The London Knights are en route to Rimouski, Que. for their second consecutive Memorial Cup tournament. Winning the OHL Championship in five games made life a little easier for equipment manager, Chris Maton. “It’s still a 10-day event and packing for 25 guys and trying to keep the coaches organized, there’s been a lot going on,” he said. The team departed from London International Airport on Wednesday afternoon with a direct flight. “We have a private jet through the league,” said Maton. “Our bus is going, so it’s going to take some of our heavy stuff. We’ll just put our hockey stuff on (the plane), hockey bags, and sticks. We’re not sure when the bus will arrive there. It’s quite a drive (13 hours), so as long as we have our stuff that we can practice on Thursday, we’ll be set.” Long road trips like this are very familiar for goaltender Austin Elliott. He spent three seasons with Saskatoon in the Western Hockey League. “We did these every year,” said Elliott, who has 51 wins and just two losses this season, combining league and playoff action. “When you head out, you either go to the U.S. or the B.C. division once a year. That would take up like two weeks where you go and play all five or six teams in that division. It would be similar to that, and those are some of the funnest [sic] road trips I’ve been on.” If London makes the final, it will be a nearly two-week trip from departure to return. The players are there to win, but in between games and limited practices, there is a lot of down time. “I’ll bring my baseball glove and toss it with the boys, but nothing special,” said Oliver Bonk, Knights defenceman. “We are there to play hockey at the end of the day, so as long as I got my gear, I’m good to go.” Others feel just hanging out with the tight knit group of teammates is enough. “There’s a game on every night and we’ll be watching that together,” said forward Landon Sim. “The Stanley Cup playoffs are on, and when you’re away from the rink, you are kind of just putting your feet up. If you have a day off, maybe we’ll go see the ocean a little bit.” Elliott believes one of the benefits of these trips is seeing different cities across the country. “Most times you’ve never been there before, so cool to sort of explore the area and hang out with the boys walking around,” said Elliott. “Some guys bring their gaming stash, either Xbox or PlayStation. I don’t really bring anything like that, but someone does, and you can play games in the hotel.” Having been to multiple Memorial Cup tournaments, including last year in Saginaw, Mich., previous experience packing makes things much easier. They started getting ready on the weekend. “We just go through everything that we need to bring, and hopefully we don’t forget anything,” said Maton. Watch party For those that can’t go to Rimouski to watch the games live, the City of London is teaming up with the London Knights, Downtown London, Canada Life Place, and Tourism London to once again host free outdoor screenings of the Memorial Cup games right on Dundas Place. “I’m thrilled that we will be able to celebrate and cheer on the Knights together on Dundas Place downtown during the Memorial Cup,” said London Mayor Josh Morgan in a news release. “Best of luck to all the players. Everyone in London is cheering you on.” Starting at 6 p.m. on Saturday, a big screen will be set up on Dundas Place in the block of Dundas Street from Talbot to Ridout streets as the Knights face off against the champions of the QMJHL, the Moncton Wildcats. The second game will see the Knights against the tournament’s hosts, the Rimouski Océanic, on Sunday starting at 6 p.m. Then on Tuesday, May 27, the Knights take on the WHL champions at 7 p.m. Dundas Place between Ridout and Talbot Streets will be closed to vehicle traffic during the viewing parties. The doors will be open at Canada Life Place for food, drink, and public washrooms.
