The Saginaw Spirit open their much-anticipated 2023-24 season on Friday night in Kitchener before heading home to the Dow Event Center to host the Sarnia Sting. Why is this season much-anticipated? That’s because they are guaranteed to play meaningful postseason games in 2024.
The Spirit won the honor of hosting the 2024 Memorial Cup. It marks the first time that an OHL team based in the United States will host this prestigious event.
To say that there is excitement at all levels of the Spirit organization would be a huge understatement. Winning the bid to host was a result of years of grinding, hard work and excellence. There’s a reason why Saginaw won this bid. They did things the right way from the start.
Excitement of Hosting Memorial Cup
I had the chance to talk with both Spirit GM Dave Drinkill and head coach Chris Lazary. Each just recently agreed to three-year extensions with the team. Drinkill is their all-time winningest GM while Lazary has established a track record as a progressive coach who gets high praise from his players. We discussed everything from the excitement of hosting the Memorial Cup to the work it took to make it happen. We also discussed the Michael Misa effect and more.
“I think it’s huge for the community,” Drinkill said. “Very proud, very humbled but very honored that they chose our franchise and our community. I think it deserves it. Our ownership has put a lot into that team and the downtown core in the arena and help building up to raise money for various charities over the year and to see them get rewarded to host the Memorial Cup and have the eyes of the hockey world in Saginaw and really show the hockey world what we had to offer is a huge honor for us and we’re humbled to have it.”
“I think back, I’m going into my eighth year and I think about eight years ago when we first arrived how far this franchise has come,” Lazary said. “The investment we made back into our players and into the arena, into the dressing room and everything to try to make it a top notch organization with the way we develop. For us to be the first American team in the OHL to host is humbling. It’s exciting obviously but (we’re) glad to be recognized for the hard work we put in.”
Significance of Memorial Cup in the States
Anyone who has followed the CHL knows that the Memorial Cup is one of Canada’s true treasures of the hockey season. So for this year’s Memorial Cup to come south of the border like this is very significant not only for Saginaw, but also for other teams in the states like the Erie Otters and Flint Firebirds.
There was a belief out there that the Memorial Cup wouldn’t come outside of Canada anytime soon. The Spirit not only put that rumor to rest, they gave a potential pathway for other teams to follow should they eventually want to host the Memorial Cup.
You May Also Like
- Calgary Flames: 5 CHL Free Agents Worthy of a Closer Look
- Halifax Mooseheads Loading Up for Memorial Cup Run
- Top 10 Best Ice Hockey Leagues
- Barrie Colts Weekly: Injury Bug, Hillebrandt & Teddy Bear Toss
- Erie Otters Swap Goalies Looking For Major Spark
“It’s good because we talk about it a lot,” Drinkill said. “If we do what we’re supposed to do and know what we can do here in Saginaw in terms of hosting it, it’ll open the doors for other American franchises to be able to bid down the road and realize we can host this thing as well. It did so well in Saginaw when they hosted it in 2024 and really open it up to all these markets that maybe in the past they didn’t think they had a shot to host it. They can look at us and say YEAH WE CAN.”
Lazary believes Erie has everything needed to be a Memorial Cup host one day.
“I just look at Erie for example,” Lazary said. “Unbelievable barn. Great city. It has all the hotels and everything you need to host it and their roster is building back up to be a really, really good team this year and in the future. So I think it gives the American markets hope that if they do things right and they build it right and have good facilities and they do everything else they should do, they should have the opportunity just like every OHL team to host the Memorial Cup. We obviously have to do a good job to make sure it gets back here but it would be nice to see some of these other American cities get it.”
Hard Work & Excellence Personified in Saginaw
Winning bids to host the Memorial Cup doesn’t happen overnight. It takes years of building and doing things the right way to earn the opportunity. Let Drinkill explain.
“Craig Goslin, our president and managing partner, his staff, the people in the community that help support him put a ton of work into it,” Drinkill said. “It’s not just an email you send that you want to bid on it. There’s a hockey portion that I took care of in terms of what the team will look like, draft capital, have to be able to add to your team. (It also includes) upcoming featured players, elite players in the league. Then (Goslin) took care of the rest. There was a huge proposal. You can imagine sponsorships to all their (key) figures, events that would be planned and where everything would be held. There was a lot going into it and I’m glad to see that all his hard work and his staff’s hard work didn’t go to waste and that we were able to win that bid and push forward with it.”
Michael Misa: Main Attraction
Having an exceptional status player certainly does not hurt a team’s chances to land a Memorial Cup. Not only is Misa great on the ice at a young age, he’s even better off it. The hockey world will get a chance to see him shine on the big stage. He will be among a handful of top prospects for the 2025 NHL Draft who will get this chance of a lifetime.
Lazary gets the honor of coaching Misa. Let Lazary explain what the best part of Misa is.
“I don’t think you’re gonna find a better kid. He is humble. He does not like the spotlight. He’s a very good person. He’s generous. He cares about the people around him. All of these qualities that make him a good person make him a good hockey player. He has that drive to be the best. He has the work ethic to be the best. He plays hard and he’s loaded with skill. But being around him everyday, it is special to just see how good of a person he is and how good of a teammate he is and then how hard he works as a player.”
As this 2023-24 season opens for the Spirit, they will get to enjoy the full benefits of eventually hosting the Memorial Cup. They will look to make the right moves to give them the best chance to win. They have ignited a community who loves their hockey and will get to showcase their city.
However none of this would be possible if it wasn’t for the leadership and the years of hard work they put into making this bid work. The lesson? Put the right people willing to do the hard work in the right positions and you will be rewarded.
Saginaw did it right. They’ve provided a model for others to follow in the future. From start to finish, this bid was earned. It was a job well done by everyone involved.
