The Saginaw Spirit and the Moose Jaw Warriors will battle in a do-or-die semi-final game to play in the Memorial Cup Final.
The stakes are high, as the Saginaw Spirit and the Moose Jaw Warriors will play each other in the semi-final game to determine which team will advance to the Memorial Cup Final. Saginaw had the upper hand in the first game between these two teams, but will they be able to do it again?
Saginaw beat Moose Jaw 5-4 in their first round robin matchup. In that game, there were momentum-swinging concerns for both teams. Moose Jaw had a very slow start, allowing Saginaw to go up 4-0 half way through the game. But Saginaw proceeded to allow Moose Jaw back into the game, as they made it just a one-goal difference.
Moose Jaw will be looking to come out hard as soon as the puck drops, and the Spirit will be sure not to allow their opponent to get back into the game if they get up.
Denton Mateychuk leads the entire tournament in points from Moose Jaw's back end, as the Spirit will be looking to battle back with offence from their own blue line. Zayne Parekh's best game of the tournament came in that game against Moose Jaw, as he put up a goal and two assists, and won Player of the Game.
The top NHL Draft eligible prospect has been shining on the biggest stage in junior hockey, just continuing to bolster his draft stock. His offensive creativity has been at an all-time-high, and the pressure seems to add to his confidence.
In the crease, both Andrew Oke and Jackson Unger are coming off of impressive performances. Oke may have lost in the game against London, but he made 31 saves, keeping his team in the game for a majority of the sixty minutes.
Unger made an outstanding 49 saves in Moose Jaw's only tournament win against Drummondville, ending with a .942% save percentage in that game.
The Saginaw Spirit are coming off a loss, while Moose Jaw is coming off of a win in their most recent game. Saginaw battled their first bit of adversity in this tournament against London, and they will be looking to come back from that against Moose Jaw.
The Warriors' confidence will be high — even though they lost to Saginaw in their first matchup. In their dramatic win against Drummondville, they were able to get several different players to step up, and they will be looking to get the same contributions against Saginaw.
The winner will face the London Knights in the Memorial Cup Final. Who will it be? Will Saginaw get the best of the Warriors once again? Or will Moose Jaw hold off Saginaw's offence.