In the end, Sam O’Reilly’s presence in front of the Moncton Wildcats’ net made all the difference. The 2024 Edmonton Oilers first-rounder deflected an Easton Cowan shot over Cats netminder Mathis Rousseau 4:23 into overtime to deliver a 3-2 victory for the London Knights during the second round-robin game of the 2025 Memorial Cup in Rimouski, Quebec.
Kasper Halttunen also scored for the back-to-back OHL Champions while Cowan recorded a pair of assists and Austin Elliott steered aside 27 shots to earn the win. The QMJHL Champion Wildcats received goals from defensemen Etienne Morin and Dyllan Gill while Alex Mercier chipped in with a pair of helpers. Rousseau was phenomenal between the pipes, stopping 45 shots for Moncton.
The first period featured its share of chances at both ends, as indicated by the 15-14 shot total in favour of the Wildcats. The Knights went to work fast, finding the back of the net just 91 seconds in when Sam Dickinson’s point shot along the ice was deflected perfectly in front by O’Reilly and behind Rousseau. The Wildcats rebounded however, stringing together a handful of shifts in London territory before cashing in at 6:59. Morin walked in off the line, waiting for a lane to open and fired a wrist shot – breaking his stick in the process – that found its way through a partial screen and past Elliott.
One of the keys to London’s game plan – shots on net – helped them register a 15-8 advantage in that department during the middle frame. The Knights retook the lead on the power play at 5:11. After a series of drives toward the Cats cage, Cowan backed off the Moncton penalty killers and slid the puck to Halttunen, who made no mistake with a one-timer blast past Rousseau. Though the Knights carried an edge in play as the period evolved, it was the Wildcats who would use a man advantage of their own to draw even once more when Gill fired a snapshot past Elliott high to the blocker side at 12:22. Once again, the best of the ‘Q’ and ‘O’ went back to the dressing room deadlocked after 40 minutes.
The third period would be scoreless but not for a lack of trying from the Knights, who continued to fire at will. Rousseau was the story of the final 20 minutes of regulation, which saw London outshoot Moncton 16-3. The Wildcats improved upon their possession time in the extra frame but, ultimately, O’Reilly’s deflection put the back-and-forth contest to an end. Shots were 3-3 in overtime.
The Knights return to action tomorrow night when they face the host Rimouski Océanic in another 6pm ET/7pm AT start. All tournament games are available on TSN and RDS.
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