Just look at the rosters. Kitchener doesn't have anyone on the Bonk/Cowan/Barkey/Dickinson tier of players. They have Romano/Ried/Lam, but they are all 17 years old. Their best drafted players are from the later rounds of the NHL draft and are not star players. We are talking 3 NHL drafted picks on Kitchener this season versus 10 on the Knights last season.
The arguments for the Knights retooling last year centered around the fact that Bonk/Cowan/Barkey/Dickinson are still eligible for the OHL this season (and should be returning). If the team hadn't gelled the way they did last season, this season could have easily been an equally good year for contention. It still should be a competitive season for the Knights this year, but there is a lack of depth this season compared to last year.
In contrast, there is no scenario where Kitchener has the team to compete this season. They are too young with 0 star 18 or 19 year old players.