Spirit Eliminated From Playoffs!

The Saginaw Spirit have been eliminated from the Ontario Hockey League Playoffs!

    The 2011-2012 campaign came to end for the Saginaw Spirit on Saturday.  The London Knights were the top overall seed in the Western Conference, and they eliminated Saginaw from the OHL (Ontario Hockey League) Playoffs. The Spirit lead the series 2 games to 1, but Saginaw lost games 4 through 6.
    The Spirit may have entered the Postseason with a bit of a controversy in net.  Clint Windsor, and Jake Paterson split the goaltending duties during the regular season, but Jake Paterson became the "go to guy" once the OHL Playoffs began.
     The 2011-2012 Spirit featured four players from our local area including defenseman Brad Walch who resides in Saginaw.  Six NHL (National Hockey League) clubs have already drafted seven Saginaw players including Center Vincent Trocheck (Florida Panthers) who lead the Spirit in points during the regular season with 85. Spirit Left Wingers John Shalla, (Nashville Predators) and Brandon Saad (Chicago Blackhawks) both contributed 76 points during the regular season, and both players are expected to achieve success at the next level.
     The Spirit season got off to a rough start, and as a result Head Coach Todd Watson was fired.  Greg Gilbert took over the roll, and really got the team rolling.  The future looks bright for the Saginaw Spirit as Greg Gilbert has installed a winning attitude to go along with much support from the Tri-Cities.
     The London Knights will face the winner of a game 7 Conference semifinals matchup between Kitchener and Plymouth.  In the Eastern Conference, the Niagara Ice Dogs have already advanced to the Conference finals, and await the winner of a game 7 Conference semifinals matchup between the Ottawa 67's and the Barrie Colts.








Click on the link below for more information about the Saginaw Spirit!

For more information about the Saginaw Spirit click on  http://www.saginawspirit.com/



For OHL stats, and standings click on  http://www.ontariohockeyleague.com



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