That’s it. They’re out.
Michael Misa had two points and was one of five different Saginaw players to score as the Spirit downed the Owen Sound Attack 5-1 in Game 4 of their Ontario Hockey League western conference quarterfinal Wednesday evening at the Harry Lumley Bayshore Community Centre.
The 2024 Memorial Cup host Spirit won the series 4-0, sweeping the Attack.
Zayne Parekh, Nic Sima, Rodwin Dionicio and Owen Beck also scored for Saginaw, who will move on to face the Soo Greyhounds in the western conference semifinals.
Servac Petrovsky had the lone goal for the Attack, who led for only 34 seconds during the four-game series.
It’s the second straight year the Attack were swept in the first round. They’ve now lost nine straight playoff games going back to the 2021-22 season.
“It’s always the worst speech you have to give after the last game because there’s no more hockey to play, and it’s really upsetting for the 20-year-olds, their career is over from a junior hockey standpoint … it’s a lot of long faces, some tears, pretty quiet,” Attack interim head coach Darren Rumble says. “But I just told them I’m proud of how they played. They gave it all and left it all out there on the ice in playoffs. So they can put that in their pocket and know the next time they’re under the big lights, playing in the big game that they have no reason to shy away.”
Ethan Burroughs, Deni Goure and Sam Sedley are the three players who certainly played their final games in an Attack sweater Wednesday night. Sedley brushed away tears after the game, clearly emotional as the reality set in his time as an OHL player for the Attack had come to a close. The trio of 20-year-olds spent their entire OHL careers in Owen Sound. Sedley departs as the franchise’s all-time points leader as a defenceman. Burroughs inside the top-15 for career points, and Deni Goure seventh on the all-time list with 251 points.
“Definitely a lot of emotion. It sucks. But all good things need to come to an end at some point,” Goure says. “It was awesome. I’m real fortunate to have been able to have been here for five years. It was some of the best years of my life.”
“Real disappointed to have ended the season like this, getting beat out in the first round again,” he continues. “But, it is what it is. Nothing you can do now.”
Andrew Oke made 20 saves in the win, while Carter George stopped 39 taking the loss. Saginaw outshot the Attack 44-21 while going 1 for 4 on the power play; Owen Sound finished 0 for 1.
