GAME PREVIEW: Saginaw Spirit vs Windsor Spitfires – 9/26/26
Saginaw, Mich. – The Saginaw Spirit (1-1-1-0) take on the Windsor Spitfires (0-2-1-0) on Saturday, September 26th, at the Dow Event Center.
Tonight’s Game:
Puck drop is at 7:05pm
The Spirit celebrate Women’s Hockey Day on Saturday, presented by Space Inc. The Midland Hornets girls hockey team will play at 12:15pm, followed by the SVSU women’s team at 2:30. Tickets to tonight’s Saginaw Spirit game serve as admission to all three games.
Broadcast:
Radio: 100.5 FM WSGW, WSGW.com
TV: FloHockey
Last Game:
Saginaw got their first win of the season after beating the Niagara IceDogs 5-3 on Friday, September 25th, at the Dow Event Center. Braidy Wassilyn opened the score for Saginaw and Dima Zhilkin added a goal to his point tally for the season. Goaltender Brady Knowling picked up his first win of the season with 25 saves on 28 shots.
Windsor most recently faced the Flint Firebirds on Friday, September 25th, at the WFCU Centre. Despite the Spitfires taking the lead first through Ethan Garden, a Flint comeback would be sufficient to hand Windsor their third consecutive loss this season, with a final score of 4-2.
This Season:
This will be the first of eight meetings between Saginaw and Windsor this season. The series was split in the 2025-26 OHL regular season, as Saginaw (4-4-0-0) won four games, and Windsor (4-2-1-1) took the other four.
Players to Watch:
Dima Zhilkin was this season’s first Cogeco OHL Player of the Week recipient. The 17-year-old scored 5 points (3G-2A) in 2 games to claim the award, and a further point (1G) in Saginaw’s last game against Niagara. Zhilkin scored eight points (5G-3A) in eight games against Windsor in the 2025-26 regular season. The Spirit captain was named to the CHL USA Prospects Challenge roster early this week as the first player from the OHL. Zhilkin’s six points on the season place him tied for second in league scoring.
Forward Braidy Wassilyn has scored six points (3G-3A) in the first three games of his Spirit career. Wassilyn has registered 1G-1A—2P in all three contests and finished last night’s game against Niagara as +3.
Brady Knowling returned in the net for Saginaw following his rookie camp with the San Jose Sharks. The goaltender made 25 saves against Niagara to help the Spirit secure their first win of the season. Stepan Shurygin returned from Tampa Bay Lightning camp and served as Knowling’s backup against the IceDogs. Shurygin led the OHL last season in games played (59), minutes (3417), and saves (1704).
Saginaw’s NHL-Drafted Players: Brady Knowling (SJ), Jacob Cloutier (WPG), Brody Pepoy (TOR), Stepan Shurygin (TB)
Bogdan Yakushevsky leads the Spitfires in scoring through three games (2G-1A—3P). The rookie came to Windsor through the CHL Import Draft this summer from Moscow, Russia. He scored 72 points (33G-39A) in 39 games between CSKA Moskva U17 and U18. With Krasnaya Armiya Moskva of the MHL (Russian Junior League), Yakushevsky had six points (3G-3A) in 24 games.
Forward Caden Harvey has spent the early part of this season at camp with the Edmonton Oilers, who selected him in the sixth round of the 2026 NHL Draft. Harvey debuted as a rookie with the Spitfires last season, appearing in all 68 games and recording 11G-23A—34P. He had two goals and an assist in eight games against Saginaw last season.
The Spitfires acquired forward Michal Svrcek in the CHL Import Draft this summer as well. A right-shot forward from Slovakia, Svrcek was a fourth-round pick of the Detroit Red Wings in 2025. Svrcek as a part of the Slovakian World Junior team, with two points (1G-1A) in five games. He has a pair of assists through three games with the Spitfires, one in each of his last two games.
Windsor’s NHL-Drafted Players: Caden Harvey (EDM), Michal Svrcek (DET), Andrew Robinson (EDM)
