Michael Misa (born February 16, 2007) is a Canadian junior

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...

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and captain for the

Saginaw Spirit The Saginaw Spirit are a Junior ice hockey#Major junior, major junior ice hockey team based in Saginaw, Michigan, Saginaw, Michigan. They are members of the West Division of the Western Conference of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL), one of the ...

of the

Ontario Hockey League The Ontario Hockey League (OHL; ) is one of the three major junior ice hockey leagues which constitute the Canadian Hockey League, alongside the Western Hockey League and the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League. The league is for players ag ...

(OHL). He is considered a top prospect eligible for the

2025 NHL entry draft The 2025 NHL entry draft will be the 63rd entry draft for the National Hockey League. The draft is expected to be held on June 27 and June 28, 2025, and will take place at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles. The New York Islanders hold the fir ...

Playing career

At the 2022

OHL Cup The Ontario Hockey League Showcase Cup (more commonly known as the OHL Cup) is a tournament hosted by the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) and operated by the Greater Toronto Hockey League (GTHL) with the purpose of providing an additional scouting op ...

, Misa had 20 points in seven games to beat

Connor McDavid Connor Andrew McDavid (born January 13, 1997) is a Canadian professional ice hockey Centre (ice hockey), centre and Captain (ice hockey), captain of the Edmonton Oilers of the National Hockey League (NHL). Selected first overall by the Oilers ...

's record for tournament scoring. In April 2022, Misa was granted

exceptional player status The Canadian Hockey League (CHL; , LCH) is an umbrella organization that represents the three Canada-based major junior ice hockey leagues. The CHL was founded in 1975 as the Canadian Major Junior Hockey League, and is composed of its three me ...

to enter the

(OHL) for the 2022–23 season, becoming the eighth player to be granted exceptional status, the previous being Shane Wright. A few weeks later, he was selected first overall at the 2022 OHL draft by the

. In his OHL debut on October 1, 2022, a 10–6 victory over the

Guelph Storm The Guelph Storm are a major junior ice hockey team based in Guelph, Ontario, Canada. They have played in the OHL since the 1991–92 season. The team plays home games at the Sleeman Centre. History The franchise started as the Toronto Marl ...

, he recorded two goals. Despite missing six weeks with a fractured

tibia The tibia (; : tibiae or tibias), also known as the shinbone or shankbone, is the larger, stronger, and anterior (frontal) of the two Leg bones, bones in the leg below the knee in vertebrates (the other being the fibula, behind and to the outsi ...

, he had the most productive season for an exceptional-status player in OHL history, achieving 1.24 points per game, ahead of

John Tavares John Tavares (born September 20, 1990) is a Canadian professional ice hockey forward (ice hockey), forward and Alternate Captain (ice hockey), alternate captain of the Toronto Maple Leafs of the National Hockey League (NHL). In the 2009 NHL ent ...

’ 1.18, Wright’s 1.14, and McDavid's 1.05. Misa would go on to win the

Emms Family Award The Emms Family Award is presented annually to the Rookie of the Year (top first-year player) in the Ontario Hockey League. The winner is also nominated for the CHL Rookie of the Year. The award was donated by Hap Emms. Leighton "Hap" Emms was a ...

as OHL rookie of the year. Appearing in 67 games during the 2023–24 season, Misa had 29 goals and 46 assists. His point-per-game rate was lower than the prior season, which Saginaw's general manager attributed to his playing fewer minutes as a result of the team acquiring veteran junior players like

Owen Beck Owen Beck may refer to: * Owen Beck (boxer) (born 1976), Jamaican professional boxer * Owen Beck (footballer) (born 2002), Welsh footballer * Owen Beck (ice hockey) Owen Beck (born February 3, 2004) is a Canadian professional ice hockey centre f ...

. The Spirit made a deep run in the OHL playoffs to the Western Conference Final, but were defeated by the

London Knights The London Knights are a junior ice hockey team from London, Ontario, Canada, playing in the Ontario Hockey League, one of the leagues of the Canadian Hockey League. The Knights started out in 1965 as the London Nationals but changed to their ...

in six games. However, as the hosts, the team still participated in the 2024 Memorial Cup against the champions of the CHL's three leagues. Misa distinguished himself during the team's round robin game against the

Drummondville Voltigeurs The Drummondville Voltigeurs are a Canadian junior ice hockey team of the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League (QMJHL). The franchise was originally granted for the 1982–83 season, and is based in Drummondville, Quebec, playing its home game ...

, registering three assists in a 4–3 comeback victory and being named player of the game. The Spirit reached the championship game, a rematch with the London Knights, and defeated them to claim the franchise's first Memorial Cup. In January 2025, Misa was named the 26th captain in Saginaw history. He finished the

2024–25 OHL season The 2024–25 OHL season was the 45th season of operation (44th season of play) of the Ontario Hockey League. The league played a 68-game regular season which began on September 25, 2024 and concluded on March 23, 2025. The post-season began on M ...

first in league scoring with 134 points, tying with

Patrick Kane Patrick Timothy Kane II (born November 19, 1988) is an American professional ice hockey winger (ice hockey), right winger for the Detroit Red Wings of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was selected by the Chicago Blackhawks with the List of ...

for most goals in a draft-eligible season with 62. In addition to receiving the

Eddie Powers Memorial Trophy The Eddie Powers Memorial Trophy is awarded annually by the Ontario Hockey League to the player scoring the most points in the regular season. The trophy was donated by the Toronto Marlboro Athletic Club in memory of athlete and coach Eddie Power ...

in recognition of his leading the league in scoring, Misa was awarded the

Red Tilson Trophy The Red Tilson Trophy is awarded annually by the Ontario Hockey League to the most outstanding player (MVP) as voted by OHL writers and broadcasters. It was donated by ''The Globe and Mail,'' and first awarded in the 1944–45 OHA season by the On ...

as the most valuable player of the OHL regular season. As well, he was named scholastic player of the year, and a First Team All-Star. The Spirit were eliminated in the first round of the OHL playoffs by the

Erie Otters The Erie Otters are a major junior ice hockey team based in Erie, Pennsylvania. They are members of the Midwest division of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL), one of only three American teams in the league. The team's name refers to the North Am ...

, with Misa missing the final game of the series.

International play

Misa won a gold medal representing

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

in the

2023 Hlinka Gretzky Cup The 2023 Hlinka Gretzky Cup is an under-18 international ice hockey tournament that was held from 31 July to 5 August 2023 at FOSFA Aréna in Břeclav, Czech Republic, and Pavol Demitra Ice Stadium in Trenčín, Slovakia. Preliminary round ''A ...

, finishing the tournament with eight points in five games.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Bold indicates led league

International

Awards and honours

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Misa, Michael 2007 births Living people 21st-century Canadian sportsmen Canadian Hockey League exceptional status players Canadian ice hockey forwards Saginaw Spirit players