OHL Saginaw Spirit

Saginaw Spirit Tab Dave Drinkill as the Team's New General Manager

Published on July 10, 2015 under Ontario Hockey League (OHL)
Saginaw Spirit News Release


The Saginaw Spirit announce today that former Barrie Colts Assistant General Manager Dave Drinkill has accepted the positon of General Manager for the Ontario Hockey League franchise. The Elmvale, Ontario native replaces Jim Paliafito in the position following his appointment as Director of Player Evaluation with the National Hockey League's Toronto Maple Leafs. Drinkill joins the Spirit after spending nine seasons with the Colts in several capacities including in the areas of communications, statistics, and as a video coach before assuming the role of Assistant General Manager, a post he has held since 2011. During his time as Assistant General Manger, the Colts enjoyed consistent success on the ice accumulating three 40 win seasons to go along with an Eastern Conference Championship in the 2012-13 campaign. Drinkill has also spent time with the OHL's Sudbury Wolves and the Hamilton Bulldogs during the team's tenure in the American Hockey League. He has also been associated with the Under 16 Program of Excellence, and the OHL Gold Cup.

Drinkill took time to reflect on his new assignment with the Spirit, while acknowledging the importance of his days with the Barrie Colts.

"I'm extremely excited to be named the General Manager of the Saginaw Spirit. Saginaw is such a respected organization throughout the entire OHL and it's an honor to be a part of it. I want to thank Mr. Garber and Mr. Goslin for giving me the opportunity to help guide this team to both a Robertson Cup and Memorial Cup Championship. I also would like to thank Howie Campbell, Jason Ford, Dale Hawerchuk and the entire Barrie Colts organization for everything they have done for me and my career. I will always have fond memories and cherish the friendships I made in my many years there. With that being said I'm looking forward to getting things started with the Spirit and starting the next chapter of my life. Mr. Paliafito has left this team in very good shape, and it's my job to ensure that we keep heading in the right direction. We have a great coaching and support staff in place, and the pieces are all here for us to be successful for years to come."

Saginaw Spirit President Craig Goslin offered praise for both the outgoing and incoming General Manager in relation to the hiring of Drinkill.

"On behalf of Dick Garber, we would like to recognize and acknowledge the good work that former Spirit General Manager Jim Paliafito has done to put the Saginaw Spirit hockey operations in a very good position to compete for championships in the next few seasons. We have a talented, deep roster and a draft grid that is full of picks all the way out to 2020. We would also like to thank Howie Campbell, Jason Ford, and the entire Barrie Colts organization for their support during our search process.

To follow up Jim Paliafito, as we interviewed the various well qualified GM candidates, we felt that it was imperative that our next General Manager possess passion and a strong knowledge of the Ontario Hockey League and its players, had deep roots in the league, and a strong work ethic which Dave has demonstrated."

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