Firebirds Weekly Roundup, 2026 OHL Playoffs, Week 3
OHL Flint Firebirds

Firebirds Weekly Roundup, 2026 OHL Playoffs, Week 3

Published on April 13, 2026 under Ontario Hockey League (OHL)
Flint Firebirds News Release


FLINT - After setting new franchise and OHL records in their first-game sweep of the Owen Sound Attack, Flint entered Round 2 with a familiar and formidable opponent. The Windsor Spitfires also swept their first-round series, albeit in less grandeur fashion. The Birds outscored the Attack 35-3 in four games. The Spitfires outscored the Guelph Storm 21-5 in a four-game sweep, matching up the second-seeded Spits with the third-seeded Firebirds for a Western Conference Semifinal matchup featuring two of the top goaltenders in the league.

In Game 1 on Friday, Windsor jumped out to an early 2-0 lead in front of the home crowd at the WFCU Centre. Darian Anderson cut Flint's deficit in half late in the frame, scoring his fifth of the postseason. Both clubs tightened up defensively in the middle frame, with Joey Costanzo and Mason Vaccari combining for 11 saves on 11 shots. In the third, Brady Smith scored his third to tie the game with under eight minutes to go. A late penalty on the Birds, however, resulted in the go-ahead goal for Windsor with less than five minutes left. Pulling Vaccari didn't pay off, as the Spits hit the empty cage and skated away with the 4-2 victory and the 1-0 series advantage. Vaccari finished with 18 saves on 21 shots.

Game 2 was also played in Windsor, and the Spits once again jumped to a quick 2-0 edge. Once again, Flint answered quickly moments later when Kevin He potted his third of the playoffs. Just as quickly, The Spits clapped back to extend their lead to 3-1. Chris Thibodeau struck for his fourth playoff tally before the first intermission, leaving Windsor on top 3-2. Flint would score three unanswered in the middle frame, starting with a power-play marker from Anderson and ending with back-to-back goals from team captain Nathan Aspinall. After 40 minutes, the Birds held a 5-3 advantage. Less than three minutes into the final stanza, Windsor rookie Caden Harvey scored his second of the night, pulling the Spitfires within one. It appeared that the game was tied briefly near the midway point of the third, before a goal was waved off for being played with a high stick. That didn't matter, however, as Windsor scored again on the very next shift, knotting the score at 5-5. Just when overtime seemed eminent, the Spitfires hit the game winner with exactly 60 seconds remaining in regulation. Both teams burned a timeout, and Vaccari hit the bench for an extra attacker for the second time in as many games, but the score didn't change. Game 2 went to the home team again, 6-5, putting Flint in a 2-0 hole in the best-of-seven series. In addition to Aspinall's two goals, Kevin He and Anderson each finished with a goal and an assist, and Jimmy Lombardi logged a pair of helpers.

Across the pair of games versus the Spits this week, shots have remained very even with the slight edge going to Windsor 53-51. Faceoffs were lopsided in Game 1, favoring the Spitfires 41-27. Game 2 was nearly equal, with the Spits advantage being cut to only one, 29-28. The power play struck for two goals on seven chances, good for a 28.7% conversion rate. The penalty kill stopped four of six Windsor opportunities in the first game, and went untested in Game 2 as all of the Spits' penalties were part of offsetting infractions.

LEADERBOARD

Aspinall and Jacob Battaglia are tied with 15 points apiece, tying them for second in the league. Aspinall's points are from eight goals and seven assists, tying him for the OHL lead in scoring. Battaglia has five tallies and the league's third-most helpers (10). Darian Anderson is tied for fourth league-wide with six goals, and has ten total points this postseason. Lombardi is tied with Anderson for third on the squad with ten points (4 G, 6 A). Vaccari has the third-best save percentage at .928 and the fourth-lowest goals-against average at 2.01. He joins a handful of goaltenders with one shutout in the playoffs, who all follow North Bay's Jack Lisson, who has two.

COMING UP

The next two games in the series will be played at the Dort Financial Center on Tuesday and Thursday. Puck drop for both games is set for 7:00 p.m. If necessary, Game 5 will return to Windsor on Saturday with puck drop at 7:05 p.m. Should Game 6 be necessary, the series returns to Flint for a 4:00 p.m. start.

Check out the Flint Firebirds Statistics

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Ontario Hockey League Stories from April 13, 2026


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