CREDIT: JORDAN CROW
Though the London Knights fell short in their home opener against the Windsor Spitfires and went on to play two more games in a single weekend, it's still very early in the season and the team has time to step up their game.

The London Knights opened their 2017/2018 season how most junior teams do, missing their best players.

The narrative seems to be the same at the outset of every Ontario Hockey League (OHL) season. Players fighting for a spot at the professional level have not yet been thoroughly scrutinized by their National Hockey League (NHL) teams when the junior season begins.

Because of this, it’s impossible to tell what a junior team will look like at the beginning of a season. That’s especially true for the London Knights.

Last year, it was Mitch Marner (TOR), Matthew Tkachuk (CGY), and Christian Dvorak (ARI) who had fans holding their breath. All three went on to play for their respective NHL teams.

This year, there are six Knights players who have yet to return.

As of Sept. 25, Max Jones (ANA), Victor Mete (MTL), Alex Formenton (OTT), Sam Militec (PIT), Jesper Bratt (NJD) and Robert Thomas (STL) are still fighting for a spot in the show.

And so, the Knights’ campaign kicked off with uncertainty about how the team would look in the coming weeks.

But that was the last thing on the minds of the players who donned the crest last weekend; the London Knights played three games, in three different cities, in three nights to begin their season.

It began with a home tilt against the team they beat in the first round of last year’s playoffs: the Windsor Spitfires.

That’s the same Windsor team that hosted and won the Memorial Cup last May, mere months after being beaten in game seven by the Knights.

It was a different story this time around. The Spitfires beat the Knights 5-2 in front of a capacity crowd at Budweiser Gardens in London.

Seven fresh faces made their debut in the game for London. It’s hard to tell how many will still be playing in a month.

The Knights had no time to dwell on the opening night loss, however, as they travelled to Saginaw to play the Spirit the next night.

Things were more positive on the road, as the Buffalo Sabres returned star Cliff Pu to the Knights. He made an immediate impact, picking up two assists in a 3-2 overtime win.

Pu set up fellow veteran Evan Bouchard 27 seconds into the extra frame to give London their first win of the season.

But it was the only win the Knights would get in a jam-packed weekend.

The tired squad took on Sault. Ste. Marie next, and the fatigue showed.

The Greyhounds used fresh legs to their advantage, cruising past the Knights 5-1.

One of the few bright spots from the weekend was fourth-year Adrian Carbonara, who picked up a goal in all three games to start the season.

Though a disappointing opening weekend for London brass, it’s easy to shrug the losses off as the result of a young, inexperienced roster.

Things should start shaping up in the next few weeks, when NHL teams will begin to make decisions regarding their junior players.

It wouldn’t be surprising to see a few of last year’s Knights play professionally, but most likely they’ll be back in London before the NHL season kicks off on Oct. 4.

It’s not until then that the final roster will start shaping up for the London Knights, and it’ll be much clearer who will be playing every night.

Once the roster is set, a 1-2 opening weekend should be nothing but a bad memory for the team.