The Saginaw Spirit went on their first three-game road trip of the 2025-26 Ontario Hockey League (OHL) regular season, taking on the Guelph Storm, Owen Sound Attack, and Oshawa Generals over the past week (Sept. 29 – Oct. 5). While they only won one game in the three, they scored points in each game. The Spirit rode the hot hands of a handful of newcomers to the organization, while the power play seemed to struggle throughout the weekend.
Game Results
Oct. 3 @ Guelph: 3-2 overtime loss
Oct. 4 @ Owen Sound: 7-5 win
Oct. 5 @ Oshawa: 3-2 overtime loss
Newcomers Continue to Shine
After seeing plenty of players move on to the next level of hockey after last season, including Michael Misa, Zayne Parekh, and Igor Chernyshov, among others, the Spirit have seen an influx of youth to their lineup this season. To this point, the new additions to the team have stood out and have helped carry the way while players like Nic Sima, Jacob Cloutier, and Carson Harmer were all at NHL camps. Among these players is 2025 Canadian Hockey League (CHL) Import Draft selection Nikita Klepov.
Klepov, alongside Egor Barabanov, has been unstoppable for the Spirit, and that continued in the three games played this last week. He tallied five points (three goals, two assists), while also racking up a team-high 15 shots on goal in the three contests the team played. What continues to stand out for the duo of Klepov and Barabanov is the chemistry they have quickly built early on in the season. The two have been on the top line for the Spirit forward group and have led the way through the first seven games of the season. Klepov’s individual performance this last week helped earn him OHL Rookie of the Week honours and continues to show why he is viewed as a top prospect for the 2026 NHL Entry Draft.
On the back end of the ice, Levi Harper has been a standout as a newcomer for the Spirit. After a strong showing for the United States at the Hlinka Gretzky Cup earlier this year alongside Klepov, there were hopes that Harper could ease the pain of losing a player like Parekh. He has done an admirable job of doing so, and with the fact that head coach Chris Lazary lets his defencemen play a more loose game, he has shown his willingness and skill set to get involved in the offensive game.
Harper continued to lead rushes through the neutral zone and showcased great patience and poise with the puck on his stick over the weekend. A prime example of this was against the Owen Sound Attack, where he controlled the puck and showed his patience to work down low into the zone and get a great scoring chance on a wrap-around attempt that just missed the net. While he still has some growing and maturing to do, his overall game resembles a bit of Parekh’s in his time with the Spirit.
Power Play Struggles to Cash In
With the loss of the aforementioned players (Misa, Parekh, Chernyshov, etc), the Spirit’s power play is still a bit of a work in progress as all of the players continue to work into their roles on the special teams unit. Even with the team possessing the league’s ninth-best power play (18.4%), they did struggle over the past week, cashing in only twice in the 11 opportunities they had. It was not due to a lack of chances or effort, though. Each power play unit that was sent out onto the ice had its fair share of chances to get on the scoreboard, but was just unable to cash in at times. With Harper leading the first power-play unit at the “quarterback” spot and being flanked by Klepov and Barabanov, the puck movement and play are definitely looking strong, but the results are just not showing it quite yet.
Related: 5 2026 NHL Draft-Eligible OHL Players to Watch For
On the flip side of the coin, nonstop pressure and strong positioning by the Spirit on the penalty kill did help improve their success. Players like Liam Storch, Sebastien Gervais, and Sima all played important roles in the unit’s success throughout the three-game road trip, during which the team killed 10 of the 12 situations. Another big reason the Spirit found success on the penalty kill is the fact that every player had no issue with putting their body on the line to block a shot or get into a passing lane to eliminate chances for their opponents. If the power play and penalty kill can get on track together, the special teams units of the team could end up being majorly impactful as the season progresses.
Shurygin Has a Roller Coaster Weekend
Over the last few seasons, Andrew Oke has held the goaltender position for the Spirit, but as he ages out of junior hockey and moves onto the college ranks with Lake Superior State, the Spirit needed a new netminder. They have turned to another 2025 CHL Import pick, Stepan Shurygin. Shurygin started the season with his first OHL win in his first start against the Soo Greyhounds on Sept. 19, but has struggled to find true consistency in his game. That trend seemed to continue in the three games this past week.
There were times when Shurygin looked great, making huge saves to keep the Spirit out of trouble, but there were also times when he found himself out of position with his somewhat unorthodox style in the net. He does like to move around the crease a lot and can find himself in vulnerable spots from time to time, and did so a handful of times this past week. One of these times came in overtime against the Oshawa Generals, which led to the game-winning goal.
If Shurygin can find his footing 100% and consistency, he could be a huge X-factor for the Spirit as they try to get rolling as the season progresses.
Other Game Notes
- Playing against Oshawa on Oct. 5, Sebastein Gervais played in his 266th OHL game with the Spirit, the third-most in organization history.
- Klepov leads all OHL rookies in points with 11 (seven goals, four assists) in seven games so far.
- Harper leads all OHL rookie defencemen in points with six.
- The Spirit completed a trade with the North Bay Battalion on Oct. 6 to acquire defenceman Zach Wilson for a 2026 12th-round draft pick.
What’s on Tap
The Spirit will be in action twice this week (Oct. 6 – Oct. 12). On Oct. 11, they will return home for a matchup against the Kitchener Rangers before hitting the road for a quick trip to play the Soo Greyhounds on Oct. 12.
