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OHL Flint Firebirds

Flint Travels to #3 Windsor for Thursday Night Tilt

October 13, 2016 - Ontario Hockey League (OHL)
Flint Firebirds News Release


The Firebirds will play their final game of a three-game road trip Thursday night when the club faces off against the CHL's third-ranked Windsor Spitfires (6-2-0-0). Puck drop is set 7:05 p.m. at the WFCU Centre (capacity 6,500) in Windsor, Ont.

The Firebirds are coming off a 5-3 road loss to the Erie Otters Saturday night and have not found victory on the road yet this season with a 0-2-0-1 record away from Flint. The Spitfires won five-of-six games last year against Flint but the Firebirds earned their lone victory on the road at the WFCU Centre where Thursday night's tilt takes place. The Firebirds have scored the first goal in all seven games played this season and hold an impressive record on the penalty kill, operating at 90.9% which is third best in the OHL. The Spitfires own the best power-play in the league, converting at 34.2 percent and are second in the league on the penalty-kill with a 91.4 percent rating.

Players to Watch:

Flint (4-2-0-1, 3rd West Division):

Ryan Moore (NHL draft eligible) is leading the Ontario Hockey League in points with 17 in seven games and is riding a seven-game point streak. Moore recorded his team-leading eighth goal of the season with a two-goal effort in Erie Saturday. Moore also has goals in five straight games. Nicholas Caamano (Dallas Stars) is third in the league in scoring with five goals and 10 assists this season. After recording an assist in Erie, Caamano extended his point streak to seven games as well. Kole Sherwood (Columbus Blue Jackets) is third on the team in points with eight in his four-games with Flint this season and is in the midst of a four-game point streak. Jalen Smereck (Arizona Coyotes) has tallied six assists in four games.

Between-the-pipes, Connor Hicks has a 2-0-0-1 record, a 3.90 GAA and a .893 SAV%. Garrett Forrest shined in his relief appearance Saturday night, saving 22 of 23 shots against in Erie and making two highlight-reel type saves. Forrest is 1-1-0-0 on the season, sporting a .980 SAV% and a 0.57 GAA.

NHL: The Firebirds currently have two players that have signed contracts with NHL clubs. Forward Kole Sherwood signed a three-year NHL contract with the Columbus Blue Jackets (July 2015) and defenseman Jalen Smereck signed a three-year NHL contract with the Arizona Coyotes (October 2016). Flint's Nicholas Caamano was drafted by the Dallas Stars in the most recent NHL Draft in June 2016. Along with Caamano, Sherwood and Smereck, four more Flint Firebirds competed in NHL training camps this fall: Everett Clark (St. Louis Blues), Connor Hicks (Detroit Red Wings), Luke Kirwan (Detroit Red Wings) and Alex Peters (Carolina Hurricanes).

Samuel Duchesne, Jake Durham, Fedor Gordeev and Jack Phibbs are first-time eligible players to be selected in the NHL Draft in June 2017.

#3 Windsor (6-2-0-0, 1st West Division):

The Spitfires are coming off an overtime victory over the London Knights in their most recent contest after Windsor's Jalen Chatfield scored the game-winning goal with 56 seconds remaining in the extra frame. With the win, the Spitfires improved their record at the WFCU Centre to 3-1-0-0. Just like the Firebirds, the Spitfires have two players in the top-ten in scoring. Logan Brown (Ottawa Senators) is fourth in the league with three goals and 11 assists in six games played. Sixth in league-scoring is Cole Carter who has racked-up seven goals and eight assists in eight-games played. Aaron Luchuk is third on the team in points with three goals and five assists in eight games played.

In net, the Spitfires are splitting time between two goaltenders. Michael DiPietro has a 3-2-0-0 record thus far with a 2.58 GAA and a .901 SAV% in five games played. Mario Culina has a perfect 3-0-0-0 record with a 2.33 GAA and a .929 SAV% in three games.

NHL: Eight players on the Spitfires roster have been drafted by NHL teams consisting of Jeremiah Addison (Montreal Canadians), Logan Brown (Ottawa Senators), Cristiano DiGiacinto (Tampa Bay Lightning), Christian Fischer (Arizona Coyotes), Julius Nattinen (Anaheim Ducks), Patrick Sanvido (Dallas Stars), Mikhail Sergachev (Montreal Canadians) and Logan Stanley (Winnipeg Jets).

Broadcast Coverage: Thursday's contest against the Spitfires can be heard live on 1330 AM WTRX Sports Radio in Flint & Mid-Michigan and around the world online on the Sports Xtra 1330 Radio app here 6a86a0c&mc_eid[UNIQID]) . Pregame coverage with Dominic Hennig will begin 37 minutes prior to puck drop at 6:30 p.m. Additionally, the game will be televised live in Windsor on channel 11 / 700 (HD) for Cogeco TV cable subscribers and throughout the province of Ontario on the OHL Action Pak on channel 439 for cable TV subscribers. Fans can also watch the game live online at www.ohllive.com (http://ohl.neulion.com/ohl/?mc_cid2d66a86a0c&mc_eid[UNIQID]) or on the OHL Live App.

Check out the Flint Firebirds Statistics



Ontario Hockey League Stories from October 13, 2016


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