Game Preview: Saginaw Spirit vs Sarnia Sting
OHL Saginaw Spirit

Game Preview: Saginaw Spirit vs Sarnia Sting

Published on February 21, 2026 under Ontario Hockey League (OHL)
Saginaw Spirit News Release


Saginaw, Mich. - The Saginaw Spirit (21-28-3-4) host the Sarnia Sting (17-33-6-1) on Saturday, February 21st, 2026, at the Dow Event Center.

Tonight's Game:

Puck drop is at 7:05 pm.

Broadcast:

Radio: 100.5 FM WSGW, WSGW.com

TV: FloHockey

Last Game:

The Saginaw Spirit last played on Thursday night, hosting the Sudbury Wolves in a 2-1 victory. While trailing by a goal late in the third, the Spirit would rally with two goals in the last three minutes for the win. Dima Zhilkin tied the game with his 30th of the season, and Blake Barnes scored his first OHL goal with 9.8 seconds left to win it for Saginaw.

The Sarnia Sting took on the Soo Greyhounds on Friday night at GFL Memorial Gardens, falling 6-3 after the Greyhounds scored three unanswered goals in the first. Carson Hall and Chase Gaughan each picked up their second goals of the season in the loss, and Dallys Hibbert picked up his first career OHL point with an assist.

This Season:

This is the fourth of six meetings this season between the Saginaw Spirit and the Sarnia Sting, with the Spirit leading the series 2-1. The most recent meeting came as an 11-3 Spirit win at Progressive Auto Sales Arena on February 13th. Dima Zhilkin and Brody Pepoy each recorded hat tricks and Egor Barabanov had six points (1G-5A), the most in a single game by a Spirit player this season. Saginaw owns a 2-1-0-0 record this year against the Sting.

Players to Watch:

With the game-tying goal Thursday night, Dima Zhilkin hit the century mark in the OHL with his 100th career point. Zhilkin now has 46 goals and 54 assists in 101 career games with the Spirit. This season Zhilkin has already set a new career high in points, with 57 (30G-27A) in 47 games, including five points (4G-1A) in three games against the Sting.

With six points in his last meeting against the Sting, Egor Barabanov now has nine points (2G-7A) in three games against the club. Barabanov is the first Spirit player to have a six-point night since Owen Beck (2G-4A, Jan. 10, 2024), and has 73 points (25G-48A) in 56 games this season.

Rookie forward Nikita Klepov sits two points out of first place in scoring league wide with 75 points (31G-44A) in 55 games with Saginaw. Klepov has picked up 15 points (3G-12A) in his last 10 games, and has had nine games with three or more points this season.

Saginaw's NHL-Drafted Players:

Jacob Cloutier (WPG)

Easton Walos is a point-per-game player against the Spirit this season, with a goal and two assists in three games. The rookie currently leads the Sting in scoring with 41 points (21G-20A) in 57 games played this season, and is fourth in rookie scoring in the OHL.

In his first eight games with the Sting, Logan Hawrey has picked up seven points (1G-6A) since being traded from the London Knights. With two multi-point games last week he has set a career high in points with 17 (4G-13A) in 41 games this season.

Leading defenseman in points this season for the Sting is Cameron Aucoin, who has 24 (6G-18A) in 56 games so far. Aucoin has two assists in three games against the Spirit, both coming in Sarnia's 4-2 win over the Spirit on January 30th.

Check out the Saginaw Spirit Statistics

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Ontario Hockey League Stories from February 21, 2026


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