The Memorial Cup round robin comes to a close as the London Knights face the Saginaw Spirit in a Western Conference Final rematch.
The CHL knew what they were doing when they crafted the Memorial Cup schedule, as they saved the best round-robin matchup for last. The round-robin finale features a rematch of the OHL Western Conference Final — the London Knights vs. the Saginaw Spirit.
This isn't just another round robin game, this is the most important round robin game for both teams. The winner of this game will receive a bye to the Memorial Cup Final, the loser will face the Moose Jaw Warriors in the semi-final game.
The stakes are high, and London and Saginaw both have a history of highly-competitive games this season. In the OHL Western Conference Finals, London took the series in six games, but it was not easy.
There was an abundance of physicality, scrums, and cheap shots given by both sides. This was the most competitive series of the OHL Playoffs, and we get to sit back and watch another game between the two teams tonight.
A big story for both sides in the Memorial Cup has been their ability to get offensive contributions from their defence cores. Zayne Parekh leads the Spirit in tournament scoring with four points in two games, while Oliver Bonk leads the Knights with three points.
Parekh and Bonk have very different styles of play, but both have been able to step up and contribute in the most important part of the season. Parekh creates offence in droves for Saginaw, and his vision and creativity offensively are off-the-charts.
With Bonk, it is his ability to create off the pass. He has outstanding passing vision, especially when coming out of his zone. He's often able to create a zone entry or a dangerous chance with a long, accurate pass. Bonk also acts as the "bumper" on the London Knights' first power play unit, getting him the puck in front of the net often.
For the London Knights, their edge in this game could be in the goal crease. Michael Simpson has been outstanding in his Memorial Cup "revenge tour" after a disappointing result last year with Peterborough.
Through two starts in this tournament, Simpson has a 2.00 GAA, and a .934% save percentage. He was recently voted to the OHL's Second All-Star Team for the 2023-24 season, and is making his case as to why NHL and AHL teams should consider signing him to a pro contract.
Saginaw’s goaltender, Andrew Oke, has been fine. But just fine will not be good enough against a team that has scored four or more goals in their last seven games. Oke has allowed seven goals on 50 shots through two games and has struggled to track the puck through bodies in front of him.
We’ve raved about London’s special teams numerous times, and that’s an area Saginaw will need to punish the Knights in when given the opportunity. The Spirit went 6 for 28 on the powerplay in the West Finals. 28 opportunities on the man advantage in six games is absurd. The Knights can be an emotional team and take needless penalties. If London gets into penalty trouble tonight, Saginaw must take advantage.
Seeing how these two OHL teams have performed thus far in the tournament, there’s a good chance we will see a London versus Saginaw Memorial Cup Final. But first, they will wrap up the round-robin tonight with the puck drop coming just after 7:30pm EST.