RIMOUSKI, Quebec — 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.
“This is something I’ll never forget,” said Barkey, London’s captain. “We worked all year toward this, and this is the tightest team I’ve ever played on. To be able to do it with these guys. It’s so surreal. Going to remember this for life.”
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 McRae, 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.
“It’s an empty feeling when you go home with nothing,” Dale Hunter said. “When you come to this tournament, you had a good year, but when you don’t win the last game, it’s not successful.”
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.
“They cared, they tried,” Tigers coach Willie Desjardins said. “Coming in, we only have one problem, that’s London’s a really good hockey team. It wasn’t that we didn’t want it, wasn’t that we didn’t try. They’re just a good team.”
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.
