Savoie wins WHL championship, joins Komarov in Memorial Cup

Buffalo Sabres prospect Matt Savoie and the Moose Jaw Warriors won the WHL championship on Wednesday with a 4-2 victory over the Portland Winterhawks.

Moose Jaw swept the best-of-seven series and will compete for the Memorial Cup, the top prize in Canadian junior hockey, in a round-robin tournament against the winners of the OHL and QMJHL along with this year’s host team, the Saginaw Spirit.

Sabres prospect Vsevolod Komarov will also compete for the Memorial Cup, which he won last season, after winning the QMJHL title with Drummondville on Tuesday. Komarov was named QMJHL defenseman of the year and received the Guy Lafleur Trophy as the top player in the playoffs.

Savoie, the ninth-overall pick by Buffalo in the 2022 NHL Draft, scored 24 points in 19 playoff games, including a goal in the deciding Game 4, after leading the WHL with an average of 2.09 points per game during the regular season.

The championship is the culmination of an eventful year for the 20-year-old, which began with an upper-body injury he sustained during the final game of the Prospects Challenge in September. Savoie rehabbed that injury in Buffalo through training camp and the start of the regular season, played a six-game conditioning stint with Rochester, then made his NHL debut before being reassigned to his former WHL team, the Wenatchee Wild.

Savoie was acquired by Moose Jaw from Wenatchee in January. He had 47 points (19+28) in 23 games after the trade.

Find the Memorial Cup schedule below (all times eastern).

Friday, May 24 at 7:30 p.m. – Moose Jaw vs. Saginaw

Saturday, May 25 at 4 p.m. – London vs. Drummondville

Sunday, May 26 at 7:30 p.m. – Saginaw vs. Drummondville

Monday, May 27 at 7:30 p.m. – London vs. Moose Jaw

Tuesday, May 28 at 7:30 p.m. – Drummondville vs. Moose Jaw

Wednesday, May 29 at 7:30 p.m. – Saginaw vs. London

Thursday, May 30 at 7:30 pm. – Tie breaker (if necessary)

Friday, May 31 at 7:30 p.m. – Semifinal

Sunday, June 2 at 7:30 p.m. – Final