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OHL Saginaw Spirit

Spirit Tangle with Firebirds in CHL TV Game of the Week

October 11, 2023 - Ontario Hockey League (OHL)
Saginaw Spirit News Release


Saginaw, Mich. - The Saginaw Spirit will host in-state rivals the Flint Firebirds for the first time this season on Wednesday, October 11th, at the Dow Event Center. Tonight's game is the first in the Coors Light I-75 Divide Cup series, as well as the CHL TV Freeview Game of the Week.

Tonight's game:

Puck drop is at 7:05 PM.

Tickets:

Ticketmaster

Phone:

(989) 497-7747

In-Person:

Saginaw Spirit Store (6321 State St.), Dow Event Center Box Office

Broadcast:

Television: CHL TV (Game of the Week), CHL App, TSN+

Radio: 100.5 FM WSGW, WSGW.com

Last Game:

Saginaw earned their second win of the season after defeating the Kitchener Rangers 8-2 on October 7th. Valentin Zhugin, Matyas Sapovaliv, Lincoln Moore, Calem Mangone, and Aiden Young all scored their first goals of the season with Hunter Haight scoring his first career hat trick. Andrew Oke started for the Spirit, saving 26 of 28 shots.

Flint is still in search of their first win of the season after falling to the Soo Greyhounds, 7-3, at home on October 7th. Matthew Wang netted his first goal of the season in the loss, and Nathan Day started in net for the Firebirds and made 20 saves on 27 shots.

Last Season:

While this is the first of four matchups between the Spirit and Firebirds in 2023-2024, they met eight times last season. The series was primarily dominated by the Spirit, as the went 6-2-0-0 against Flint. The in-state rivals met in the first round of that year's postseason in a series that went the distance. Saginaw beat Flint at the Dow Event Center in a thrilling Game 7, 6-3. Vegas Golden Knights prospect Matyas Sapovaliv was on another level in that series, scoring 15 points (7G, 8A) in seven games.

Players to watch:

Hunter Haight leads the team in goals with four (4) and is currently in a three-way tie for most points with six (6) followed by assist leader Zayne Parekh (6 assist) and Calem Mangone (1G, 5A). Andrew Oke currently leads the team in goals against average (GAA) and save percentage (SV%) at 2.37 and .909 respectively.

The Spirit acquired former Otters goalie Nolan Lalonde in a trade with Sarnia yesterday. The 19-year-old has 99 games of OHL experience and was a free agent signing by the Columbus Blue Jackets on October 2nd, 2022. This season, Lalonde is looking for his first win after four appearances in Erie.

Flint is led by rookie Jeremy Martin who leads the team in points with three (3) and is tied in goals with two (2). Second-year forward Kaden Pitre is the only other Firebird with multiple goals, scoring twice so far this season. Nathan Day has seen the most action between the pipes for Flint, going 0-3-0-0 with an 8.70 GAA and .756 SV%.

Saginaw currently has five (5) players with ties to the National Hockey League (NHL), including Joey Willis (Nashville), Matyas Sapovliv (Vegas), Hunter Haight (Minnesota), Nolan Lalonde (Columbus), and Braden Haché (Florida).

Flint currently has five (5) players drafted into the NHL, including Coulson Pitre (Anaheim), Gavin Hayes (Chicago), Ethan Hay (Tampa Bay), Tristan Bertucci (Dallas), and Nathan Day (Edmonton).

Check out the Saginaw Spirit Statistics



Ontario Hockey League Stories from October 11, 2023


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