Thanks to Mlive for this:
SAGINAW, MI – Michael Misa has spent his hockey life as a marked man, taking the ice under the spotlight reserved for “exceptional status” players.
But the focus will intensify this season when the standout on the Saginaw Spirits hockey team (based in Saginaw, Michigan) becomes eligible for the NHL Draft and tries to lead the Spirit to an Ontario Hockey League championship and another Memorial Cup title.
“It’s a big year for him with a lot of pressure that goes with it being your draft year,” Saginaw Spirit general manager Dave Drinkill said. “But he’s had pressure his whole life, living up to the expectations of being an ‘exceptional status’ player and coming in a year early.
“He’ll handle it well. We’re here to support him. He’s going to play a major role on the ice. We expect him to be one of the better players in the league. More important, he expects that himself.”
The Spirit open the 2024-25 OHL season Wednesday, Sept. 25, with a home game at 7:05 p.m. against Windsor. They played three preseason games in Kitchener with a win, a loss and a shoot-out loss. Saginaw has two preseason games remaining, a Sept. 18 game at Sault Ste. Marie and then a final tune-up in the only home preseason game Sept. 22 against the Soo.
Misa is in the unusual situation of entering his draft year as a grizzled veteran. The OHL granted him “exceptional status,” allowing him to enter the league as a 15-year-old. The Spirit took him with the first pick in the 2022 OHL Draft, putting a little more pressure on a 15-year-old player.
“I’ve been dealing with it for a couple years now,” Misa said. “I just go out there and have fun. I can really only control what I do on the ice. As long as I know I worked my hardest, I’ll be happy.
“Saginaw does a really good job of developing players on and off the ice. This summer was a big summer for me to gain some weight. I grew a couple inches too. I’m ready. Coming back for my third year, I’ve matured a bit.”
The 6-foot-1, 185-pound forward is coming off a 2023-24 season that saw him play 67 games, scoring 29 goals with 46 assists. In 17 playoff games, he scored four goals with seven assists.
He also helped the Spirit win the Memorial Cup, registering five assists in five games in a tournament that ended Sunday, June 2.
“Once you win a Cup, you want another one,” Misa said. “It’s a fun time in Saginaw, just being back here. It was a short summer, but I’m happy to be back. I’m going to do whatever I can to help my team win on the ice. Trying to get back to the Memorial Cup is something our team will strive for this year.”
Misa is considered one of the top NHL draft-eligible players in the world, with different services ranking him No. 3 through No. 6.
“You tell players every year not to read the draft lists, don’t look online for your name,” Drinkill said. “But they all do. To be honest, it’s hard not to at that age. The best players always rise when the lights are brightest. I have no doubt Michael will rise to the occasion.
“That’s what the NHL teams are going to look for too, guys who have the mental strength to push through it.”
Misa will have plenty of guidance from teammates who have experienced the NHL Draft, including Joey Willis, Ethan Hay, import draft pick Igor Chernyshov and Zayne Parekh, who made history as the highest Spirit NHL Draft pick when he was taken ninth in the 2024 draft.
“It’s very satisfying as an organization when you see young men realizing their dream or get one step closer to playing in the NHL,” Drinkill said. “At the end of the day, we are a developmental league. It’s our job to develop these players. We take a lot of pride when guys get a chance to go to development camp or get drafted.
“We wish them the best when they go to camps, hope they stay healthy, make a good impression and bring back what they learned from camp for the younger guys and keep that chain going. You really want a great culture. Those older guys who have been to camps really help set that culture.”
Drinkill has little doubt that Misa will add his name to that list.
“He’s matured so much on and off the ice,” Drinkill said. “Right from the get-go, I was impressed with the way he handled everything, the way he takes time for everybody. He never wants it to be about him. He wants it to be about the team first. He wants to win. That’s always impressed me. When you get a man with that stature, that’s not always the case.
“Add to that how much he’s grown and filled into his body as a young hockey player. He’s definitely a different player than he was at 15, and that’s normal. Players going from 15 to 17 are gong to change a lot. You look back at pictures of when we drafted him, and he’s this little boy going into a man’s league. It’s hard to believe he’s going into his third year already.”
The Spirit expect Misa to jump into the role as a team leader, on and off the ice.
“His role will change,” Drinkill said. “When the older guys leave, the younger guys you’ve developed over the years are going to take on a bigger role. Michael’s going to take a huge role. It’s not just him.
“We still have an exciting core, a great core. We’re intrigued by the group we have and the experience they got last year.”
Misa has prepared during the summer for a bigger role and for the NHL Draft.
“I’m focused on just being more of a 200-foot player, making sure I’m defensively reliable and transfer that to offense,” Misa said. “It’s a big year for me. I have to step up in any way I can. The older guys who were on the team last year really gave me a great guide for what I should be doing this year. Being able to ask them questions last year is something I can take into this year.
“Other teams will talk and stuff, maybe play more physical against me. At the end of the day, it’s hockey. You get used to it. It should be fun.”
