Spirit look to capture Coors Light I75 Divide Cup Wednesday against Firebirds

SAGINAW, Mich. (WNEM) - The Saginaw Spirit (24-18-2-0) look to win the Coors Light I75 Divide Cup as they host the Flint Firebirds (22-21-2-1) Wednesday, February 1, at the Dow Event Center.

Tonight’s Game:

Puck drop is at 7:05 p.m.

The Spirit currently hold a 4-2 lead over the Firebirds for the I75 Cup. A win tonight would secure the 4th series victory since the trophy’s inception in 2015.

Tickets:

Ticketmaster

Phone: (989) 497-7747

In-Person: Saginaw Spirit Store (6321 State St.), Dow Event Center Box Office

Broadcast:

Television: CHL TV, CHL App, OHL Action Pak Ch. 466

Radio: 100.5 FM WSGW, WSGW.com

Last Time:

Despite holding a 1-0 lead for much of the game, the Spirit fell 4-1 to the Barrie Colts Sunday, January 29, at the Dow Event Center. Olivier Savard scored the lone goal for Saginaw and Andrew Oke made 21 saves on 23 shots in the loss.

Box Score & Highlights

The Firebirds lost 6-4 to the very same Colts Saturday, January 28, at the Dort Financial Center in Flint, Michigan. Coulson Pitre, Riley Piercy, and Ethan Hay each recorded a goal and an assist for Flint.

Box Score & Highlights

This Season:

This is the seventh of eight scheduled games between Saginaw and Flint, with the Spirit leading the series 4-2. The Firebirds got their second win of the series with a 4-2 victory at home on January 21st. Amadeus Lombardi scored twice, and Coulson Pitre earned two helpers for Flint. Nathan Day made 27 saves on 29 shots in his first win against the Spirit this season. Dean Loukus earned two assists and Andrew Oke made 30 saves on 33 shots for the Spirit.

Players to Watch:

Saginaw’s Dean Loukus has been deadly against Flint this year with ten points (5G, 5A) through six games. The Michigan native is also on a seven-game point streak. In that span, he has three goals and seven assists for ten points. The winger has the most assists (28) among Spirit Skaters. 15-year-old Michael Misa, who has earned five points (3G, 2A) against the Firebirds, leads all rookies in the OHL in all scoring aspects (20G-27A-47P). He leads Saginaw in goals and points. New York Islanders prospect Tristan Lennox’s has a team-best 3.26 goals against average (GAA) while Andrew Oke’s .884 save percentage (SV%) gives him the lead in that metric.

Flint’s Braeden Kressler has earned ten points (5G, 5A) against Saginaw this season. Detroit Red Wings prospect Amadeus Lombardi, who has scored five points (4G, 1A) against the Spirit, leads the Firebirds in points (59) and goals (28). Winnipeg Jets prospect Dmitry Kuzmin’s 32 assists are the most for any Flint skater. Will Cranley has Flint’s best goaltending numbers, posting a 3.72 GAA and a .889 SV%.

Saginaw has three (3) players drafted into the National Hockey League (NHL), including Matyas Sapovaliv (Vegas), Tristan Lennox (New York Islanders), and Hunter Haight (Minnesota).

Flint has six (6) NHL prospects, including Dmitry Kuzmin (Winnipeg), Gavin Hayes (Chicago), Will Cranley (St. Louis), Braeden Kressler (Toronto, FA), Amadeus Lombardi (Detroit), and Artem Guryev (San Jose).