Firebirds Set to Host Rival Spirit for the Final Time Saturday
March 26, 2022 - Ontario Hockey League (OHL)
Flint Firebirds News Release
Flint, Mich. - The Firebirds host their up-north rivals from Saginaw for the final time Saturday evening. Puck drop versus the Spirit is set for 7:00 p.m. (ET) at the Dort Financial Center in Flint.
After picking up only one of an available six points last weekend, the Birds look to return to their winning ways against a familiar foe. Saginaw and Flint have played an unprecedented 14 times so far this season, making Saturday the 15th and final tilt between the clubs, and the seventh of seven to be played in Flint. Through 14 games, the Firebirds hold a season record of 9-4-0-1 versus Saginaw and a 3-2-0-1 record on home ice. All-time, Flint is 23-27-0-3 against the Spirit with a home record of 9-13-0-3.
The last time these teams met was at the Dow Event Center in Saginaw on February 2. That night, seven different Flint players found the back of the net in a 7-1 road triumph. Amadeus Lombardi picked up First Star honors with a four-point night (1 G, 3 A), Ethan Keppen (Vancouver Canucks) followed suit with three points (1 G, 2 A) for Second Star honors and Luke Cavallin got the start in net for the Firebirds stopping 36 of 37 for Third Star honors. Caleb Mangone potted the lone tally for Saginaw, and Tristan Lennox (New York Islanders) got the start for the Spirit before being relieved after 40 minutes of play for Andrew Oke.
Leading the way for Flint through 14 meetings with Saginaw are team captain Brennan Othmann and Riley Piercey with 14 total points (6 G, 8 A) each. Close behind is rookie Coulson Pitre with six goals and seven assists for 13 total points. For Saginaw, Dean Loukus and Josh Bloom (Buffalo Sabres) each have five goals and six assists to lead the way with 11 points. Grand Blanc, Mich. native Dalton Duhart has ten points from two goals and eight helpers. Rookie Matyas Sapovaliv has five goals and four assists versus Flint in the campaign.
The Firebirds enter Saturday's contest ranked second in the West Division and third in the ten-team Western Conference. They carry a record of 35-18-1-4, and they've gone 5-4-0-1 in their past 10 games. The Spirit come to Flint ranked fifth in the West Division and 10th in the Western Conference with a record of 19-39-1-0. Saginaw's gone 2-8-0-0 in their last 10. Flint's record at home this season is 13-11-0-2 compared to the Spirit's road record of 10-19-1-0.
On special teams, the Birds are converting on 19.7% of their power-play chances, which is the 14th-best in the OHL. The Spirit have the league's 20th-ranked power play, scoring at a 15% clip. On the penalty kill, Flint ranks first in the league with an 83.6% efficiency. Saginaw has the fourth-best penalty kill at 80.8%.
Players to Watch:
Flint Firebirds (35-18-1-4, 2nd West Division):
Brennan Othmann (New York Rangers) ranks first on the team and second in the league with 40 goals. Othmann also leads the club with 43 assists and ranks seventh in the league with 83 total points. He now has points in 17 of his last 20 games played. Othmann is even with teammates Zacharie Giroux and Ethan Hay with three shorthanded markers on the campaign, which are tied for fifth-most in the league. He's also tied for the tenth-best points-per-game average at 1.48. Riley Piercey is second in scoring with 27 goals and 31 helpers through 53 games. He's also tied for eighth in the league and first in franchise history with six game-winning goals, and his 10 power-play markers are tied for 10th in the OHL. Amadeus Lombardi ranks third on the squad with 16 tallies and 36 helpers through 57 contests. Lombardi has four assists in his last three tilts.
Veteran forwards Tag Bertuzzi and Ethan Keppen (Vancouver Canucks) continue their red-hot play as well. Bertuzzi has 15 points (7 G, 8 A) in his past 11 games, and has 19 goals and 19 assists through 53 games. Keppen continues to contribute over a point per game since returning to the squad mid-season, and now has 33 points (19 G, 14 A) through 32 tilts. He carries a three-game goal-scoring streak into Saturday, having scored four goals in his last three. He's currently tied with Jake Durham for the 2nd most goals in Firebirds' history with 75.
Rookie Gavin Hayes, who hails from Westland, Mich. tops the rookie class in total points with 42 through 55 games. His 42 points are the most ever by a rookie in a single season in franchise history and are tenth-most among OHL rookies. Hayes now has 10 points in his most recent five games. Coulson Pitre has 20 goals, which is the most by any rookie in Firebirds' history as well. Pitre also has 19 assists for 39 total points through 44 games. He ranks second among rookies in the OHL at a .89 points-per-game average, is tied for the second-most game-winning goals with four, and is tied for the seventh-most goals by any rookie in the league this season.
On defense, Tyler Deline and Dmitry Kuzmin (Winnipeg Jets) are tied for the most points for the club with 35 each. Kuzmin has 15 goals and 20 helpers in 47 games played. Deline has six goals and 29 helpers through 54 games. Kuzmin's 15 markers are tied for third-most among the OHL's blue-liners. Rookie defender Tristan Bertucci has a +/- rating of +25, which is the second-best among all rookies in the league and sixth-best among all blue-liners.
Luke Cavallin has appeared in 46 games, which is tied for third-most in the OHL. His 29 wins are tied for the most in the league and in Flint's franchise history. He also carries the OHL's best save percentage (SV%) at .911 and the fifth-best goals-against average (GAA) at 3.17. 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. To date, Michelone is one of only two active OHL rookie goaltenders with a shutout this season. 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.
Saginaw Spirit (18-39-1-0, 5th West Division):
Josh Bloom (Buffalo Sabres) remains atop the leaderboard for the Spirit with 57 points (28 G, 29 A) through 57 games. Bloom sits way atop the league's leaderboard for shorthanded goals with six this season. Saginaw's top defenseman statistically is Pavel Mintyukov, who ranks second on the club in total points with 15 goals and 53 total points for the season. He's tied for fourth in points among all defensemen, and he has more short-handed tallies than any other rearguard with three. Rookie Matyas Sapovaliv, who is one of the highest-rated rookies in the league, ranks third for Saginaw in scoring. Sapovaliv has 15 goals and 30 assists in 58 tilts. Among the OHL's freshman class, his seven power-play goals are tied for third-most, and his point total is tied for sixth.
Between the pipes, Shelby Township, Mich. native Andrew Oke has played in 30 contests thus far in his rookie campaign, picking up nine victories. Oke carries a 4.77 GAA with a SV% of .847. Tristan Lennox (New York Islanders) has appeared in 28 games and earned seven victories. He carries a 3.20 goals-against average (GAA), and his save percentage (SV%) is .888. Brett Fullerton has two wins in five games, posting a 4.91 GAA and a .776 SV%.
NHL: The Spirit have two players with NHL ties, consisting of Josh Bloom (Buffalo Sabres) and Tristan Lennox (New York Islanders). Additionally, forward Matyas Sapovaliv, rearguards Pavel Mintyukov and Roberto Mancini, and goaltender Andrew Oke were all named to the 2022 NHL Central Scouting Midterm Draft Rankings.
12 notable Spirit alumni to play in the NHL are Cody Bass, Paul Bissonnette, T.J. Brodie, Matt Corrente, Filip Hronek, Jan Mursak, Jamie Oleksiak, Dalton Prout, Tom Pyatt, Brandon Saad, Chris Thorburn and Vincent Trocheck.
Broadcast Coverage:
Saturday's contest against the Saginaw Spirit 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 6:40 p.m. (ET) Saturday evening.
The game will also be televised live across the province of Ontario on the OHL Action Pak on channel 468 (4468 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 head to Kitchener for a 2 p.m. matinee tilt with Rangers on Sunday before returning home Wednesday to host the London Knights. Puck drop for a potential Conference-deciding match is set for 7:00 p.m. (ET) at the Dort Financial Center, and tickets are available from ETIX.
Ontario Hockey League Stories from March 26, 2022
- Spirit Take Two of Three on Road Swing; Beat Firebirds 5-4 - Saginaw Spirit
- Firebirds Drop Finale to In-State Rival, 5-4 - Flint Firebirds
- IceDogs Fall to a Pair to North Bay - Niagara IceDogs
- Spitfires Comeback and Win 5-3 over the Soo - Windsor Spitfires
- Campbell Shines in Season Debut, Otters Down Storm 4-1 - Erie Otters
- Rangers Topple Knights in Overtime - Kitchener Rangers
- Firebirds Set to Host Rival Spirit for the Final Time Saturday - Flint Firebirds
- Spirit Wrap up Season Series with Firebirds Saturday in Flint - Saginaw Spirit
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