OHL Saginaw Spirit

Preview: Spirit Welcome Barrie Colts on Country Night at the Dow

Published on October 19, 2018 under Ontario Hockey League (OHL)
Saginaw Spirit News Release


Saginaw, Michigan - The CHL's no. 9 ranked Saginaw Spirit (6-3-1-0 13pts.) return to the Dow Event Center to take on the Barrie Colts (5-5-1-0 11pts.) on Friday evening for Country Night featuring Bay City-based Steve Armstrong and the 25 Cent Beer Band. The doors open to the Budweiser Red Room for the '90 Minute Power Play' at 5:30 pm.

The Spirit had their five-game win streak snapped Wednesday on the road against the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds. The Spirit fought back after the Greyhounds stormed out to a 4-0 lead after two periods of play.

Albert Michnac put the Spirit on the scoreboard 6:32 into the third period. Michnac has been a strong pick up since being acquired from the Mississauga Steelheads over the off-season. The Prague, Czech Republic native is currently leading all Spirit players with 15 points this season.

Saginaw first round pick Cole Perfetti tallied his fifth goal of the season just 18 seconds after the Michnac goal. Perfetti has been off to a hot start in his first season with the Spirit, currently standing second among all OHL rookies with nine points.

After a Greyhounds empty net goal, D.J. Busdeker notched his second goal of the season with just over a minute left in the game. Sault Ste. Marie added another empty net goal with four seconds remaining in the game, which completed the 6-3 Greyhounds win.

Saginaw Spirit captain Damien Giroux was named CHL player of the week during the last home stand. Giroux dominated the week ending October 14 with four goals and seven points in two games. The Minnesota Wild prospect was excellent on both ends of the ice and finished the week with a plus-minus rating of plus-seven.

The Saginaw Spirit have struggled in recent years against the Barrie Colts, including 6-2 losses in both meetings last season. Barrie's leading scorer is 2019 NHL Draft top prospect Ryan Suzuki with 18 points in 10 games. Suzuki is the younger brother to Montreal Canadiens prospect Nick Suzuki.

Lucas Chiodo is another Barrie player off to a hot start the 2018-19 campaign. Chiodo is leading the Colts with seven goals and second in points at 15. The overage player from Churchill, Ontario has been strong in his career against the Spirit with one goal and eight points in just six games.

There are five Barrie Colts that have rights owned by NHL teams on their roster. Forwards Matej Pekar (Buffalo Sabres) and Zachary Magwood (Nashville Predators), defenseman Tyler Tucker (St. Louis Blues) and Joey Keane (New York Rangers), and goaltender Maksim Zhukov (Las Vegas Golden Knights.)

The Spirit have six players with NHL ties including Brady Gilmour (Detroit Red Wings) , Reilly Webb (Detroit Red Wings), Bode Wilde (New York Islanders), Blade Jenkins (New York Islanders), Ivan Prosvetov (Arizona Coyotes), and Damien Giroux (Minnesota Wild).

Friday evening's puck drop is at 7:05 pm. The game against the Barrie Colts is the first of a two-game weekend home stand. The Saginaw Spirit continues the I-75 Divide Rivalry against the Flint Firebirds Saturday, October 20. Saginaw took the first game of the eight-game season series 6-2 at Dort Federal Arena.

For tickets to any Saginaw Spirit home game this season call (989) 497-7747, visit saginawspirit.com, or by visiting the Saginaw Spirit Store at 4789 State Street, Saginaw, MI.

For tickets and more information:

Reserve your seat at The Dow Event Center by calling (989) 497-7747 or visit www.saginawspirit.com for more information. YOUR Region. YOUR team. YOU'RE invited.

Check out the Saginaw Spirit Statistics

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Ontario Hockey League Stories from October 19, 2018


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