RED DEER, Alta. — The 98th edition of the Memorial Cup opens Friday, with the host Red Deer Rebels facing the Ontario Hockey League champion London Knights.

The finals are set for May 29.

Here's a look at the four teams competing for the Canadian Hockey League's biggest prize:

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Red Deer Rebels, Host

Regular-season record: 45-24-3, No. 6 in WHL standings

Memorial Cup history: Second appearance, won in 2001

Head coach: Brent Sutter

The Rebels made the WHL Eastern Conference final before being eliminated by Brandon in five games. Red Deer hasn't seem game action since April 29, but head coach Brent Sutter has been preparing his team with a regular practice schedule and off-ice workouts.

Red Deer doesn't have the star power of the other three teams at the tournament, but does have depth after making moves to add 20-year-old Adam Helewka from Spokane and 19-year-old Jake DeBrusk from Swift Current. Helewka led the Rebels with 18 points 17 playoff appearances, while DeBrusk had 17.

Michael Spacek, a 19-year-old Winnipeg Jets prospect in his first CHL season since coming from the Czech Republic, added 13 points in the post-season.

Ivan Nikolishin led the team with 82 points in 72 regular-season games, but missed the majority of the playoffs with an injury. The 20-year-old forward made it back for the final three games against Brandon and should be ready to go.

Defencemen Haydn Fleury, the seventh pick from the 2014 NHL Draft, and Colton Bobyk are Red Deer's big pieces on the blue line while draft-eligible goaltender Rylan Toth is likely to get majority of the starts in net.

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London Knights, Ontario Hockey League Champions

Regular-season record: 51-14-3, No. 3 in CHL rankings

Memorial Cup history: Fifth appearance, won in 2005, host in 2014

Head coach: Dale Hunter

The Knights earned their place at the tournament after sweeping the Niagara IceDogs for their third J. Ross Robertson Cup in the past five seasons. London steamrolled through the playoffs and is riding a 13-game win streak into the Memorial Cup. When the club hits the ice for their first game on May 20, it'll mark 49 days since their last loss.

London's offence is the highest scoring in the CHL, led by the trio of Mitch Marner, Matthew Tkachuk and Christian Dvorak — who finished first, second and third, respectively, in OHL playoff scoring.

The 19-year-old Marner, who was named the OHL's most outstanding player, finished the regular season third in scoring with 116 points in 57 games and followed that up by being named playoff MVP after putting up 44 points in 18 games. The Toronto Maple Leafs prospect heads to Red Deer on a 16-game point streak.

London is deep in draft-eligible talent. Tkachuk, Finnish defenceman Olli Juolevi and forward Max Jones will have the scouts' attention with the 2016 NHL Draft approaching.

Tyler Parsons, who is the highest-ranked North American goaltender for the upcoming draft, had a breakout year and went 16-2 in the playoffs with an OHL-best 2.15 goals-against average and .925 save percentage.

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Rouyn-Noranda Huskies, Quebec Major Junior Hockey League champions

Regular-season record: 54-9-5, No. 1 in CHL rankings

Memorial Cup history: First appearance

Head coach: Gilles Bouchard

The Huskies downed the Shawinigan Cataractes in five games for their first President Cup in team history. Rouyn-Noranda dominated all year and won the Jean Rougeau Trophy as the QMJHL's regular-season champions after ending the season on a 14-game win streak.

Captain Francis Perron was named playoff MVP with 33 points in 18 games. The 20-year-old winger, a 2014 Ottawa Senators draft pick, was also named the top player of the regular-season after finishing second in scoring with 108 points in 62 games.

Assisting Perron up front is Timo Meier, the ninth pick from the 2015 NHL draft who was acquired in a mid-season trade from Halifax, and Jean-Christophe Beaudin.

Defenceman Nikolas Brouillard, who was acquired from Quebec City mid-season, had 20 points in 19 playoff games, making him the only blue liner at the tournament who produced at a point per-game rate.

Chase Marchand has stymied the opposition all post-season and has the best numbers of any starting goalie heading into the Memorial Cup.

The 20-year-old went 15-3 with a 1.35 GAA and .946 save percentage. Marchand had six shutouts through the first three rounds and set a league playoff record by going 215 minutes without allowing a goal.

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Brandon Wheat Kings, Western Hockey League champions

Regular-season record: 48-18-6, No. 7 in CHL rankings

Memorial Cup hostory: Fifth appearance, host in 2010

Head Coach: Kelly McCrimmon

The Wheat Kings took care of the Seattle Thunderbirds in five games in the WHL final for their third Ed Chynoweth Cup, and first in 20 years.

Brandon played the most playoff games of any team to reach the Memorial Cup, but was never really tested after going down 2-0 in its first-round matchup with Edmonton. The Wheat Kings won the next four in that series and went 16-3 the rest of the way.

Nolan Patrick, who is eligible for the 2017 NHL draft, took playoff MVP honours after leading the Wheat Kings with 30 points in 21 games. The 17-year-old centre produced 102 points in 72 regular season games, which was second in team scoring behind 20-year-old forward Jayce Hawryluk (106).

Brandon's forward depth is rounded out by veterans John Quenneville, Tim McGauley and Reid Duke while its defence is deep in talent with Ivan Provorov, the seventh pick from the 2015 NHL draft, Kale Clague, who is eligible for this June's NHL Draft and 21-year-old captain Macoy Erkamps.

Jordan Papirny, 20, is in his third season as Brandon's starter and played the most regular-season and playoff minutes of any netminder at the Memorial Cup. He went 16-5 with a 2.93 GAA and .897 save percentage in the post-season.

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