Canadiens: Owen Beck Traded to Memorial Cup Host Saginaw Spirit

For the second consecutive season, Montreal Canadiens prospect Owen Beck is on the move in the OHL, being traded to the Saginaw Spirit. Beck was traded to the Peterborough Petes from Mississauga last season and helped lead the Petes to an OHL Championship and Memorial Cup Appearance. He will look to do the same with Saginaw this post-season.

Beck had 25 points in 30 regular season games following his trade to Peterborough last season and added 16 more across 22 playoff games. This season, the Canadiens prospect had 30 points, including 16 goals in 25 games, before departing for the World Junior Championships. He also sports a 63.3% clip in the face-off dot, an asset he’s displayed for the better part of three seasons now.

Beck leaves a Peterborough team sitting at 15th in the OHL (out of 20 teams) and the worst offence in the league. Saginaw sports one of the league’s best offences in the league and has several talented players, including potential 2025 first-overall pick Michael Misa. The Spirit have five players averaging at least a point per game, not including Beck, so he should get to play with some talent. The Petes, for reference, had one, and it was Beck.

Perhaps Beck will join the likes of Nick Suzuki and Kaiden Guhle, who thrived on their new teams and helped lead them to league championships, winning MVP honours along the way. Beck will be leaned upon heavily, no doubt, especially in the defensive zone, as his 200-foot game will be an asset for the Spirit, who are loading up on talent.

Saginaw also acquired Sens prospect and Beck’s world Junior teammate Jorian Donovan at the deadline from Florian Xhekaj’s Brantford Bulldogs. Clearly, the Spirit are going all in, and Beck will get to play in what should be another lengthy playoff run, culminating in the Memorial Cup.

Saginaw is hosting this year’s Memorial Cup, so Beck is guaranteed to play in another, barring injury, which you would think is good for Beck’s development. The Canadiens may lean on him in deep playoff runs someday, so a championship pedigree and experience in long seasons should do wonders for him. And hey, maybe Beck’s Spirit and Filip Mešár’s Kitchener Rangers will meet in the playoffs this year. Both Beck and Mešár are now in the same conference after all.