Two Edmonton Oilers prospects are heading to the 2025 Memorial Cup.
On Thursday evening, the Ontario Hockey League’s London Knights defeated the Oshawa Generals 5-2 to win the OHL’s finals four games to one, winning their sixth J. Ross Robertson Cup in franchise history.
The two Oilers prospects on the Knights are Sam O’Reilly and William Nicholl. Both were drafted in last year’s draft: O’Reilly was drafted 32nd overall in the first round, while Nicholl was selected in the seventh round.
O’Reilly finished the regular season with 28 goals and 71 points, fourth on the team in goals and third in points. Nicholl scored 21 goals and 57 points, not too shabby for a player selected so late in the draft.
As for their postseason success, O’Reilly scored seven goals and 22 points in 17 games, beating the five goals and 12 points he had in 16 postseason games last season. One of O’Reilly’s seven goals came in the decisive Game 5. Nicholl didn’t produce like he did in the regular season, scoring just one goal with eight points in 16 games, the same totals he had last season.
The Knights have dominated the OHL for a while now, with all six of the J. Ross Robertson Cups coming in the past 20 years. This is their second finals win in as many seasons, doing it in 17 games compared to 18 last season. Over the last two postseasons, the Knights have lost just three of the 35 postseason games they’ve played. Insane.
Despite the success in the OHL, the Knights haven’t found the same success against the other leagues of the Canadian Hockey League. In six Memorial Cup trips since 2004-05, the Knights have won just two of them, once in 2005 and the other in 2016. Last season, they fell in the finals to the hosts, the Saginaw Spirit. The Spirit were the only team to defeat the Knights in the OHL postseason in 2023-24.
Next up for the Knights is the Memorial Cup in Rimouski, Québec. Joining are the Rimouski Océanic, who are down 3-1 in their series against the Moncton Wildcats. Due to the Océanic getting an automatic bye, the Wildcats will play for the Memorial Cup regardless of whether or not they win the Québec Maritimes Junior Hockey League finals.
As for the Western Hockey League team, the Medicine Hat Tigers currently have a 3-1 lead over the Spokane Chiefs, with Game 5 set to be played on Friday evening. The Memorial Cup runs from May 22 until June 1.
