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OHL Flint Firebirds

Firebirds Continue Playoff Push in Pivotal Matchup vs. Storm Tonight

March 4, 2023 - Ontario Hockey League (OHL)
Flint Firebirds News Release


Flint, Mich. - The red-hot Firebirds now have points in six of their past seven games, and continue a five-game home stand tonight. The Guelph Storm are in town tonight with only nine games remaining in the regular season for Flint. The Storm are two games and two positions ahead of the Birds in the Western Conference standings. Puck drop for tonight's tilt with MAJOR playoff implications is set for 7:00 p.m. (ET) at the Dort Financial Center.

The Firebirds hosted the West Division-leading Windsor Spitfires on home ice last night. Nathan Day donned the pads for the home team and turned away 41 of the Spitfires' 42 shots en route to his fifth-straight win and sixth in his last seven starts. Westland, Mich. native Gavin Hayes was first to light the lamp in the contest and he added a helper, extending his current point streak to 12 games (5 G, 13 A). Amadeus Lombardi scored the next two, hitting his 39th and 40th of the campaign plus earning an assist. Riley Piercey picked up a trio of assists, the first of which was the 100th of his OHL career.

Guelph comes in on a six-game winning streak, most recently having topped the Greyhounds in Sault Ste. Marie 5-2 last night. With the win, the Storm completed the four-game series sweep over the Hounds for the season. Ryan McGuire scored twice to lead the Storm, and Patrick Leaver posted 32 saves on 34 to log his 12th win of the season. Matthew Poitras saw his 11-game point streak come to an end, leaving Flint's Gavin Hayes with the longest active point streak in the OHL.

Flint ranks fourth in the West Division and seventh in the Western Conference with a 28-26-4-1 record. They've gone 14-12-2-1 on home ice. The Storm are 30-24-4-1 for the year, seeding them second in the Midwest Division and fifth in the Western Conference. Their road record sits at 14-14-1-0.

For the season, Flint has two wins in three meetings with Guelph. The lone home game in the series ended in a 9-5 Firebirds' victory back on November 5. Tonight marks the fourth of four games between these teams for the season and is the second of two to be played in Flint. The Birds' all-time record versus the Storm is 17-9-2-0 with a 7-5-1-0 mark on home ice.

On special teams, the Firebirds have converted on 20.2% of their power-play chances, ranking them 16th in the league. The Storm has success 24.0% of the time, which ranks fifth in the OHL. Flint has killed off 77.3% of their penalties, which is 14th. Guelph's penalty-kill squad is ranked 20th in the OHL with a 72.3% efficiency.

Promotions

Tonight's game versus the visiting Guelph Storm is Teacher Appreciation Night sponsored by Sovita Credit Union & the Michigan Educational Association and supported by Genesee Educational Consultant Services. All educational professionals can receive a FREE ticket to the game with a valid work ID or badge at the Dort Financial Center Box Office any time prior to puck drop while supplies last! The Dort Financial Center Box Office opens at Noon today. All other tickets can be purchased at Etix.com HERE.

Players to Watch

Flint Firebirds (28-26-4-1, 4th West Division):

Amadeus Lombardi has 40 goals and 43 helpers for 83 total points across 58 games. That ties him for the fourth-most points and the fifth-most goals in the OHL. Westland, Mich. native Gavin Hayes remains in second with 63 points, stemming from 29 tallies and 34 helpers. He has five goals and 13 assists on his current 12-game point streak, which is the longest active streak in the league. Overage forward Riley Piercey sits third with 19 goals and 42 assists. Czechian forward Simon Slavicek is expected to play the 100th game of his OHL career tonight, as well.

Defender Dmitry Kuzmin leads the blue-line crew with 12 goals and 43 assists through 59 contests. He's tied for the fifth-most assist among OHL defenders, has the fifth-most points, and the seventh-best point-per-game average at .93. Draft-eligible defenseman Tristan Bertucci has the second-most points among rearguards with ten tallies and 33 helpers.

Veteran goaltender Will Cranley has appeared in 40 contests and posted a 4.00 goals-against average (GAA) with a .880 save percentage (SV%). Cranley is credited with 15 victories, including one shutout. Nathan Day now has 13 wins across 26 appearances, including six wins in his last seven starts. Day carries a GAA of 4.05 with a .871 SV%.

NHL: The Firebirds have six players with NHL ties consisting of Will Cranley (St. Louis Blues), Amadeus Lombardi (Detroit Red Wings), Gavin Hayes (Chicago Blackhawks), Braeden Kressler (Toronto Maple Leafs), Dmitri Kuzmin (Winnipeg Jets), and Artem Guryev (San Jose Sharks). Additionally, Coulson Pitre, Tristan Bertucci, Ethan Hay, and goaltender Nathan Day were listed on the NHL Central Scouting's 2023 Midterm Rankings for the upcoming NHL Draft.

Through seven OHL seasons thus far, Alex Nedeljkovic (Detroit), Kole Sherwood (Columbus), Ty Dellandrea (Dallas), Tyler Tucker (St. Louis), and Will Bitten (St. Louis) are five former Firebirds to play in the NHL. Riley Piercey (Detroit) and Gavin Hayes (Chicago) played in NHL preseason contests this year, joining Firebirds' alumni Ethan Keppen (Vancouver), Vili Saarijarvi (Detroit), and Jalen Smereck (Arizona). In total, the team has produced 24 signed or drafted players into the NHL.

Guelph Storm (30-24-4-1, 2nd Midwest Division):

Matthew Poitras tops the Storm with 74 total points, stemming from 14 goals and a club-high 60 assists in 54 games. His 60 assists are the second most in the OHL. Defenseman Michael Buchinger, who signed a three-year entry-level contract with the St. Louis Blues earlier this week, is second with 57 points (13 G, 44 A) through 52 contests. He rides a seven-game point streak, consisting of three goals and 11 assists in that time. Winger Braeden Bowman's 27 goals and 27 assists through 45 tilts place him in third in scoring.

Third-year netminder Patrick Leaver has backstopped Guelph in 43 games this season. He's credited with 22 victories, and he carries a 3.58 goals-against average (GAA) with a save percentage (SV%) of .888. Rookie Brayden Gillespie has ten wins across 19 appearances in the campaign. His GAA sits at 3.24 with a .888 SV%.

NHL: The Storm have four players with NHL ties, including Jake Karabela (Washington Capitals), Matthew Poitras (Boston Bruins), Michael Buchinger (St. Louis Blues), and Chandler Romeo (Ottawa Senators). In addition, Cam Allen and Vanetin Zhugin were listed on the NHL Central Scouting's 2023 Midterm Rankings for the upcoming NHL Draft.

NHL: Notable Guelph Storm skaters to play in the NHL are Craig Anderson, Todd Bertuzzi, Tyler Bertuzzi, Dustin Brown, Ryan Callahan, Dan Cloutier, Drew Doughty, Aaron Downey, Robby Fabbri, Daniel Girardi, Manny Malhotra, and Richard Panik.

Broadcast Coverage:

This evening's contest against the Guelph Storm can be heard live on the radio throughout Flint & Mid-Michigan on US 103.1 FM, online at www.us103.com, or by downloading the US 103 app here. Jack Sznewajs will call the play-by-play action on the Firebirds Hockey Network (FHN). Pregame coverage will begin before puck drop at 6:45 p.m. (ET) today.

The game will also be televised live across the province of Ontario on the OHL Action Pak on channel 466 (4466 HD) for both Rogers TV and Cogeco TV cable subscribers. OHL fans with cable television in Ontario can add the OHL Action Pak to their television plan to catch the Firebirds in action, home or away all season long.

Also, all Flint Firebirds' home and away games throughout the 2021-22 regular season can be watched anywhere in the world online at https://watch.chl.ca/ohl. CHL TV is the league's new and improved video streaming platform that delivers high-quality live and on-demand coverage of all regular season and playoff games annually. The cost is $6.99 for 24-hour access, $24.99 for monthly access, $109.99 for all-access to the 2021-22 Firebirds and OHL season, or $159.99 for all-access to the entire 2021-22 CHL season.

Next Up: Game four of the current five-game homestand for the Firebirds will be Wednesday evening when the Erie Otters return for the first time since January 22. The game is another Buy One, Get One Free promotion, available only at the Dort Financial Center Box Office. Puck drop for Wednesday's home game is set for 7:00 p.m. (ET) at the Dort Financial Center, and all other individual tickets are available from ETIX.COM.

Check out the Flint Firebirds Statistics



Ontario Hockey League Stories from March 4, 2023


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