SAGINAW, Mich. — This was the game they wanted. Spirit players and coach Chris Lazary had said as much in the lead-up, choosing not to hide it. It was the talk of the town all week. The fans at the Dow Event Center chanted for it in the final seconds of the semifinal: “We want London! We want London!”
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Before them, though, fans in Oshawa had chanted the same, only to be swept in the OHL final. That’s what it was to play the London Knights this season. You weren’t supposed to beat them. But on Sunday, in the Memorial Cup Final, the host Spirit did. It was the 12th time they’d met this season, the league’s most bitter rivals. The Knights won seven of the first 11 meetings but the Spirit were the only team to beat them in their otherwise undefeated run to the OHL title — twice. They came the closest in the round robin at the Memorial Cup, too, the Knights needing a goal from Easton Cowan with a minute-and-a-half left to win it.
But this time it was them, in the dying seconds of another tied 3-3 game, scoring the late goal — a jam play from Canucks prospect Josh Bloom in the crease for their first-ever CHL crown.
JOSHUA BLOOM WITH THE GAME WINNING GOAL AT HOME IN SAGINAW 🚨🚨🚨#MemorialCup pic.twitter.com/3ru5Tz5Pgs
— TSN (@TSN_Sports) June 3, 2024
Trio of top draft prospects make final cases
One of the benefits of a Spirit-Knights final was that scouts got to see all three of the tournament’s relevant 2024 draft eligibles not just play extra games but more importantly, play in a high-stakes do-or-die championship game.
London’s Sam O’Reilly strengthened his first-round case with a strong performance, playing 16-19 minutes a night in a top-six role and making some big plays in big moments, which included setting up the game-winner with a minute and a half left in the round robin finale against Saginaw to send the Knights to the final with a deft little stick lift and small area play on entry to spring Cowan, and a nifty individual effort to break open another tied game against Moose Jaw. I view him as a second-rounder but if you were a team that had given him a first-round rating, you’re feeling good about that right now.
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It felt like Zayne Parekh, despite his top-10 rating and near-historic production this season, needed to show scouts that he could defend against stiffer competition and rise to the challenge in a high-pressure environment, and he did. He was extremely impactful throughout, driving the bulk of Saginaw’s offense at five-on-five, playing to positive results against three championship teams, breaking up a lot of plays with his stick, coming up big on some important penalty kills, and playing hard (and with a bit of a chip on his shoulder).
Heading into the final, I didn’t think Sam Dickinson’s tournament had helped or hurt his case. He’d played huge minutes, played them mostly well, used his skating to create entries and defend and made a couple of nice plays inside the offensive zone (particularly on east-west passes), but also had some hiccups under pressure in his own zone and showed some of the minor concerns that teams have about him and his processing. Then he got pulled wide on Joey Willis’ 3-0 goal in the final.
He came up huge in the second half of the game though, playing some of the best hockey I’ve seen him play, setting up Cowan for the 3-2 goal and then joining the rush to tie the game himself. His skating became a real factor as others showed some tiredness.
Owen Beck puts a stamp on his junior career
A year ago, Owen Beck and the Peterborough Petes finished two wins shy of the Memorial Cup, losing in its semifinal. This year, he was fine through the round-robin but I was waiting for him to really take charge and be The Guy for a Saginaw team that has players like that on the back end but has been by-committee up front this year. And in both the semifinal and the final that’s exactly what he did.
On Sunday night, in particular, the Habs second-rounder was the best player on the ice, scoring the game’s opening two goals and laying a huge first-period hit on London star Cowan. He looked strong on pucks, he looked confident making plays and his execution was consistent. He just impacted play shift after shift.
Owen Beck off the draw opens the scoring in this very important game 🚨🚨#MemorialCup pic.twitter.com/mU4mctkOJC
— TSN (@TSN_Sports) June 3, 2024
This season was also about, maybe more than anything else, him showing he had the offense to go with the pro-style game he plays. His 100 points in 79 combined regular season, playoff and Memorial Cup games with the Spirit has helped to do that.
Owen Beck wins the Stafford Smith Memorial Trophy 🏆🫡
MVP MVP MVP #MemorialCup pic.twitter.com/JLFRvOAv8Q
— TSN (@TSN_Sports) June 3, 2024
Easton Cowan’s ascension continues
It ended one goal shy of a perfect post-draft season, but the Leafs can’t have hoped for anything more out of last year’s No. 28 pick. OHL Most Outstanding Player. OHL Playoffs MVP. An OHL championship. The game-winner in the dying minutes of the round-robin finale at the Memorial Cup to send London to the final. Named a CHL First All-Star Team member the morning of the Memorial Cup final. And then a goal and an assist in the final to claw London back.
With his skating, work ethic, and skill, expect Cowan to start the season with the Leafs next year.
COWBOY shoots… COWBOY scores on Saginaw to put London just one goal behind 🤠🚨
The Knights trail the Spirit 3-2 with 11 minutes remaining #MemorialCupFinal pic.twitter.com/awCGugoap5
— TSN (@TSN_Sports) June 3, 2024
My (mock) tournament All-Star Team ballot
F: Owen Beck (Saginaw Spirit/Montreal Canadiens)
F: Kasper Halttunen (London Knights/San Jose Sharks)
F: Easton Cowan (London Knights/Toronto Maple Leafs)
D: Zayne Parekh (Saginaw Spirit/2024 NHL Draft)
D: Oliver Bonk (London Knights/Philadelphia Flyers)
G: Michael Simpson (London Knights/free agent)
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More reading from the Memorial Cup
• How Zayne Parekh’s unique game made him a 2024 NHL Draft star — and why he’s leaning into it
• Meet Jacob Julien, the Winnipeg Jets prospect with the most unlikely success story
• How Wild prospect Kalem Parker’s development has changed his trajectory
• Why the Senators have a ‘real good one’ with prospect Jorian Donovan
(Photo of Joey Willis: Nic Antaya / Getty Images)
Scott Wheeler covers the NHL draft and prospects nationally for The Athletic. Scott has written for the Toronto Star, the Globe and Mail, The Toronto Sun, the National Post, SB Nation and several other outlets in the past. Follow Scott on Twitter @scottcwheeler
