OHL Saginaw Spirit

Eagles Nest Notes

Published on October 13, 2008 under Ontario Hockey League (OHL)
Saginaw Spirit News Release


The Saginaw Spirit Hockey Club enters the week ranked second in the Ontario Hockey League West Division and fourth in the Western Conference with 12 points and a record of 6-3-0-0. Sunday's victory over the Plymouth Whalers gave the Spirit a three game weekend sweep and extended the team's win streak to four games. The Spirit face two Eastern Conference teams this weekend - they host the Barrie Colts Friday night and the Niagara IceDogs Saturday night. The puck drops at 7:11 PM both nights, at TheDow Event Center in Saginaw.

Week 4 Re-Cap

The Spirit made some key moves last week, bringing in winger Jordan Skellett to compliment the return of high scoring center Jack Combs. Winger Chris Chappell was named the team's captain prior to the weekend, while Combs, defenseman Nick Crawford and defenseman Joe Underwood were named alternates.

The team started off the weekend with a 7-3 victory over the Kingston Frontenacs. Winger Kain Allicock opened scoring and was quickly followed by Skellett and winger Jordan Szwarz to give the Spirit an early 3-0 lead. The team continued their scoring plethora thanks to the efforts of defenseman Adam Comrie (NHL FLORIDA PANTHERS), winger Joe Pleckaitis, and Chappell who all chipped in a goal apiece. Szwarz earned another goal in the game for a total of two points on the evening, while Comrie finished with four points (1G 3A). Goalie Edward Pasquale posted 17 saves on 20 shots.

The team entered Saturday's contest against the Sarnia Sting down 1-0 early in the game but quickly rebounded with four straight goals - Szwarz, winger Kyle Bochek, center Tyler Murovich and defenseman T.J. Brodie (NHL CALGARY FLAMES) each contributed with a goal. Skellett rounded out the scoring with an empty net goal in the final seconds of the game, giving the Spirit a 5-2 victory. Pasquale notched 33 saves on 35 shots in the win.

The Spirit beat rival Plymouth Whalers Sunday night 3-2. Allicock opened scoring for the second time in the weekend, and was quickly followed by a goal from Combs. The Whalers would fight back to tie the game but Murovich scored in the final minutes of the contest to secure the win for Saginaw. It was his second straight game winning goal against Plymouth. Pasquale stopped 33 of 35 shots in the game.

Week 5 Preview

Barrie Colts

The Barrie Colts are in town Friday night for the first of two contests against the Spirit. The Colts enter the week leading the OHL Central Division with 11 points and a record of 5-2-1-0. The Colts are tied with the Mississauga St. Michael's Majors as the 'least scored on' team in the league with only 16 goals scored against. The game features a matchup between Spirit winger Joe Pleckaitis and his former teammates from Barrie. Pleckaitis was traded to Saginaw in return for former Spirit winger Andrew Clouthier (1G 2A).

The Ontario Hockey League's Player of the Week (Week ending October 5) Stefan Della Rovere (6G 4A) leads the Colts in scoring. The team also sees contributions up front from center Alex Hutchings (5G 3A), winger Mitch Lebar (4G 2A) and rookie center Michael Sgarbossa (2G 4A).

Four Colts' blue liners also help out on offense - Ryan Gottschalk (2G 3A), Ryan O'Connor (1G 4A), Matt Stanisz (1G 4A) and Brian Lashoff (5A) have combined for 20 points. Overage defenseman Kyle van de Bospoort (1A) has been a staple in Barrie over the last four seasons. Goalie Peter Di Salvo has gotten the call for 5 games this season, earning a 1.79 goals against average and 0.941 save percentage. The former Sarnia Sting netminder earned shutouts against the Peterborough Petes and Sudbury Wolves this season.

The Spirit are 1-2-2-0 when playing against the Colts in Saginaw (Last five years).

Niagara IceDogs

Niagara is sitting at third place in the OHL Central Division, but is only one point out from first place. They have 10 points and a record of 5-2-1-0. Spirit center Barry Sanderson faces off against his former squad for the first time since being traded to Saginaw over the summer. The game also marks the return of former Spirit d-man Scott Fletcher.

The IceDogs find themselves missing NHL fourth overall pick Alex Pietrangelo (NHL ST LOUIS BLUES) following his recent signing. He posted 20 goals and 85 assists in his two seasons with the Ontario Hockey League and followed a plus-40 rookie season with a plus-29 in 2007-2008.

Winger Andrew Agozzino (6G 5A) and overage center Matt Piva (6G 3A) are the IceDogs' leading goal scorers, with defenseman Drew Schiestel (2G 10A) chipping in from the blue line as the team's leading point producer with 12 points. Fletcher and Josh Day provide veteran leadership on defense as two of the team's overagers but the IceDogs have a rookie netminder backstopping the defense - John Cullen has a 2.97 goals against average and 0.913 save percentage in 7 games.

Saginaw is 3-2-0-0 against the IceDogs when playing at TheDow Event Center (Last five years).

Check out the Saginaw Spirit Statistics

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Ontario Hockey League Stories from October 13, 2008


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