Game Preview: Saginaw Spirit vs Brantford Bulldogs
OHL Saginaw Spirit

Game Preview: Saginaw Spirit vs Brantford Bulldogs

Published on November 2, 2025 under Ontario Hockey League (OHL)
Saginaw Spirit News Release


Saginaw, Mich. - The Saginaw Spirit (6-5-3-2) host the Brantford Bulldogs (12-0-2-1) on Sunday, November 2nd, 2025, at the Dow Event Center.

Tonight's Game:

Puck drop is at 5:30 pm.

The Spirit host Robotics night on Sunday with Hemlock Semiconducter, in addition to a postgame autograph session and team poster giveaway.

Broadcast:

Radio: 100.5 FM WSGW, WSGW.com

TV: FloHockey

Last Game:

Saginaw picked up their sixth win of the season last night, beating the Windsor Spitfires 6-3 at home. Nic Sima led the Spirit to victory with his first hat trick of the season, and Nikita Klepov had his 7th multi-point night this year with two goals and an assist. Stepan Shurygin tied his season-high mark with 40 saves in Saginaw's fourth win in five games.

The Bulldogs also played last night, shutting out the Firebirds 7-0 at the Dort Financial Center. Marek Vanacker led a five-goal third period for Brantford with his 13th and 14th goals of the season, and Jeremy Freeman scored his first OHL goal. Ryerson Leenders picked up his fifth career shutout, making 30 stops in the win.

This Season:

This will be the first of two matchups this season between the Saginaw Spirit and the Brantford Bulldogs, with the second on March 6th, 2026. Last season, the Bulldogs beat the Spirit twice, with Seattle Kraken prospect Jake O'Brien picking up five points (3G-2A) in an 11-3 at the Dow Event Center in early March.

Players to Watch:

Nikita Klepov scored two goals and an assist after being named OHL rookie of the month for October. Klepov played 15 games last month and had 10 goals and 13 assists for 23 points, leading all OHL rookies. Adding to the offensive dominance last night was Nic Sima, who picked up the hat trick in the 6-3 win over Windsor. Sima is off to his best career start with 10 points (6G-4A) in 14 games. He's currently the OHL's 7th active leader in games played with 256.

Having a standout game for Saginaw last night was goaltender Stepan Shurygin, who tied his career high of 40 saves, made on 43 shots against Windsor. He's tied with Brampton's Zach Bowen for the most games played this year (14) and sits second in minutes played with 803. Shurygin's 381 saves are the most in the OHL this year.

Saginaw's NHL Drafted Players: Jacob Cloutier (WPG), Miroslav Satan (WSH)

Jake O'Brien leads the OHL in points with 28 (8G-20A) in 13 games so far this season, with a nine-game point streak. O'Brien was named OHL player of the month for October with 26 points (7G-19A) in 12 games, and was drafted eighth overall by the Seattle Kraken in the 2025 NHL Draft.

Further backing the offense is Czech forward Adam Benak, who sits second on his team and fourth in the league in points with 24 (7G-17A) in 13 games. Benak was a fourth-round pick of the Minnesota Wild in 2025 and was taken second overall by Brantford at the 2025 CHL Import Draft.

Goaltender Ryerson Leenders picked up his first shutout of the season last night after he stopped made 30 saves against the Firebirds. Leenders is 6-0-0-1 in seven games this season and is leading the OHL with a .930 SV%. The Bulldogs also hold the services of David Egorov, who has six wins, a .915SV% and 2.57GAA in seven games this season.

Sunday will also be just the second game for Brantford's two newest defensemen, Zack Sandhu and Ben Danford, who were acquired in a blockbuster trade from Oshawa earlier this week. Sandhu picked up 4 PIM and was +1 Saturday in Flint, while the Toronto Maple Leafs prospect Danford had two assists and was +3.

Brantford's NHL Drafted Players: Adam Benak (MIN), Sam McCue (TOR), Jake O'Brien (SEA), Parker Holmes (CHI), Marek Vanacker (CHI), Adam Jiricek (STL), Owen Protz (MTL), Edison Engle (WPG), Ben Danford (TOR), Ryerson Leenders (BUF)

Check out the Saginaw Spirit Statistics

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Ontario Hockey League Stories from November 2, 2025


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