Firebirds Continue Northern Swing on Friday in Sudbury
Published on October 20, 2023 under Ontario Hockey League (OHL)
Flint Firebirds News Release
SUDBURY, Ont. - On Friday night the Firebirds make the second of three stops in the OHL's Central Division, this time in Sudbury for a meeting with the Sudbury Wolves. The trip began on Thursday when they beat the Barrie Colts for the team's second road victory. Friday is the first of only two meetings between the Birds and Wolves and is the only tilt to be played in Sudbury. Puck drop is set for 7:05 p.m. tonight at the Sudbury Community Arena.
LAST TIME OUT: The Firebirds played their first Eastern Conference opponent of the season last night against the Colts in Barrie. Flint jumped out to an early lead, then found themselves tied at two just beyond the midway point of the contest. Toronto Maple Leafs prospect Braeden Kressler snapped the tie with his first of the season just before the second intermission, then dropped an insurance marker into the empty net with 15 seconds remaining in regulation. The Birds claimed the 5-3 road win in front of an impressive 39-save outing by Nathan Day.
SERIES HISTORY: The all-time series between these two clubs has been very closely contested. Flint's record stands at 6-5-1-0 against the Wolves. On the road, however, the Birds mark is 2-4-0-0 at the Sudbury Community Arena. Last season Sudbury won both meetings.
SCOUTING THE WOLVES: (5-3-0-0, 2nd Central Division) -
David Goyette leads the offensive charge for Sudbury with two goals and eight assists for ten points in eight games. Andre Anania is second with seven points, all of them assists and Kieron Walton has a balanced three goals and three helpers to sit third in scoring.
The Wolves rank 11th on the penalty kill with an 81.2% rate of success. With the man advantage, they sit in 20th at just 4.9 %.
SCOUTING THE FIREBIRDS: (2-5-0-0, 4th West Division) -
Kaden Pitre and Nolan Dann lead the Birds in scoring with five points each. Pitre has the team lead in goals with four, and Dann has two plus three helpers. Zacharie Giroux (1 G, 3 A) and Marko Stojkov (0 G, 4 A) are tied for the third spot. Nathan Day picked up his first win of the season on Thursday and now carries a 5.19 goals-against average with a save percentage of .836. Rookie Jacob Brown has one win in two appearances with a 5.68 GAA and a SV% of .800.
The Firebirds scored their second power-play tally of the season last night in Barrie and now have a 74.2% success rate on the penalty kill, good for 16th.
NOTEWORTHY: Since Paul Flache took over as Firebirds head coach, rthe team has gone 2-1-0-0 in road games. Toronto Maple Leafs' prospect Braeden Kressler ranks inside the league's top ten players in faceoff percentage (58.6%) among skaters with 50 or more draws. He also scored his 40th career OHL goal on Thursday night in Barrie.
BROADCAST COVERAGE: Due to a scheduling conflict, Friday night's game will not air on US 103.1 FM. There will be an online-only audio stream available via mixlr at flint-firebirds.mixlr.com/. Brian Gardner will call the play-by-play action on the Firebirds Hockey Network starting with the pre-game show at 6:50 p.m.
All of the Flint Firebirds home and away games throughout the 2023-24 season can be watched anywhere in the world online at https://watch.chl.ca/ohl.
COMING UP: The Firebirds continue the road trip with a Sunday afternoon contest in North Bay. Then they'll face the division-rival Soo Greyhounds in back-to-back games next week. The first game with the Hounds will be on the road Wednesday before hosting Sault Ste. Marie Saturday, October 28 at the Dort Financial Center. The October 28 home game will be Flint's First Responder's Night, sponsored by Dort Financial Credit Union and supported by the DM Burr Group, ServPro of Northwest Genesee County, and MedStar. All Police, Fire, and EMS employees will receive a FREE ticket at the Dort Financial Center box office window with proof of employment, courtesy of game night sponsors & supporters (listed above). There will also be the annual Battle of the Badges Charity game (Police vs. Fire) to be played prior to the Flint Firebirds game. This game is scheduled to be played from 4:30-5:30 p.m.
Ontario Hockey League Stories from October 20, 2023
- Kitchener Extends Win Streak to Four - Kitchener Rangers
- Giroux's Two Goals Help Firebirds Drop Wolves, 4-3 - Flint Firebirds
- Egorov Immense & Crombie Leads Dogs' 5-1 Win Over Gens - Brantford Bulldogs
- Bowen Stops 43/44, Melee Scores Twice as Petes Take Down 67's in Ottawa - Peterborough Petes
- Erie Otters Upset CHL #2 London Behind Terrance's Pair - Erie Otters
- Firebirds Continue Northern Swing on Friday in Sudbury - Flint Firebirds
- Kitchener Hosts Owen Sound for Second Match-Up on Friday at the Aud - Kitchener Rangers
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