OHL Flint Firebirds

Firebirds Seek Two Critical Points in Final Road Game Tonight in London

Published on April 1, 2022 under Ontario Hockey League (OHL)
Flint Firebirds News Release


Flint, Mich. - The Firebirds have already clinched their playoff berth for only the second time in club history. Now, the battle for their first Division and possible Conference Title is underway as they enter the final seven games of the regular season. On Friday evening, they'll visit the London Knights who are still one position ahead of Flint in the Western Conference rankings. Puck drop is set for 7:30 p.m. (ET) at the Budweiser Gardens.

This season has been one for the record books, quite literally. Franchise and individual records have broken practically every game for the past several weeks. Brennan Othmann (New York Rangers) has scored the most goals (41) in a single season and sits tied for the all-time record for shorthanded goals (4) with rookie forward Ethan Hay. Coulson Pitre became the all-time leader for goals in a season (21) by a first-year player, and Gavin Hayes was the rookie to score the most points in a single game (6) on his way to earning the most all-time assists (26) and points (44) by a first-year player. Luke Cavallin already owned the all-time records for career minutes played, saves, and wins before becoming Flint's first-ever netminder to log 31 victories in a season.

As a team, this club has raised the bar for the most road wins (23), goals scored on the road (140), most shorthanded goals in a season (14), and the fastest goal to start a game (10 seconds). They need just three more tallies on the man-advantage to tie the overall season record. With seven regular-season games remaining, team points (-3), and total goals in a single season (-13) are all within reach, as well.

The Firebirds enter Friday's contest in second place in the West Division, and third in the 10-team Western Conference with a record of 37-19-1-4. The Knights sit atop the Midwest Division and second in the Western Conference with a 37-18-4-1 record. On the road this year, Flint has posted the OHL's best road record of 23-7-1-2. London's home record is 19-7-3-0. In their past 10 tilts, the Knights have gone 5-2-2-1 and the Birds' last 10 have gone 5-4-0-1.

Friday marks the fifth and final meeting between these clubs this season, and the third and final game to be played in London. All-time, Flint carries a record of 5-15-2-1 against London, with a road record of 2-8-1-0. So far this year, the Birds are 3-1-0-0 versus the Knights and 1-1-0-0 in road games. Flint has only outscored London narrowly by 15-14 this season.

The most recent tilt between the Firebirds and Knights was Wednesday evening at the Dort Financial Center in Flint. That night, two of the best in the West put on a show while combing for 87 shots and two scraps. Dmitry Kuzmin (Winnipeg Jets) ended things in overtime, giving the Firebirds the 5-4 win and earning himself Second Star with a goal and an assist. Sahil Panwar had two goals earning him First Star honors, and it was Camaryn Baber with a goal and an assist for London that received Third Star honors. Luke Cavallin made 36 saves on 40 shots to pick up his franchise-best 31st victory. Owen Flores backstopped the Knights, making 42 stops on 47 shots. Both teams finished the tilt 1-of-3 on the power play.

On special teams, the Firebirds are converting with the man-advantage at a 19.6% rate, which ranks them 14th in the 20-team OHL. London has scored at a success rate of 25.1%, which ranks them fifth. Flint's penalty-kill remains atop the league at an 84.1% rate of success. The Knights are killing penalties at an 80.5% clip, the league's eighth-best.

Players to Watch:

Flint Firebirds (37-19-1-4, 2nd West Division):

Brennan Othmann (New York Rangers) ranks first on the team and is tied for third in the league with 41 goals. Othmann also leads the club with 45 assists and ranks seventh in the league with 86 total points. He also netted his fourth shorthanded goal last week, which ties him for the most in a season in franchise history with rookie teammate Ethan Hay. Othmann holds the league's tenth-best points-per-game average at 1.46. Riley Piercey is second in scoring with 27 goals and 31 helpers for 58 points in 56 games. He's also tied for tenth in the league and first in franchise history with six game-winning tallies. Amadeus Lombardi ranks third on the squad with 17 tallies and 38 helpers through 60 contests.

Veteran forwards Tag Bertuzzi and Ethan Keppen (Vancouver Canucks) remain hot down the stretch, as well. Bertuzzi has 19 points (7 G, 12 A) in his past 14 games, and has 19 goals and 23 assists through 56 games on the campaign. Keppen continues to pace ahead of a point per game, and now has 36 points (20 G, 16 A) through 35 tilts.

Gavin Hayes hails from Westland, Mich. and tops the rookie class in total points with 44 (18 G, 26 A) through 57 games. His 44 points are the most ever by a rookie in a single season in franchise history and sit tied for the eighth-most in the league. Coulson Pitre has 21 goals, which are the most by any rookie in Firebirds' history and seventh-most in the league. Pitre also has 19 assists for 40 total points through 45 games. He ranks second among rookies in the OHL at a .89 points-per-game average.

On defense, Dmitry Kuzmin (Winnipeg Jets) has the most points for the club with 38. He also tops the blue-liners with 16 goals and has 22 helpers in 50 games played. Kuzmin's 16 markers are tied for second-most among the OHL's defenders. Tyler Deline has six goals and 29 helpers through 55 games. His 17 power-play helpers are eighth-most. Rookie defenseman Tristan Bertucci has a +/- rating of +26, which is second-best among all rookies in the league and sixth-best among all blue-liners.

Luke Cavallin has now appeared in 49 games, which is the second-most in the OHL. His 31 wins are the most in the league and the most in Flint's franchise history. He also carries the OHL's fourth-best save percentage (SV%) at .910 and seventh-best goals-against average (GAA) of 3.18. Behind Cavallin are a pair of rookie netminders showing promise for the future. Ian Michelone has now appeared in ten games and picked up four victories. He carries a GAA of 4.37 and a SV% of .884. Nathaniel Day has two victories in eight appearances, with a 3.63 GAA and a .883 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 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), Ty Dellandrea (Dallas Stars), and Vladislav Kolyachonok (Arizona Coyotes) are four former Firebirds to play regular-season games 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.

London Knights (37-18-4-1, 1st Midwest Division):

The Knights are led by the OHL's scoring leader, Luke Evangelista (Nashville Predators). He ranks first in goals (51), third in total points (101), is tied for third in shorthanded tallies (5), is tied for sixth in power-power assists (22), is tied for tenth in game-winning tallies (6), and has the second-highest points-per-game average at 1.80. Plymouth, Mich. native Antonio Stranges (Dallas Stars) ranks second on his club with 77 total points (29 G, 48 A) through 54 games. Stranges rides a four-game points streak (2 G, 6 A) into Friday's game. Sean McGurn has 70 points (20 G, 50 A) in 60 tilts.

Rookie centerman Ruslan Gazizov tops the freshman class with 26 points (9 G, 17 A) in 46 games. The defensive troops are topped by Gerard Keane with 36 points (10 G, 26 A) through 59 tilts. First-year defender Isaiah George has a +27 rating, placing him tops in the OHL's rookie group and fifth among all defensemen.

Between the pipes, returning netminder Brett Brochu has played in 43 contests so far, earning 29 victories for the Knights. He carries the third-best save percentage (SV%) at .911 and the fourth-best goals-against average (GAA) at 2.75. Rookie goaltender Owen Flores has earned four wins in 15 appearances. He carries a 3.88 GAA with a .866 SV%. Fellow rookie goalie Owen Willmore has appeared in six contests, logging four victories along with a 4.05 GAA and a .853 SV%.

NHL: London's roster features six players with NHL ties, including Liam Gilmartin (San Jose Sharks), Luke Evangelista (Nashville Predators), Max McCue (San Jose Sharks), Antonio Stranges (Dallas Stars), Bryce Montgomery (Carolina Hurricanes), and Logan Mailloux (Montreal Canadians). Additionally, Jackson Edward, Ruslan Gazizov, Isaiah George, Brett Brochu, Brody Crane, Landon Sim, Kirill Steklov and Colton Smith were all named to the 2022 NHL Central Scouting Midterm Draft Rankings.

Notable London Knights alumni to play in the NHL include Brendan Shanahan, Patrick Kane, Mitch Marner, John Tavares, Corey Perry, David Bolland, John Carlson, Dino Ciccarelli, Michael Del Zotto, Max Domi, Sam Gagner, Bo Horvat, Michael Hutchinson, Nazem Kadri, Chris Kelly, Sergi Kostitsyn, Oli Maatta, Patrick Maroon, Steve Mason, Marc Methot, Vladislav Namestnikov, Rick Nash, Kyle Quincey, Steve Smith, Chris Tierney, Jarred Tinordi, Matthew Tkachuk, Austin Watson, Dennis Wideman and Nikita Zadorov.

Broadcast Coverage:

Friday's contest against the London Knights 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 7:10 p.m. (ET) Friday evening.

The game will also be televised live across the province of Ontario on the OHL Action Pak on channel 469 (4469 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 return to home ice tomorrow night against the Guelph Storm. It will be UAW/United Way Night. Fans are encouraged to arrive early to watch the United Way game at 4:30 p.m. Get into the game by using your ticket to Saturday night's contest against the Storm. Select UAW and United Way jerseys will be auctioned off on the concourse during the Firebirds game. Puck drop is set for 7:00 p.m. (ET) at the Dort Financial Center, and tickets are available from ETIX.

Check out the Flint Firebirds Statistics

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Ontario Hockey League Stories from April 1, 2022


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