Latest news with #GavinMcKenna
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
London Knights beat Medicine Hat Tigers 4-1 for 3rd Memorial Cup title
RIMOUSKI, Quebec (AP) — Philadelphia Flyers prospect Denver Barkey scored twice in the second period and the London Knights beat the Medicine Hat Tigers 4-1 on Saturday night for their third Memorial Cup title. Jacob Julien and Easton Cowan also scored and Austin Elliott made 31 saves to help the Ontario Hockey League champion Knights win the junior hockey championship a year after losing in the final to host Saginaw. Advertisement After a 3-1 loss to Western Hockey League champion Medicine Hat on Tuesday night in round-robin play, London beat Moncton 5-2 on Friday night in the semifinal game to set up the rematch with the Tigers. London also won the Memorial Cup in 2005 and 2016. The Knights are owned by former NHL players Dale and Mark Hunter and Basil McRea, with Dale Hunter serving as president and coach and Mark Hunter as general manager. Dale Hunter won his third title to match former Kamloops and Vancouver coach Don Hay's record. Medicine Hat star Gavin McKenna spoiled Elliott's shutout bid early in the third period, and Harrison Meneghin stopped 20 shots for the Tigers. They won the Memorial Cup in 1987 and 1988. Julien opened the scoring midway through the first period. Cowan, a first-round pick by Toronto, and Barkey scored in a 1:40 span early in the second and Barkey made it 4-0 on a power play with 7:52 left in the period. ___ AP sports: The Associated Press
National Post
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- National Post
London Knights redeem themselves with Memorial Cup crown
Article content They finally wrote their storybook ending. Article content Article content The London Knights converted last year's Memorial Cup heartbreak into the ultimate comeback tale by scoring the game's first four goals in a 4-1 victory over Medicine Hat to claim the Canadian Hockey League's biggest prize before 4,512 on Sunday at Sun Life Financial Coliseum. They shrugged off an early push from the well-rested and previously unbeaten Tigers, then held them off during a furious finish. You need your best players to rise to the occasion and, after a dud a year ago at Saginaw, got that and more here in Rimouski. Article content The OHL champs won their record-tying third Cup title in their fifth trip to the final in the past 20 years. Dale Hunter equalled Don Hay as the only two coaches with three CHL crowns. Article content The Knights were ready for anything. They didn't let any missed call or lapse in momentum bother them. They were the best team in junior hockey this year and proved it when it mattered most. Article content 'It's a tough tournament,' said London defenceman Sam Dickinson, who earned three assists in the final. 'It's one game. You never know what can happen going into it. I think of last year and how the game went from the flat start to the comeback to 22 seconds left. You can't have any idea of what's going to happen out there.' Article content The Tigers' best player, Gavin McKenna, got the Western champs on the board in the third period. But a second goal by the wunderkind was called back because of a missed high stick with 5:30 left in regulation. Article content It was a break for the Knights and they shut it down from there. Article content Hunter reunited Easton Cowan and Denver Barkey and it turned into a master stroke. Article content Article content Barkey scored twice in the decisive second period and Cowan had another and was named tournament MVP as London built the four-goal lead. Cowan should have had two, as well, in the middle frame but one was snuffed out on a goalie interference call against linemate Sam O'Reilly. Article content The foundation of the Knights' three-year run of success started with the drafting of Barkey, Cowan and Oliver Bonk in 2021. Once they added Dickinson to the mix the following season, they were on their way. Article content London goaltender Austin Elliott's final won-loss record? He was 55-3 in his last junior season. We won't see that again for a long time, if ever … Cowan entered the final one point shy of his childhood idol Mitch Marner's franchise record 15 points in Cup play and matched it in the second period … Londoner Jacob Julien, the Jets prospect, played his best hockey of the season at this tournament, opening the scoring on a nifty deke … Earlier in the day, Medicine Hat star defenceman Tanner Molendyk described London as the best team he had faced all year. 'They have a lot of skill but when a team works hard and has skill, it's one of the hardest things to beat,' the Nashville Predators first-rounder said. He felt it and the rest of the hockey world saw it up close this week.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
2025 Memorial Cup Final Live Blog
After a long season, it is finally time for the 2025 Memorial Cup Final. This year's matchup will feature the Medicine Hat Tigers facing off against the London Knights. With a win, the Tigers would capture their third championship in franchise history, while also returning the Memorial Cup for the first time since 2014. The 2025 Memorial Cup Final live blog will be updated throughout the game, highlighting key moments from the championship matchup. The comment section will also be active throughout the game, so make sure to follow along and let us know your thoughts and opinions. Without further ado, here is the live blog for the 2025 Memorial Cup Final. Starting Lineups: Tigers: Gavin McKenna- Oasiz Wiesblatt- Ryder Ritchie Tanner Molendyk- Veeti Väisänen Harrison Meneghin Advertisement Knights: Denver Barkey- Sam O'Reilly- Easton Cowan Jared Woolley- Oliver Bonk Austin Elliott 1st Period: 20:00- Wiesblatt wins the opening faceoff 19:19- Jonas Woo records first shot of the game. Saved by Elliott. Score: 0-0 16:48- Woo beats Elliott but not the post. Score: 0-0 13:48- Medicine Hat hits the 10 shot mark. Score: 0-0 Memorial Cup Trophy (Photo Credit: Vincent Ethier/CHL) Make sure you bookmark THN's WHL site and add us to your favourites on Google News for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns, and so much more. Medicine Hat Tigers Ready To Avenge 2007 Memorial Cup Defeat, 18 Seasons Later Advertisement Victoria Royals Skaters Reschny And Verhoeff Commit To NCAA For 2025-26 Season Medicine Hat Tigers Harrison Meneghin Having A Memorial Cup To Remember Looking Back On The Last WHL Team To Win The Memorial Cup, The 2014 Edmonton Oil Kings
Yahoo
2 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Harrison Bader's amazing diving catch
Ryder Ritchie Scores Twice As The Medicine Hat Tigers Defeat The Moncton Wildcats 3-1 At The 2025 Memorial Cup The Medicine Hat Tigers continued their winning ways on Monday as they defeated the Moncton Wildcats 3-1, improving to 2-0 at the 2025 Memorial Cup. Ryder Ritchie scored twice and added an assist, while Gavin McKenna iced the game late in the third with an empty-net goal. As for Harrison Meneghin, he had a strong performance, stopping 21 of the 22 shots he faced.
CTV News
3 days ago
- General
- CTV News
Tigers want to win Memorial Cup for goalie Meneghin: ‘Harrison's our heartbeat'
Medicine Hat Tigers' Harrison Meneghin (35) prepares before a Memorial Cup hockey game in Rimouski, Que., on Friday, May 27, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Christopher Katsarov Oasiz Wiesblatt skated up to the Western Hockey League's championship trophy. A hockey team's captain traditionally hoists the silver chalice first before handing it off to teammates for their celebratory laps. Not this time. Wiesblatt, who wears the 'C' for the Medicine Hat Tigers, posed for a quick photo with the Ed Chynoweth Cup two weeks ago before calling over Harrison Meneghin — the team's goalie who unexpectedly lost his father in March — to raise it into the air. 'Something that we did for Harry,' Wiesblatt said of that night in Spokane, Wash. 'We're all striving for doing things for him, and for the team and the city, but this thing was a lot more special than that.' The Tigers have rallied around Meneghin in the months since his father, Derek, died at just 49. Their goal now is to give him another trophy to lift Sunday when they battle the London Knights in the Memorial Cup final. 'Without him, we wouldn't be here,' star forward Gavin McKenna said. 'We want to do it for him, he's done a lot for us.' On March 23 in Calgary, Meneghin stopped 35 of 37 shots to help the Tigers beat the Hitmen and clinch first place in the Eastern Conference in their final regular-season game. The team celebrated after achieving a season-long goal. The mood drastically shifted when Meneghin stepped off the ice and received the devastating news of his father's passing. 'It went from such a high to such a low, I've never experienced a flip so quick on a team,' Tigers head coach Willie Desjardins said. 'It didn't just devastate Harrison, it devastated the whole team, because the whole team looked at it like, what happens if it was my dad?' 'We have to play our game, and we're going to have to battle.'@tigershockey Head Coach Willie Desjardins shares his thoughts on an off-day ahead of the #MemorialCup Final against London. — Western Hockey League (@TheWHL) May 31, 2025 'It was so, so bad. But with that, for sure we rallied, the boys had his back,' he added. 'They did everything they could for him. They knew he was going to have good times and bad times, and they were there for it.' Meneghin flew home to Surrey, B.C., for a few days, but returned to the Tigers for their next game on March 28, posting a 21-save shutout in a 4-0 win over the Swift Current Broncos to open the playoffs. Wiesblatt said it's one of the most memorable moments of his junior career. 'He didn't have to come, and we said we would do it for him, and he decided to come back,' he said. 'It's just a really remarkable thing.' Meneghin went on to earn the WHL playoff MVP after backstopping the Tigers with a 14-1 record, posting three shutouts, a 2.32 goals-against average and a .907 save percentage. Two days later, the 20-year-old signed an entry-level contract with the NHL's Tampa Bay Lightning. And so far in the Memorial Cup, the six-foot-four, 174-pound netminder has a 3-0 record with a .927 save percentage, including a 35-stop outing in a 3-1 win over London that propelled Medicine Hat into the final. Tonight, the @tigershockey will look to become the second WHL Club in the last 17 years to go undefeated at the #MemorialCup. Catch the 2025 Memorial Cup Final on @TSN_Sports (🇨🇦) and @victoryplustv (🇺🇸) at 5 p.m. MT. — Western Hockey League (@TheWHL) June 1, 2025 'Harrison's our heartbeat,' Wiesblatt said. 'For him to go through something like that, which is never easy to go through and such a big tragedy, but for him to be here with the team, and for him to almost play for his dad, it's been unbelievable to be a part of.' Wiesblatt's decision to hand Meneghin the WHL trophy is one of many examples of ways the Tigers have tried to support him. Desjardins and some teammates attended Derek Meneghin's funeral in April. The head coach, who acquired Meneghin from Lethbridge earlier this season, quickly learned why he has a lighthearted nature. 'His dad had a great sense of humour. Harrison has a great sense of humour,' Desjardins said. 'He's always involved in something. There's some joke going on, you know Harrison's part of it. 'I could see his dad in Harrison.' Medicine Hat forward Mathew Ward, who also grew up playing spring hockey with Meneghin, said teammates have made a point of spending time with their netminder. 'You just don't really want to be alone thinking about stuff, because then things can snowball,' Ward said. 'He definitely did rely on us a lot, I know that, but I think that just speaks to how much of a family we are in our room.' Desjardins also said they've given Meneghin — who hasn't spoken to reporters at the Memorial Cup — a break from media sessions, hoping to avoid a scenario where difficult moments come flooding back to him in front of cameras. 'The hardest thing about something like that is you can be going along so well, then one thing can happen, and it can bring you back to the worst moment you've ever had,' he said. 'That's just the nature of it. So I don't know when that moment could happen, but you don't want it to happen in media.' The hockey, meanwhile, is giving Meneghin something else to focus on. 'There's no right or wrong way to grieve,' Desjardins said. 'What you do, you do as hard as you can, and then you let them know that they're part of it and you're doing it for them.' --Daniel Rainbird This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 31, 2025.
