Patterson helps London win 17th straight in OHL

Jake Patterson made 34 saves and the London Knights defeated the Niagara IceDogs, 5-2, on Friday night to extend their winning streak to 17 games in the Ontario Hockey League.

Paterson is No. 5 in NHL Central Scouting's preliminary rankings of North American goalies in the OHL eligible for the 2013 NHL Draft. He is 11-1-1 with a 2.11 goals-against average and .928 save percentage this season.

Patterson had not played since Nov. 24 due to the flu.

"Pretty much everything's back to normal," Patterson told the London Free Press. "It was a big game, for sure, going back to the finals last year. We knew they were going to come out hard and we had to shut them down. The boys played great in front of me. The D's been a big part of this streak."

London's Bo Horvat, the No. 5 rated skater in the OHL, had a goal and an assist. He has 23 points (12 goals) in 32 games.

The Knights are 25-5-2 and in first place in the Midwest Division. Their 17-game streak is tied for fourth best in league history.

The team record is 18 games, set in 2004-05. They next play Sunday at home against Mississauga.

The OHL's record win streak is 25 games by the 1983-84 Kitchener Rangers.