OHL Saginaw Spirit

Spirit Primed for Two Game Weekend

October 12, 2009 - Ontario Hockey League (OHL)
Saginaw Spirit News Release


(Saginaw, MI) The Saginaw Spirit enter Week Five on a three game win streak after earning their second weekend sweep of the season, courtesy a 5-3 victory over the Sudbury Wolves last Friday and a 8-3 win over the Belleville Bulls last Saturday. The team is tied for fourth place in the OHL Western Conference with 13 points and a record of 6-2-1-0. On the immediate horizon is a road trip to Sault Ste. Marie on Friday for a 7:30 PM match-up against division rival the Greyhounds, followed by a home bout against the Eastern Conference's Ottawa 67's Saturday at 7:11 PM.

The Spirit has seen a lot of production from its offense, which has posted the Western Conference's third highest goals ranking with 41 goals in 9 games. Saginaw's special teams play has also been garnering some attention, as the Spirit enter the week with the league's second best overall power play unit (17 powerplay goals in 61 opportunities).

Saginaw's point leader, winger Jordan Skellett, enters the week tied as the second top assists scorer and the third top points scorer in the OHL with 17 points (five goals and 12 assists). Winger Josh Shalla is ranked fourteenth in the league's top points scorer category with 14 points (nine goals and five assists) and continues to climb the points ladder following a five point weekend (four goals, one assist) that saw him notch his first OHL career hat trick. He is also tied for third in the goal scoring rankings.

Saginaw's rookie corps has made an impressive showing to start the season, with three Spirit ranked amongst the top 20 rookies in the league. Center Ivan Telegin leads the pack in the top spot with ten points (five goals and five assists), while center Vince Trocheck is ranked ninth with five points (three goals and two assists) and winger Anthony Camara is tied for sixteenth with three points (two goals and one assist). Telegin also enters the week looking to advance his consecutive point streak after notching at least one point in the last eight consecutive games. The team record of 22 consecutive games with at least one point is held by Spirit alum and Red Wings forward Jan Mursak. (40 total points in 22 consecutive games; September 22, 2006 to November 16, 2006)

Two Spirit blueliners bolster the top five spots in the league's d-man top scorers leader boards, with T.J. Brodie ranked third with 13 points (two goals and 11 assists) and Nick Crawford ranked fourth with 12 points (two goals and 10 assists).

From the goal crease, the efforts of Anthony Peters has led to the Blyth, Ontario native posting a 0.922 save percentage to garner the sixth spot in the league's top save percentage category. Peters is also tied for fifth in wins (4 wins) and tenth in goals against average (2.76 goals against average).

Saginaw Spirit at Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds - The Spirit visit the Hounds Friday night for a 7:30 PM match-up, the first game of the season between the two division rivals. The Greyhounds enter the week looking to recover from three straight losses, but until recently they were the team to beat in the OHL after posting seven straight wins to start the season. The team is tied for second in the OHL Western Conference with 14 points and a record of 7-3-0-0.

St. Louis Blues pick James Livingston is a driving force on the Hounds offense with six goals and five assists in ten games. Second in the team's scoring department is former Plymouth Whaler Vern Cooper, who has posted six goals and four assists in ten games. Tampa Bay Lightning pick Kyle DeCoste, center Brett Thompson, and center Daniel Catenacci, the first overall pick in the 2009 OHL Priority Selection, provide depth up front with a combined 16 points on the season. Overage blueliners Jacob Muzzin and Michael Quesnele, along with top NHL prospect Brock Beukeboom, anchor a defense that has only allowed 26 goals in ten games. A critical factor in that goals against ranking, the third best in the conference, is the play of Hounds goaltenders Bryce O'Hagan and Robin Lehner. O'Hagan is ranked fourth in the league's goals against average leader boards with a 2.45 goals against average, while Ottawa Senators second round pick Lehner is right on his heals in the fifth top spot with a 2.47 goals against average. Lehner entered last summer's NHL draft the top rated European goaltender, and arrived in Sault Ste. Marie via the Hounds ninth overall pick in the 2009 CHL Import Draft, but O'Hagan has also garnered some NHL attention after recently being named 'a player to watch' by the NHL's Central Scouting Bureau.

Ottawa 67's at Saginaw Spirit - The Spirit host the Eastern Conference's 67's for their third annual PINK OUT Breast Cancer Awareness Night this coming Saturday. The occasion marks the first of two times this season that the Spirit and 67's will square off, after the Spirit took both games of last years season series. Ottawa is tied for sixth in the Eastern Conference with seven points and a record of 2-5-2-1.

Centers Cody Lindsay and Ryan Martindale are the current points leaders on the 67's offense, with both posting 12 points in ten games, while Finland native and Tampa Bay Lightning pick Matias Sointu has tallied three goals and three assists in his first ten OHL games. St. Louis Blues prospect Anthony Nigro has returned to Ottawa but was only able to post a goal and two assists in three games before being forced to sit out after a bout with mono. Veterans like Minnesota Wild pick Tyler Cuma and San Jose Sharks pick Julian Demers provide leadership and experience on a young blueline, but like Nigro, Demers has missed some games after fighting mono. In the goaltending department, Chris Perugini and Czech rookie Petr Mrazek have split duty in Ottawa's net to start the season. Perugini has earned a slight edge over his teammate on the scoresheet with a 0.908 save percentage in six games.

Tickets are on sale now for Saginaw's home game against the Ottawa 67's, taking place on Saturday October 17th at 7:11 PM. Contact the Official Saginaw Spirit Ticket and Merchandise Store at 5789 State Street in Saginaw or call the store at 989-497-7747 to get your tickets!

Check out the Saginaw Spirit Statistics



Ontario Hockey League Stories from October 12, 2009


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