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OHL Flint Firebirds

Firebirds Look to Stay Hot in Sarnia against the Sting

March 15, 2024 - Ontario Hockey League (OHL)
Flint Firebirds News Release


SARNIA, Ont. - The Firebirds punched their ticket to the OHL Playoffs on Wednesday evening by virtue of a 4-3 shootout win over the Soo Greyhounds combined with a 6-3 loss for the Sarnia Sting to the Mississauga Steelheads. With five games remaining, the Birds remain in eighth place in the Western Conference but just two points back of the tie for sixth-place occupied by the Guelph Storm and Owen Sound Attack and three points behind the fifth-place Erie Otters. Flint arrives in Sarnia on Friday to take on a team with six consecutive losses, just one win in its last 11 games and that has been eliminated from postseason contention. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. at Progressive Auto Sales Arena.

LAST TIME OUT: Nathan Aspinall, Tristan Bertucci and Matthew Wang each scored and Connor Clattenburg buried the game-winner in the shootout as the Firebirds beat the Soo Greyhounds, 4-3, on Wednesday night at the Dort Financial Center. The Firebirds clinched a spot in the OHL Playoffs with the win.

THE PLAYOFF PICTURE: Both the Firebirds and the Guelph Storm clinched their spot in the OHL Playoffs on Wednesday and the field of eight teams in the Western Conference is set. Seeding is still very much up for grabs, however, as Flint sits in eighth places, two points behind the Guelph Storm and Owen Sound Attack who are tied for sixth and three points back of the fifth-place Erie Otters. Flint has five games remaining, three of which are against Sarnia and Windsor Spitfires, the bottom two teams in the Western Conference. Erie has four games left, Owen Sound has five and Guelph has six. There is a 17-point gap between fourth and fifth in the Western Conference.

SARNIA IN FREE FALL: The Sting come into Friday night's game having lost six consecutive games and with just one win in their last 11 games. Sarnia is 1-9-0-1 in those 11 games and was eliminated from playoff contention on Wednesday. The Sting have allowed five or more goals in nine of their last 10 games and are averaging 6.3 goals against per game in the last 10.

WORKING OVERTIME: Three of Flint's last four games and each of its last three games have gone to overtime or a shootout. The Firebirds have needed more than regulation to decide a winner 13 times this season and they are 9-4 in OT/shootout games. Flint is 7-3 in overtime and 2-1 in shootouts.

APPROACHING A MILESTONE: Oliver Peer recorded an assist on Wednesday and now has 149 points in his OHL career. Peer has 60 goals and 89 assists over 175 games in the league. In 25 games for Flint he has 10 goals and 16 assists.

ODDS AND ENDS: The Firebirds are 3-0-0-0 in Sarnia this season and have outscored the Sting, 16-7 at Progressive Auto Sales Arena...Flint has won five of its last seven games and three of its last four...a win on Friday would bring the Firebirds to an even .500 points percentage. Flint was last at .500 on December 14 when it was 13-13-2-1...Zach Filak leads the Sting with eight points in six games against Flint.

BROADCAST COVERAGE: Friday night's game against the Sarnia Stingcan 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. Brian Gardner will call the play-by-play action on the Firebirds Hockey Network starting 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 online at https://watch.chl.ca/ohl.

UP NEXT: Flint will return home on Saturday night to host the Windsor Spitfires. It's Education Appreciation Night, sponsored by Sovita Credit Union and the Michigan Education Association, and all educational employees can receive a free ticket to the game by showing proof of employment at the Dort Financial Center box office. The Firebirds will also be awarding the second-annual Flint Firebirds Foundation Teacher of the Year Awards during a pregame ceremony. Puck drop is scheduled for 7 p.m. at the Dort Financial Center.

Check out the Flint Firebirds Statistics



Ontario Hockey League Stories from March 15, 2024


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