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OHL Saginaw Spirit

Game Preview: Game 1 vs. Owen Sound

March 28, 2024 - Ontario Hockey League (OHL)
Saginaw Spirit News Release


Saginaw, Mich. - The second-seeded Saginaw Spirit (50-16-1-1 reg. season) welcome the seventh-seeded Owen Sound Attack (29-30-6-3 reg. season) to the Dow Event Center for Game 1 of their opening round series Thursday night.

Tonight's Game:

Puck drop is at 7:05 PM

TICKETS

Broadcast:

Television: CHL TV, CHL App, OHL Action Pak Ch. 469

Radio: 100.5 FM WSGW, WSGW.com

Regular Season:

Saginaw finished first in the West Division and second in the Western Conference with a 50-16-1-1 record. The Spirit finished with 102 points, just two points outside the London Knights, who finished with the Hamilton Spectator Trophy as the OHL's top team.

The Spirit's Last game was a win over the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds, 9-2, at the GFL Memorial Gardens on Sunday, March 24th. Saginaw opened with five straight goals in the first and entered the second up by five. The Soo proceeded to bookend a Spirit goal in the second, setting a 6-2 Saginaw lead that Saginaw added three two in the third, setting a 9-2 scoreline. Nine different Saginaw skaters netted a goal, with Owen Beck, Michael Misa, Josh Bloom, and Zayne Parekh adding an assist and Rodwin Dionicio collecting three points in the win (1G, 2A). Andrew Oke started for Saginaw, making 12 saves on 14 shots in his 29th win of the season.

Owen Sound finished fifth in the Midwest Division and seventh in the Western Conference, putting together a 29-30-6-3 season for 67 pts.

The Attack last played at home on Saturday, March 23rd, where they fell 7-6 in overtime to the Guelph Storm. The Attack opened the first with two goals, followed by both teams netting three goals apiece in the second. With a 5-3 lead in the third, Owen Sound surrendered two goals early before getting one back. Down by one, Guelph scored with under three minutes to go, forcing overtime before finishing off the win with 30 seconds remaining in the extra period. Deni Goure netted his second hat-trick of the year, Ethan Burroughs collected three points (1G, 2A), and Colby Barlow netted his 40th of the season. Standout rookie Carter George started for the Attack, making 26 saves on 33 shots.

Head-to-head:

Saginaw and Owen Sound faced off twice in the regular season, with the Spirit winning both games.

The season's first meeting was on February 9th, when Saginaw prevailed with a 5-4 overtime winner for Zayne Parekh at the Dow Event Center. He and Owen Beck each collected three-point nights (2G, 1A) for Saginaw. Cedrick Guindon netted two goals for Owen Sound. Carter George started for Owen Sound, stopping 47 of 52, while Andrew Oke stopped 24 of 28 for Saginaw.

The season's second meeting occurred on March 2nd, with the Spirit confidently finishing off a 6-2 road win at the Harry Lumley Bayshore Community Centre. Owen Beck again collected three points against the attack (1G, 2A), Saginaw captain Braden Haché added a goal and an assist, and Deni Goure scored twice for the Attack. Matthew Koprowski started for Owen Sound, stopping 37 of 43, while Andrew Oke made his second start again the Spirit, stopping 27 of 29.

Players to Watch:

This season, Saginaw was led by Zayne Parekh, who finished with a team-leading 63 assists (fifth in the OHL) and 96 points (first among OHL defensemen) while contributing 33 goals from the backend. Owen Beck leads Saginaw in goals (34), including 10 on one of the league's most dangerous powerplays at 25.5% (third in the OHL). Beck enters the OHL playoffs riding a 20-game point streak stretching back to February 9th, coincidentally being the first matchup between the Attack and Spirit. In those 20 games, Beck has collected 13 goals and 21 assists for 34 points, putting up 1.70 points per game over the back third of the season. Josh Bloom also rides into the playoff on a 12-game point streak, with 9 goals and 13 assists for 22 points. Andrew Oke leads the team in all major goaltending categories, including a 2.89 goals against average (GAA) (third in the OHL), an .890 save percentage (SV%), 29 wins (third in the OHL), and two shutouts.

Owen Sound is led by Deni Goure, whose 96 points (tied for sixth in the OHL) and 36 goals, along with 60 assists (seventh in the OHL). Colby Barlow leads the Attack in goals with 40, placing him tied for eighth in the OHL. Barlow has also put up 16 powerplay goals (tied for first in the OHL) on the OHL's second-best powerplay (30.0%). In goal, the Attack has rookie Carter George, who, while leading Owen Sound in all major goaltending categories, ranks highly among all OHL rookies. George currently holds a 3.30 GAA (first among OHL rookie goaltenders), a .907 SV% (second in the OHL), 23 wins, and four shutouts (tied for first in the OHL).

Check out the Saginaw Spirit Statistics



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