YEAR TEN ALL-STAR TEAM: Left Wingers
The Spirit are asking fans to help them choose the Spirit’s Year Ten All-Star Team, presented by Meijer! This week fans can vote on the team’s top left wingers from the last nine seasons of action. Visit the home page of SaginawSpirit.com to access the voting terminal on the right hand column.
The nominees for top left wingers are: Patrick Asselin, Daniel Borges, Chris Chappell, Jesse Gimblett, Tom Harrison and Josh Shalla. The nominees were chosen based off of contributions on and off the ice as well as by nominees received by Spirit fans following the conclusion of the 2011 playoffs.
Video of the six nominees is available on SaginawSpirit.com!
#23 Left Winger Patrick Asselin
Patrick Asselin played five seasons with the Spirit, serving as an alternate captain for one season and as the team’s captain to start the 2007-2008 season. He became one of the team’s all-time scorers with a combined 70 goals and 66 assists for 136 points in 270 games and also earned the distinction of being the team’s record holder for fastest game opening goal, scoring 0:07 seconds into a game against the Brampton Battalion on October 9, 2004. In his final full season with the Spirit, the Peterborough Ontario native posted 27 goals and 26 assists for 53 points in 68 games. Asselin was traded to the Oshawa Generals in the early part of the 2007-2008 season.
Asselin has spent the better part of his post-OHL career playing in the ECHL, most recently with the Kalamazoo Wings where he posted 27 goals and 38 assists for 65 points in 69 games in 2010-2011.
#19 Left Winger Daniel Borges
Daniel Borges was the Spirit’s second round selection in the team’s first ever OHL Priority Selection. In his rookie season, the Spirit’s inaugural season in 2002-2003, Borges posted seven goals and 12 assists for 19 points in 56 games. The Brampton Ontario native played three seasons with the Spirit for a combined 14 goals and 33 assists for 47 points.
Borges spent time in the OPJHL following his career in Saginaw and in 2007-2008 he played 28 games for Ryerson University of the CIS.
#19 Left Winger Chris Chappell
Chris Chappell played four seasons with the Spirit, working his way up the team’s depth chart after being the Spirit’s 11th round pick, 202nd overall, in the 2004 OHL Priority Selection. The Pickering, Ontario native quickly developed into one of the team’s grittiest wingers, posting 32 goals and 46 assists for 68 points in his first three seasons in Spirit uniform. Chappell had a breakout season his overage year of 2008-2009, eclipsing his point production from the past three seasons with 38 goals and 38 assists for 76 points. He also served as the team’s captain that season.
Chappell would go on to sign a free agent contract in the New York Rangers system, and most recently in 2010-2011 he split time between the ECHL Greenville Road Warriors and the AHL Hartford Wolf Pack.
#10 Left Winger Jesse Gimblett
Jesse Gimblett was a three year veteran of the team, five year veteran of the OHL, after coming to Saginaw via a trade with the Owen Sound Attack to start the 2003-2004 season. The Newtonville Ontario native quickly became a leader on and off the ice while also posting a combined 49 goals and 63 assists for 112 points in three seasons. Gimblett is currently ranked thirteenth on the Spirit’s all-time scoring list.
Gimblett would attend the University of Alberta following his time with the Spirit, playing four seasons in the CWUAA before splitting time with the ECHL Stockton Thunder and AHL Oklahoma City Barons in the 2010-2011 season.
#7 Left Winger Tom Harrison
Tom Harrison only played one season with the Spirit in 2004-2005 but quickly made his mark, becoming the team’s captain as well as the Spirit’s all-time single season penalty minutes leader with 310 PIM. The Thunder Bay Ontario native played three seasons with the Kitchener Rangers and one with the Spirit; while in Spirit uniform he tallied four goals and six assists for ten points in 66 regular season games.
Following his time in Saginaw Harrison would play two seasons in the CIS with the University of Western Ontario before heading to the ECHL. He split time between the ECHL Wheeling Nailers and the Central Hockey League’s Tulsa Oilers in the 2009-2010 season.
#25 Left Winger Josh Shalla
Josh Shalla has soared into the Spirit record books in his two seasons with the team, accumulating 137 points in the past two years. His is currently the eighth top scorer in team history and is the Spirit’s single season goal scoring record holder with 47 goals tallied in the 2010-2011 season. The Whitby Ontario native also set a record for most goals in a single game with four markers scored against the Windsor Spitfires on November 27, 2010. Shalla has posted a combined 79 goals and 58 points for 137 points in his two seasons with the Spirit.
Shalla was selected by the Nashville Predators with the 94th overall pick in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft; pending the discretion of the Predators Shalla could return to Saginaw for his overage season this September.
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Nominees for the Year All-Star Team were chosen based off fan submissions, with skaters being required to play at least 60 games in Spirit uniform and goalies at least 30 games. Only active players entering their OA season were considered for this poll as other active player’s careers are still pending. The top voted player from each category will be named to the Meijer Year Ten All-Star Team!
Fans can vote on the nominees for the different positions throughout the summer; player bios and video of each nominee will be posted to SaginawSpirit.com during their corresponding voting period:
Centers (6 nominees; June 22 to June 28)
Left Wing (6 nominees; June 29 to July 5)
Right Wing (6 nominees; July 6 to July 12)
Defenseman (8 nominees; July 13 to July 19)
Goaltenders (6 nominees; July 20 to July 26)
The Meijer Year Ten All-Star Team will be officially announced August 3, 2011.
