OHL Flint Firebirds

Firebirds Head East to Sarnia for Friday Night Clash

Published on October 13, 2023 under Ontario Hockey League (OHL)
Flint Firebirds News Release


SARNIA, Ont. - The Firebirds look to move into the win column with a Friday night road battle versus the Sarnia Sting. Head coach Paul Flache and the Birds are coming off a tight 2-1 loss against the Spirit in Saginaw, the 17th one-goal game in the storied in-state rivalry. Now the focus shifts to another west division rival in the Sting. Puck drop is set for 7:05 p.m. Friday at the Progressive Auto Sales Arena.

Flint's all-time record versus Sarnia in regular-season play stands at 31-23-2-0. They've gone 13-14-1-0 on the road in the series. A season ago, the Birds were 4-3-1-0 against the Sting, including a 2-1-1-0 record in Sarnia.

SCOUTING THE STING: Sarnia is 3-2-0-0 through five games to date. Marko Sikic paces the club with eight points, stemming from five goals and three assists. Tyson Doucette (4 G, 2 A), Andrew LeBlanc (1 G, 5 A), and Florida Panthers prospect Sandis Vilmanis (6 A) sit tied for second with six points. Toronto native Nick Surzycia has two wins in four appearances between the pipes for the Bees. He carries a 2.27 goals-against average (GAA) and a .923 save percentage (SV%). Rookie Karson Chartier has yet to see regular-season action in net but stopped all 13 shots faced in preseason action this year. Veteran Sarnia netminder Benjamin Gaudreau was traded to the Erie Otters earlier this week.

The Sting rank 11th on the power play coming into Friday's contest. They've converted on four of 22 chances with the extra man through five games. Sarnia sits 12th in penalty-kill success, having allowed four power-play goals against in 20 shorthanded situations.

SCOUTING THE FIREBIRDS: Second-year forward Kaden Pitre and 2023's first-round selection Jeremy Martin have three points a piece. The younger of the two Pitre brothers on Flint's roster tops the club in goals with three while Martin has two goals and one assist. Sophomore forward Daks Klinkhammer (1 G, 1 A) is behind them with two points, followed by seven other players to find their way onto the scoresheet in the club's first four contests.

Kaden Pitre netted Flint's first power-play tally of the season in Saginaw on Wednesday. The Firebirds are tied for the league lead in shorthanded with two, both of which were scored on the road. Overall the penalty kill is operating at a 64.7% clip.

BROADCAST COVERAGE: Due to a scheduling conflict, Friday night's game will not be broadcast on US 103.1 FM. There will be an online-only audio broadcast available on mixlr, with Brian Gardner will call the play-by-play action beginning with the pregame 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 via OHL Live online at https://watch.chl.ca/ohl.

COMING UP: The Firbirds return home Saturday when they host the Guelph Storm on Hockey Fights Cancer Night, sponsored by the McLaren Flint Foundation. The team will be wearing specialty Hockey Fights Cancer jerseys during gameplay, with a live jersey auction following the contest. All proceeds will benefit the McLaren Flint Foundation. Tickets are available online at ETIX.com or at the Dort Financial Center Box Office.

Check out the Flint Firebirds Statistics

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Ontario Hockey League Stories from October 13, 2023


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