Memorial Cup: Owen Beck collects two points and the Spirit holds on, 5-4

Owen Beck scored a goal and had an assist as the Saginaw Spirit beat the Moose Jaw Warriors 5-4 on Friday in the 104 League opener.^H Memorial cup.

Saginaw led the game 4-0 before the Western Hockey League champions cut the deficit to 4-3.

Upcoming NHL draft prospect Zayne Parekh finished the game with a goal and two assists.

Almost destructive bullets

The two teams participated in the first match in their history in the Memorial Cup.

Soul began the confrontation with the knife between his teeth. The home team outscored the Warriors 17-7 after one period.

After hitting the post twice, Saginaw opened the scoring. Forward Nick Cima skillfully redirected Parekh's shot with 33 seconds left in the period. Michael Mesa was also a partner.

Soul continued its momentum and took advantage of the numerical advantage. Montreal Canadiens prospect Beck saw his shot from the left circle deflected onto the stick of defenseman Denton Matychuk. This is the second goal of his career in the tournament.

Parekh is expected to be a first-round pick in the upcoming NHL Draft. The six-foot defenseman, who has 96 points in the OHL this year, tripled his team's lead with a one-timer from the top of the slot.

The Michigan team didn't stop. Less than two minutes after the third goal, Joran Donovan beat Jackson Unger with a low shot. The latter allowed a fourth goal to be scored in 25 shots.

The Warriors recovered before the end of the second period. Brayden Yager first completed a brilliant delivery from Matthew Savoie. Just 37 seconds later, Matychuk made up for his mistake by being patient in the slot and firing a precise shot into the top corner.

Matychuk and Jagr returned to the attack a minute later. The defender fed Jagr who scored his second goal of the match and reduced the deficit to one goal.

Beck earned his second point of the game with Saginaw's fifth goal. Josh Bloom thanked CH producer with his first tournament.

Finally, Savoy reduced the deficit to just one goal at the end of the third period, but to no avail.

The Drummondville Voltigeurs will begin their Memorial Cup journey on Saturday against the London Knights. The match will be broadcast on RDS channel starting at four in the afternoon.