Saginaw & Go Great Lakes Bay Take Home Plenty of Hardware as the 2024 Memorial Cup Is Recognized as an Award-Winning Event

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OHL Saginaw Spirit

Saginaw & Go Great Lakes Bay Take Home Plenty of Hardware as the 2024 Memorial Cup Is Recognized as an Award-Winning Event

April 23, 2025 - Ontario Hockey League (OHL)
Saginaw Spirit News Release


Nearly a year following what was a landmark event in the State of Michigan, the 2024 Memorial Cup has been officially deemed an award-winning event.

Over the last week, the 104th edition of the Memorial Cup, which was held in Saginaw, Michigan, won Sports ETA's Event of the Year and Event Partnership of the Year Awards for destinations with populations under 500,000. Additionally, last year's tournament was also recognized at the Pure Michigan Governor's Conference on Tourism by earning the Michigan Travel Commission's Non-Traditional Collaboration Award.

The Sports Events and Tourism Association (Sports ETA) is a non-profit trade association for the sport tourism industry in the United States comprised of more than 800 member organizations and 2,500 individuals in the United States.

Sports ETA's Event of the Year Award celebrates initiatives with deep community impact beyond economic returns, while the Event Partnership of the Year Award focuses on a collaborative partnership on a sports event that is exemplary to the benefit of all organizations or that worked in innovative ways on an event to the benefit of each organization.

Scheduled from May 24 - June 2 of last year, the 2024 Memorial Cup in Saginaw generated $40 million in economic impact and over $500,000 in media value. It sparked major accessibility upgrades in Saginaw, including a $1 million elevator inside the Dow Event Center - the home arena of the Saginaw Spirit of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL). Additionally, the tournament was defined by seven transformative legacy projects, including venue upgrades at the Dow Event Center, all driven by the power of cross-border collaboration in revitalizing Saginaw.

President and Managing Partner of the Saginaw Spirit, Craig Goslin, speaks to tourism and hospitality leaders, industry representatives, meeting planners and economic development professionals from across Michigan gathered in Metro Detroit, April 15-17 for the 2025 Pure Michigan Governor's Conference on Tourism. The 2024 Memorial Cup was awarded the Non-Traditional Collaboration Award following a transformative journey for the city of Saginaw and the Great Lakes Bay Region that helped bring the 104th edition of the Memorial Cup to life.

On behalf of the Canadian Hockey League, we would like to congratulate Saginaw's efforts around the 2024 Memorial Cup for being honored, stated Dan MacKenzie, President of the CHL. As the first-ever Memorial Cup held in the state of Michigan in the tournament's 106-year history, this event was a historic milestone for the entire Great Lakes Bay Region. The collaboration between the CHL, the Saginaw Spirit of the OHL, and local partners such as Go Great Lakes Bay was instrumental in ensuring that the tournament exceeded expectations and left a significant impact on the community that will be felt for many years to come.

The 2024 Memorial Cup was a landmark event that not only showcased premier junior hockey talent but also left a lasting legacy on the Saginaw community and the broader Great Lakes Bay Region in Michigan.

Among the many legacy projects that were generated as a result of Saginaw hosting the 2024 Memorial Cup included the revitalization of Symphony Lane, which is a city-owned street near the Dow Event Center. Ahead of the tournament, Symphony Lane was rebuilt and transformed into a vibrant public gathering space with bump-outs and infrastructure for food trucks, electrical access, Edison-style street lighting, a pedestrian-friendly crossing, a Memorial Cup sculpture, lighting, landscaping, and connections to the Dow Event Center.

As previously highlighted, this project was one of several that the city and community groups undertook to commemorate the 2024 Memorial Cup. At the Henry Marsh Bridge (I-675), adjacent to Symphony Lane, a mural was commissioned to honor the legacy and contributions of Mayor Henry G. Marsh. At Hoyt Park, additional park infrastructure was installed to enhance the usability of the park. These signature placemaking projects were completed to ensure residents and visitors were proud to tell the story of their city to an international audience.

There were also several improvements made to the Dow Event Center, which is where every game of the 104th edition of the Memorial Cup was played. Specifically, as part of a multi-million dollar renovation project, upgrades included a new ceiling to the arena, upgraded and additional suites, locker rooms, bathrooms, the addition of elevators, new lighting, new corner ice scoreboards, an LED ribbon wrapped around the upper level of the arena, along with a 24-foot by 10-foot curved LED display in the welcome atrium.

Over the course of the tournament, more than $190,000 CAD was raised for several worthy causes, including the Royal Canadian Dominion Command Poppy Trust Fund, Memorial Cup Legacy Scholarship Program, and Saginaw Spirit Charitable Foundation. Specifically, $50,000 USD was raised for the Memorial Cup Legacy Scholarship Program, which will award ten (10) deserving Saginaw Valley State University (SVSU) students (two per year) with academic scholarships valued at up to $5,000 over the next five years. Aimed at supporting students pursuing post-secondary education in host communities of the CHL's championship event, the 2024-25 recipients of this legacy program in Saginaw were Ella Yantz and Lauren Gallagher.

President and Managing Partner of the Saginaw Spirit, Craig Goslin, poses for a photo alongside Saginaw Valley State University (SVSU) students Ellie Yantz (second from the right) and Lauren Gallagher (third from the right), who were Saginaw's 2024-25 recipients of the Memorial Cup Legacy Scholarship. Over the next five years, two SVSU students annually will be awarded academic scholarships valued at up to $5,000 as part of this program.

In December 2022, the Ontario Hockey League's Saginaw Spirit, in partnership with the Go Great Lakes Bay Regional Convention & Visitors Bureau, submitted a vibrant and detailed bid to host the 104-year-old Memorial Cup. Their successful bid in March 2023 marked the beginning of a transformative journey for the city of Saginaw and the Great Lakes Bay Region that helped bring the 2024 Memorial Cup to life.

The Saginaw County Board of Commissioners played a pivotal role by endorsing essential upgrades to the Dow Event Center, sparking a broader transformation within the county. This initiative showcased the region's cultural and economic vitality, attracting tens of thousands of visitors and ensuring sustainability for the future.

Key partnerships and collaborations were forged with various organizations, including the Saginaw County Convention & Visitors Bureau, Great Lakes Bay Regional Convention & Visitors Bureau, Frankenmuth Chamber/CVB, Dow, Michigan's Department of Transportation, City of Saginaw, Saginaw Economic Development Corporation, UA Local 85, Saginaw Transit Authority Regional Services (STARS), and Garber Management Group. These efforts collectively enhanced the event's success, and addressed critical aspects such as transportation, public safety, and local business support.

Serving as the CHL's championship event, the Memorial Cup is a four-team round-robin tournament played among the champions of the Western Hockey League (WHL), Ontario Hockey League (OHL), and Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League (QMJHL), along with a host team. The 2025 Memorial Cup is scheduled to take place from May 22 to June 1 in Rimouski, marking the return of the Memorial Cup to the province of Québec for the first time in 10 years. As hosts, the Rimouski Océanic will be one of four teams to participate in it alongside this season's playoff champion from each of the WHL, OHL, and QMJHL.

The 2023-24 season saw the Memorial Cup presented for the 104th time. During last year's tournament, the host Saginaw Spirit defeated the London Knights 4-3 in the final to secure their first-ever CHL championship title in franchise history. By accomplishing the latter, the Spirit became the first CHL club from Michigan to ever win the Memorial Cup and just the third U.S. franchise to accomplish the feat.

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