Ever since the Canadian Hockey League (CHL) announced that Saginaw, Michigan, would be the host for the 2024 Memorial Cup, the Saginaw Spirit have been a team that many have kept their eyes on. With high expectations to begin with as one of the Ontario Hockey League’s (OHL) top teams, the team has had quite a successful season up to this point.
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Even with the success, general manager Dave Drinkill has gone out and added several pieces to the lineup. He once again pulled the trigger on three trades to make a massive push toward a deep run at the Memorial Cup (Saginaw has an automatic bid as the host).
Pair of NHL Draft Picks Headed to Saginaw
In two separate trades over the past few days, Drinkill added two NHL draft picks to the already deep roster that the Spirit have, acquiring both Owen Beck and Jorian Donovan in separate trades. On Jan. 8, he swung a trade with the Peterborough Petes to bring in Beck, the Montreal Canadiens’ 2022 second-round pick, to Saginaw. Beck comes to Saginaw after having a solid start to his season with the Petes, tallying 30 points in 25 games while showing an increased willingness to shoot the puck (119 shots on goal so far) before he headed off to the World Junior Championship with Team Canada. With the national team, he was unable to make much of an impact in five games, tallying only one goal in his time on the ice.
Beck is touted as a strong skater who also brings a strong two-way game to the Spirit lineup. He also made his NHL debut last season when he was called up on an emergency basis and slotted into the Canadiens’ lineup on Jan. 28.
While the team is getting a player who brings an extra level of offense to a potent Saginaw forward core, they did give up a young piece in the process. Along with a total of four draft picks, the Spirit gave up their 2023 first-round pick Aiden Young. Young struggled to get much of a chance in the lineup due to the depth of the forward grouping the Spirit possesses. The 16-year-old will most likely become one of the building blocks for the Petes over the next couple of seasons.
Related: Spirit Earned Memorial Cup Season with Hard Work & Excellence
The second trade in which the Spirit acquired an NHL draft pick came with a trade with the Branford Bulldogs. The trade saw the Spirit give up a haul of eight total draft picks to the Bulldogs for defenseman Jorian Donovan. The Ottawa Senators selected the 19-year-old Donovan in the fifth round of the 2022 NHL Draft and joined Beck with Team Canada this year at the World Junior Championship (five games played, zero points).
Donovan has been touted as a solid defenseman who has shown off his offensive play. His offensive game is led by good puck movement and a willingness to jump into offensive rushes for his team. So far this season, his offensive numbers are on pace from last season, having nine goals, 19 assists, and 28 total points. His 28 points rank 16th among all defensemen in the OHL. With the acquisition, the Spirit now possess three defensemen who rank in the top 20 in points league-wide (Zayne Parekh in second place and Rodwin Dionicio in 12th place).
Forward Depth Added
While the first two trades were high-profile moves by Drinkill, he pulled off a move to add even more depth to the team’s forward depth by acquiring forward Aidan Castle from the Windsor Spitfire. This marks the second time the Spirit and Spitfire have gotten together on a move, with the first coming with the Spirit acquiring Dionicio and Alex Christopoulos from the Spitfire.
While Castle has not lit the world on fire with his stats ( two goals, five assists) this season, he brings a solid offensive game that will help the team’s bottom-six. He is a smooth-skating forward with a knack for getting behind defensemen in the offensive zone for chances out front.
Spirit Going All-In for Memorial Cup
As the host of the Memorial Cup, the Spirit are making a full-out push this season to make sure that they can find themselves in a position to win the tournament. While giving up the amount of draft picks that they have (12 total), the players added to the roster boost a lineup that has had great success with players like Parekh, Michael Misa, and Hunter Haight leading the way.
With Matyas Sapovaliv returning to the lineup after being at the World Junior Championship with Czechia, the Spirit could be looking at a strong finish to the regular season while heading into both the OHL playoffs and the Memorial Cup.