Firebirds Seek 10th Win in 12 Games, Host Rangers Wednesday
Published on February 8, 2022 under Ontario Hockey League (OHL)
Flint Firebirds News Release
Flint, Mich. - The Firebirds return home to host the Kitchener Rangers Wednesday evening. Puck drop is set for 7:00 p.m. (ET) at the Dort Financial Center. The tilt marks another Buy One, Get One Wednesday game, where fans can purchase one ticket at regular price and get a second ticket of equal value for free. Great seats are still available HERE.
The Firebirds enter Wednesday's contest in second place in the West Division, and they have the second-most points in the 10-team Western Conference with a record of 24-14-0-2. The Rangers sit fourth in the Midwest, with a 16-19-1-1 record. On home ice this year, Flint has gone 9-9-0-1 compared to Kitchener's road record of 6-7-0-0. The Firebirds have won seven of their last eight games, and have scored the second-most goals in the league this season, having found twine 163 times. Through 40 games this season, the Birds posted their best-ever record of 24-14-0-2. Flint has also won seven of their last eight games, and eight of their past ten.
Wednesday marks the fifth of six meetings between these clubs this season, and the second of three to be played in Flint. All-time, Flint carries a record of 10-11-2-0 against Kitchener, with a home record of 3-8-1-0. So far this year, the Birds are 3-1-0-0 versus the Rangers, having won one of two games played in Flint thus far.
The most recent tilt between Flint and Kitchener was last Friday night at the Kitchener Memorial Auditorium. Seven different Firebirds recorded points in a 5 - 2 triumph, led by Dmitry Kuzmin (Winnipeg Jets) with his first two-goal game in the OHL, and Amadeus Lombardi with two assists. Zacharie Giroux, Tag Bertuzzi, and Samuel Assinewai each lit the lamp for the Birds, as well. Between the pipes, Luke Cavallin made 30 saves on 32 shots, several of them worthy of the highlight-reel. For Kitchener, Marcus Vandenberg made 34 saves on 38 shots in his first OHL start. Jacob LeBlanc netted his second goal of the season, and Joseph Serpa led the Rangers with a goal and an assist.
On special teams, the Firebirds are converting with the man-advantage at a 19.9% rate, which ranks them 13th in the 20-team OHL. Kitchener has scored at a success rate of 17.4%, which ranks them 17th. Flint is killing penalties at an 85.2% clip, ranking second in the league. The Rangers' penalty-kill is ranked 12th, with a 78.3% success rate.
Players to Watch:
Flint Firebirds (24-14-0-2, 2nd West Division):
Last week, Brennan Othmann (New York Rangers) became the first OHL player to log 30 goals this season. He also has 27 assists for 57 total points in 38 games-played. Othmann is now tied for third in the league for goals, is tied for third in shorthanded goals (3), is tied for the seventh-most points, and has the tenth-best points-per-game average at 1.50. Riley Piercey sits second in scoring and now has 18 goals and 23 helpers through 35 games played. Piercey has 11 multi-point games this season, and is currently on a three-game point streak (2 G, 1 A). Amadeus Lombardi ranks third with 37 points (16 G, 21 A) in 39 contests. Lombardi has one goal and seven assists in his past three games, and also rides a three-game point streak into Wednesday's contest.
Ethan Keppen (Vancouver Canucks) rejoined the club mid-season. Since then, he has 18 points (8 G, 10 A) in 14 games, and is currently on an eight-game point streak (7 G, 8 A). Keppen's 1.29 points-per-game average is second on the Flint roster, only trailing Othmann in that category. Sahil Panwar has also been hot of late, and now has 12 points in his last seven games (5 G, 7 A), and rides another three-game point streak (2 G, 2 A) into Wednesday.
Flint's top rookie on the scoresheet is Coulson Pitre with 14 goals and 16 assists through 31 games played. Pitre ranks at the top of the list of OHL rookies at 0.97 points per game, he's tied for third in goals scored by a first-year player, and he ranks fifth in total points. Pitre recently passed former Firebirds' Captain Ty Dellandrea and now has the second-most goals by a rookie in franchise history. He's also on pace to surpass Brennan Othmann's rookie year numbers in goals (17) and total points (33) for the season. Both Dellandrea and Othmann were drafted in the first round of their respective NHL Draft year.
The Birds' top-scoring rearguard is Tyler Deline, with 29 points (4 G, 25 A) in 39 contests. His 16 power-play assists are fourth-most among OHL defenders and tenth-most in the league. His 25 helpers are eighth-most among defensemen.
In net, Luke Cavallin has appeared in 31 games thus far, which is fourth-most by any netminder in the OHL. He has 19 wins, which are tied for second-most in the league. He carries a goals-against average (GAA) of 3.27 and his save percentage (SV%) is the OHL's fifth-best at .905. Rookie netminder Ian Michelone has appeared in eight games and picked up four victories. He carries a GAA of 4.03 and a SV% of .889. To date, Michelone is the only active OHL rookie goaltender with a shutout this season. Nathaniel Day has one win in three appearances (one start), and carries a 2.63 GAA and a .900 SV%.
NHL: The Firebirds have four players on their roster with NHL ties consisting of Ethan Keppen (Vancouver Canucks), Braeden Kressler (Toronto Maple Leafs), Dmitry Kuzmin (Winnipeg Jets), and Brennan Othmann (New York Rangers). Also, Gavin Hayes and Simon Slavicek were recently named to the 2022 NHL Central Scouting Midterm Draft Rankings.
Despite Flint playing in just five OHL seasons thus far, Alex Nedeljkovic (Carolina Hurricanes / Detroit Red Wings), Kole Sherwood (Columbus Blue Jackets), and Ty Dellandrea (Dallas Stars) are three former Firebirds to play in the NHL. Brennan Othmann (New York Rangers) and Firebirds' alumni Ethan Keppen (Vancouver Canucks), Vili Saarijarvi (Detroit Red Wings) and Jalen Smereck (Arizona Coyotes) have all played in NHL pre-season contests. In total, the team has produced 21 signed or drafted players into the NHL.
Kitchener Rangers (16-19-1-1, 4th Midwest Division):
Mike Petizian leads his troops on the scoresheet with 16 tallies plus 20 helpers for 36 total points in 37 contests. Francesco Pinelli (Los Angeles Kings) is second for the Rangers in offense with 13 goals and 20 assists through 30 games-played. Joseph Serpa ranks third in scoring with seven tallies and 25 assists for 32 points through 35 games.
The Rangers top-scoring rearguard is Tampa Bay Lightning prospect Roman Schmidt (9 G, 11 A) in 37 games. Schmidt is tied for the fourth-most goals scored among defensemen in the OHL, and is tied for the most power-play tallies in the same group with four. The top rookie on the scoresheet is center Carson Rehkopf with nine goals and six helpers.
Pavel Cajan has appeared between the pipes 21 times this season. Cajan carries a 3.37 goals-against average (GAA) and a save-percentage (SAV%) of .902 with ten victories. Rookie netminder Jackson Parsons has played in 15 games, posting a 4.11 GAA and a .880 SV% plus six victories. Fellow rookie Marcus Vandenberg has now played in three games, posting a 4.24 GAA and a SV% of .879.
NHL: Kitchiner's roster features two players with NHL ties, consisting of Francesco Pinelli (Los Angeles Kings) and Roman Schmidt (Tampa Bay Lightning).
21 notable Kitchener Rangers' alumni to play in the NHL are Brian Bellows, Andre Benoit, Shawn Burr, David Clarkson, Paul Coffey, Boyd Devereaux, Steve Downie, John Gibson, Dale Hunter, Nazem Kadri, Jakub Kindl, Gabriel Landeskog, Matt Lashoff, Al MacInnis, Don Maloney, Wayne Presley, Mike Richards, Larry Robinson, Derek Roy, Jeff Skinner and Scott Stevens.
Broadcast Coverage:
Wednesday evening's contest against the Kitchener Rangers 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 prior to puck drop at 6:45 p.m. (ET) Wednesday evening.
The game will also be televised live across the province of Ontario on the OHL Action Pak on channel 467 (4467 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 on 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: The Firebirds are scheduled to embark on a four-game road trip after Wednesday night. They'll visit the Guelph Storm, Erie Otters, first-place (Western Conference) Soo Greyhounds, and Windsor Spitfires before returning home on Saturday, February 19. That night the Birds host the Spitfires for the second game of a back-to-back, home-and-away series with Windsor. Puck drop is scheduled for 7 p.m. (ET). Tickets are on sale NOW here: ETIX.
Ontario Hockey League Stories from February 8, 2022
- Bulldogs Capture 6th Straight Victory in Mississauga - Brantford Bulldogs
- Attack Brave Border to Take on Otters - Owen Sound Attack
- Firebirds Seek 10th Win in 12 Games, Host Rangers Wednesday - Flint Firebirds
- CHL Team of the Week Named for January 31 - February 6 - OHL
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