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OHL Flint Firebirds

Battalion Charge Back to Beat Firebirds, 3-2

February 24, 2024 - Ontario Hockey League (OHL)
Flint Firebirds News Release


FLINT, Mich. - Coulson Pitre scored to hit the 150-point milestone in his OHL career and Matthew Wang netted his third goal of the season, but the North Bay Battalion tallied three unanswered goals to come from behind and beat the Flint Firebirds, 3-2, on Saturday night at the Dort Financial Center.

Wang put the Birds on the board first as he beat a pair of North Bay defenders to a loose puck in the attacking zone. He poked the puck ahead toward the bottom of the left circle and quickly snapped it on goal from a sharp angle. His shot slipped between the near post and Dom DiVincentis' pads to give Flint a 1-0 lead.

Two minutes later, Gavin Ewles gained the zone and left a pass for Jimmy Lombardi at the left point. As Pitre crashed the net, Lombardi fired a puck toward the top of the crease. Pitre deflected the pass and sent the puck past the blocker of DiVencentis to extend the lead to 2-0.

Five minutes into the middle frame, Justin Ertel broke free about a half pace ahead of the Flint defense from the blue line in. He was hauled down from behind and as a result was awarded a penalty shot. Ertel stickhandled wide to the left wing, weaved back to the low slot and wristed a shot that caught a piece of Jacob Brown's glove but ended up in the back of the net, cutting Flint's lead to 2-1.

The Troops tied the game less than two minutes into the third after forcing a turnover deep in their right offensive corner. An errant Flint pass bounced off the outside of the Brown's net where Owen Van Steensel backhanded it into the slot. Dalyn Wakely was first on the scene, and he snapped a shot past Brown's glove to knot the score at two.

Five minutes later, Sandis Vilmanis knocked a bouncing puck in the left circle past a Flint defender. Valmanis gathered the puck, tucked it back between his skates, followed it with the blade of his stick and sent it airborne over Brown's left pad to put the Battalion on top for good, 3-2.

Ewles finished with a pair of assists, Lombardi recorded a point for the fourth consecutive game and Brown made 23 saves on 26 shots. The Firebirds dropped to 24-28-3-1 in the loss while the Battalion improved to 30-18-6-2.

Flint will return to action on Thursday night for the first of three games in three nights. The Firebirds head to Windsor to take on the Spitfires on Thursday before heading home for games on Friday and Saturday. Puck drop is set for 7:05 p.m. on Thursday night at the WFCU Centre.

Story: Brandon Mills // flintfirebirds.com

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