2026 Graduating Class: Saginaw Spirit

After battling through an up-and-down regular season, the Saginaw Spirit secured a return to the postseason behind one of the Ontario Hockey League’s most dynamic young offensive groups before ultimately being eliminated in the opening round by the eventual OHL champions. 

Now, the Spirit prepare to say goodbye to the lone member of their graduating class as James Guo moves on from the OHL following the conclusion of his overage season.

James Guo (Saginaw Spirit, Peterborough Petes – 2021-26)

After being acquired from the Peterborough Petes in 2022, James Guo spent the majority of his junior career with the Saginaw Spirit. The smooth-skating defenceman recorded a career-high 39 points (8-31–39) during his overage season and added three points (1-2–3) in four playoff games. He was also a member of Saginaw’s Memorial Cup championship team in 2023-24.

The 6-foot-1 blueliner closes out his OHL career with 96 points (19-77–96) across 287 regular-season games. Originally selected by the Petes in the fourth round (74th overall) of the 2021 OHL Priority Selection, Guo is committed to Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) for next season.

James gets it to Guo 👏

The @SpiritHockey defender finds the back of the net against his former team! pic.twitter.com/Ay95wV6rGd

— Ontario Hockey League (@OHLHockey) January 23, 2026

2006-born players:

* denotes players who are committed to the NCAA for next season

Currently, the Saginaw Spirit boast five 2006-born players in Egor Barabanov*, Liam Storch, Bode Stewart, Josh Glavin and Kaleb Papineau.