with 3 goals and 5 assists and is a plus 4. He shows a willingness to back check and shows a dedication to the defensive game. He is an excellent play maker who finds open men and seams. He is willing to go to the dirty areas and take the puck to the net. One thing he needs to work on is to use his shot more often.

Defenseman Scott Harrington is a force in the defensive zone. He is excellent in front of his net, battles hard in the corners and on the boards and comes away with the puck most of the time. He makes good outlet passes. he doesn't carry it as much as he probably could. Offensively, he has a good shot from the point, accurate and gets it through. Doesn't always look for the bomb from the point and sometimes looks for a good low wrist shot for a deflection. He still needs to learn when to pinch since he doesn't have great speed to recover.

Windsor's Alex Khokhlachev is everything we were told he would be. A superb skater who plays both sides of the puck extremely well. He drives the net hard, is usually the first player in on the forecheck and he battles hard along the boards. He has a tremendous passing ability and an excellent shot. With 1 goal last night, he now has 6 goals and 5 assists in 8 games.

Defenseman Steven Trojanovic is a work horse in the defensive zone. He doesn't give opponents much room. He plays a physical game and is capable of standing players up. Strong in front of the net, he clears the puck effectively. his offensive game will come with experience but don't expect him to be a force offensively.

Fellow defenseman Craig Duininck is in a similar situation. It is often said in hockey that if you don't notice a player, he is going about his business quietly. And that was the case with Duininck last night. Like Trojanovic, he is strong in his own zone but not as physical. He also has offensive potential that will come with more experience.

As for the rest of the Spits, I will have more on them when i do their profiles.

Brief conversation with London Knights assistant GM Jim McKellar

I had a brief conversation with the Knights assistant GM today. So far Jared Knights playing time has been split with Seth Griffith and Vladislav Namestnikov. When i asked him who would get the majority of time playing with Knight he said it would change from game to game.

Griffith, my sleeper for almost a year now, possesses very good offensive ability who can set someone up or score himself. Namestnikov, who's style has been compared to Ilya Kovalchuk by some, has more offensive  upside than Griffith. Both would benefit greatly playing with 36 goal scorer Jared Knight in this their draft year. 

The Knights have struggled to score through the preseason and so far in the regular season, so if Knight can click more frequently with one or the other, look for it to become a regular pairing.

As for the Michael Hutchinson situation and whether the Knights are trying to trade his rights in the event the Bruins want to send Hutchinson back to junior, McKellar would only say "The last i heard was he was doing well and the Bruins are sending him to Providence".

The Providence Bruins played their first preseason game tonight and Hutchinson was a healthy scratch, which should keep the rumors circling. Sources said last Friday that something could happen early this week. With the Bruins departing for Europe tonight, something may not happen now until they return home.

The Knights could also choose to hold onto his rights and if the Bruins do choose to send him back to junior, it may mean the Knights have to find a new home for 2011 draft eligible goaltender Michael Houser. Houser was eligible for the 2010 draft but went unselected, probably due to his lack of starts playing behind Hutchinson.

Vladislav Namestnikov

Vladislav Namestnikov - London Knights
5'10" - 170 LBS

The nephew of former NHL'er Slava Kozlov, Namestnikov has been in London training for the last few weeks while he was awaiting his transfer agreement with the IIHF to go through, which has since been approved. His KHL team Khimik has folded, so he has no agreement in place to play in the KHL making it less of a concern for NHL teams to worry about the Russian factor.

Namestnikov had a superb World U18 tournament. He will play on a Knights team that is loaded with offensive ability with the likes of Jared Knight, Phil Varone and Chris DeSousa so he won't be under too much pressure to produce.

It should be a year long batle between Namesnikov and Windsor's Alex Khokhlachev to be the top Russian born player selected in the 2011 entry draft.