Jaxon Cover didn’t just help the London Knights beat Sudbury on Friday night. He set the tone for the whole evening.
After taking a knee clip from Wolves defenceman Liam Ladds early in the game - a play that was downgraded to a minor penalty - the Senators first-rounder answered with a goal and three points in a 4-1 London win at Canada Life Place. The result handed Sudbury its first regulation loss of the season in front of 9,061.
“I felt like that hit made me a little angry and made me play a more physical game,” the 18-year-old Cayman Islands product said. “Them coming into this barn (on a heater) and us starting out hot (was big).
They’re really good players and they can make a lot of plays. It was a really good win for us.”
Cover finished the job in the third period with a heavy, hard-nosed insurance goal that showed a different side of his game. He went behind the net, drove massive Sudbury defenceman Ivan Belikov into the wall, then slipped out and beat veteran goaltender Paolo Frasca.
That kind of effort mattered just as much to Cover as one of his more open-ice rushes.
“Coming back from NHL camp, you see how hard you have to work,” Cover said. “You can’t just be a skill guy in the NHL. Trying to work on my physical game in general, I was pretty fired up because I got a high stick right before that and was out for blood.
“I hit him and found my way to the net.”
For London, this was the kind of night it has been waiting for from its more experienced and most gifted players. After a month of uneven offensive performances, this felt like a real step forward.
Cover wasn’t the only Knight who responded after the early hit. American over-ager Thomas Zocco went after Ladds and fought him, even with a noticeable size gap between the two.
“He’s one of our big dogs,” the 20-year-old said of Cover. “I saw knee-on-knee and I had to do something.
It doesn’t matter who you are and what role you have on the team. You have to stand up for your team.”
Zocco said fighting is not a major part of his game, though he has done it before. He ended up taking most of the punches in the scrap, but that didn’t change the impact of his response.
“It was an all-time response,” Cover said. “You can’t ask for anything else out of your OA.
He’s a really great guy for doing that. Even though the guy was bigger than him, he still landed a couple.
It was a good fight.”
Cover, Zocco and Ducks first-rounder Marcus Nordmark gave Sudbury plenty to handle all night. Dale Hunter is trying to see whether that trio can become a reliable scoring line.
“When lines have good chemistry, it makes it easier to make plays,” Zocco said. "We had some points and things went our way.
I think we worked well together. Cover and Nordmark have great skill and compete.
They’re great hockey players overall.
“I’m very grateful I get to play with them and have a chance like this.”
London also got goals from Cohen Bidgood and Cooper McAslan. Nordmark opened the scoring in the first period, and McAslan sealed it with an empty-netter late in the third. Adam Nemec scored Sudbury’s only goal on the power play.
Aleksei Medvedev made his fifth straight start for London and did what was needed when called upon. The Knights will see how he comes through the night before deciding whether he plays again Saturday in Erie or whether Brian Cooke gets another look.
Frasca took the loss after entering the night 6-0.
The game also featured another milestone off the scoreboard: Knights first-rounder Ryan Beaulieu (St. Thomas Stars) will play for Canada White in the World Under-17 Hockey Challenge Nov. 1-7 at Oakville.
London athletic therapist Luca Paron will work with Canada Red, which includes Union native Drew Bate, a Jr. Knights grad and current Saginaw Spirit forward.
Sudbury rookie Tanner Adams, the No. 3 overall pick who was traded by Brampton for 15 draft picks this year, still hasn’t played since Sept. 25 because of an injury suffered against Barrie. He was selected to the under-17 worlds, so his return should be close if he is to take part in the tournament.
The Wolves struggled to generate much offensively all night. They didn’t get their first shot in the second period until there was 4:27 left in the frame, and London outshot them 13-2 over the middle 20 minutes.
The Knights also controlled the faceoff circle, winning 38 of 56 draws. Carson Harmer went 14-for-21.
Special teams were another bright spot for London. The Knights came in with the league’s worst penalty kill, but they held OHL-leading Sudbury to one goal on four power plays.
“We’re making a lot of progress,” Cover said. “It was really good - especially stopping the two they had in the first period was a big momentum-shifter.
On the power play, we’re getting really great chances. I’m a culprit of that - I’ve got to bear down on the chances I get.”
London made a change to its penalty-kill setup, using three defenders up instead of a single forward pressuring the puck.
“We want to get a little foothold here and then expand off that,” Knights assistant coach Dylan Hunter said. “It’s always organic. You know your guys you want out there and you’re trying to get the right system for them.”
The Knights head to Erie on Saturday for a 6 p.m. start.
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