Field set for 2024 Memorial Cup

Michael Hawkins/Saint John Sea Dogs

The field is now set for the 2024 Memorial Cup.

The London Knights and Moose Jaw Warriors secured their spots in the tournament on Wednesday night, joining the QMJHL champion Drummondville Voltigeurs and host Saginaw Spirit. The tournament begins next Friday in Michigan.

All four championship series ended in sweeps, which is a CHL first. Drummondville and London had fairly easy times with the Baie-Comeau Drakkar and Oshawa Generals, respectively, while Moose Jaw had a few close games with the Portland Winterhawks.

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Both Saginaw and Moose Jaw will be making their Memorial Cup debuts. This was the first WHL championship for the Warriors despite their franchise dating back 40 years.

Drummondville will be making their fourth appearance and first since 2009.

London, meanwhile, has been no stranger to this tournament over the past 20 years. The Knights will be playing in their sixth Memorial Cup since 2005 and will be looking for a third title. They'll likely be favourites going into this given how they handled the OHL with relative ease this season – which included eliminating Saginaw in the third round of the playoffs.

All three league champions will have over a week to prepare for the Memorial Cup. Saginaw hasn't played since May 5.

The QMJHL has won the past four Memorial Cups. The OHL last won it in 2017 (Windsor Spitfires) while no WHL team has won since 2014 (Edmonton Oil Kings).