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OHL Flint Firebirds

Preview: Flint Hosts Mississauga for "Ugly Sweater Night" Friday

December 11, 2015 - Ontario Hockey League (OHL)
Flint Firebirds News Release


The Firebirds return back to the Dort Federal Event Center for the final time prior to the Christmas holiday for the club's first "Ugly Sweater Night" as Flint hosts the Mississauga Steelheads Friday at 7:30 p.m.

There will be a live auction immediately following the contest of the game-worn jerseys with proceeds from the auction, 50-50 raffle, Chuck-A-Puck and game program sales benefiting the Old Newsboys of Flint, a non-profit organization that serves underprivileged children in the community. Also, with Christmas right around the corner, children of all ages will have their chance to meet Santa Claus and get their picture taken with him throughout the duration of the game.

Tickets are $12 for bronze, $15 for silver and $19 for corporate/gold seating and can be purchased online at ticketmaster.com, by visiting the Dort Federal Event Center Box Office Monday-Friday, 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. or by phone at (810) 744-0580.

For fans unable to attend the game but would like to submit an online bid for a game-worn Flint Firebirds jersey, please message the Firebirds via Facebook with your favorite player and your maximum bid amount. FYI, the average bid amounts for Firebirds' jersey auctions this season have been between $400 - $1,000. Once the information is received, our staff will bid on your behalf. 100% of the jersey sales will benefit the Old Newsboys of Flint which is a 501C-3 charitable organization.

The Flint Firebirds (13-12-1-2) are currently in third place in the West Division while the Mississauga Steelheads (17-13-0-2) are in first place in the Central Division. The two teams last met on Sunday, Oct. 4 in a game that Flint won 2-1. Zach Grzelewski scored the game-winning goal with 45 seconds remaining in the contest while Kyle Keyser recorded his first OHL victory in his first career start between the pipes. (Watch Highlights)

Radio & TV Coverage

Fans unable to attend Friday's game can listen live in Flint and Mid-Michigan on 1330 AM WTRX Sports Radio and around the world online on the iHeartRadio app. Dominic Hennig will call the play-by-play action on the Flint Firebirds Hockey Radio Network. Pregame coverage will begin at 7:00 p.m.

Friday's game against the Steelheads will be televised live in Mississauga on Rogers TV channel 10 and across the province of Ontario on the OHL Action Pak on cable channel 444. 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. Along with Saturday afternoon's game, 64 of the Firebirds' 68 games throughout the 2015-16 season are also scheduled to be televised live across the province of Ontario on the OHL Action Pack.

All Flint Firebirds home and away games throughout the 2015-16 season can be watched anywhere in the world online on OHL Live and on the OHL Live App. OHL Live is a league 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 per game, $69.99 for Flint Firebirds away games only, $179.99 for all 68 home and away Firebirds games and $279.99 for all 1,360 OHL games throughout the 2015-16 season.

Players to Watch:

Flint:

Will Bitten, tied for 14th in the OHL in points, leads the Firebirds in goals (15) and assists (22) and has tallied points in 11 of the last 14 contests. Connor Chatham (New Jersey '14) is currently on a three-game point streak and is tied for second on the Firebirds with 23 points in 27 games this season while Ryan Moore has 23 points in 28 games.

Goaltender Brent Moran (Dallas '14) will make his debut in net for the Firebirds Friday night. Moran, who was recently acquired in a trade with the Niagara Ice Dogs on Monday, holds an impressive 7-2-1-0 record in his previous 10 games before coming to Flint, while posting a 2.46 goals against average (GAA) and a .913 save percentage (SV%). Moran was also a member of the Canada U18 team that participated in the 2014 IIHF World Hockey Championship in Finland.

There are four players on the Flint Firebirds roster that are drafted in the National Hockey League. Firebirds captain Alex Peters and goaltender Brent Moran were both selected by the Dallas Stars in the 2014 NHL Draft. In the same draft, the New Jersey Devils nabbed Connor Chatham in the third round. Most recently, Vili Saarijärvi was drafted by the Detroit Red Wings this past June in the 2015 NHL Draft.

In addition, Will Bitten, Nicholas Caamano, Jacob Collins, Matyáš Kantner, Dane Johnstone, and Håkon Nilsen are eligible to be selected in the 2016 NHL Draft in Buffalo in June.

Mississauga:

Steelheads' rookie forward Alexander Nylander is sixth in the OHL in points and leads Mississauga with 21 goals and 27 assists for 48 points in 32 games played. Fourth year OHL forward, Damian Bourne scored the game-winning goal Thursday evening in Windsor to earn the Steelheads a 4-3 overtime victory over the Spitfires.

Goaltender Jack Flinn is ranked 10th among OHL goaltenders with a 2.72 GAA and a .914 save percentage. Cameron Zanussi has a .860 save percentage and a 3.38 GAA in three games played.

NHL Central Scouting has identified Mississauga's Nathan Bastian (Center), Michael McLeod (Center), Alexander Nylander (Right Wing), Sean Day (Defenseman), Luke Kutkevicius (Center) and Austin Osmanski (Defenseman) as players to watch in their November 2015 watch list for the 2016 NHL Draft.

The Mississauga Steelheads saw three players attend NHL training camp this fall: Jimmy Lodge (Winnipeg), Spencer Martin (Colorado) and Jared Walsh (Los Angeles).

Special Teams

The Flint Firebirds power play ranks 15th out of 20 teams in the OHL converting at a 17.2% success-rate scoring 20 goals on 116 opportunities. On the penalty kill, the Firebirds are currently 16th in the OHL, operating at 76.7%. Flint has scored two shorthanded goals and has successfully killed 92 of 120 penalties this season. The Firebirds are recording the ninth least penalty minutes in the OHL with an average of 12.6 per game however Flint's Connor Sills leads the OHL in individual penalty minutes with 65 PIM's in 26 games played this season.

Mississauga is 6th on the power play scoring 20% of the time and 2nd on the penalty kill at 85.7%.

Next Home Game:

College Night

Featuring $2 beers and $2 hot dogs, every home Firebirds game Monday through Thursday is college night! The Firebirds host the Hamilton Bulldogs on Tuesday, December 29th in the final home game of the 2015 calendar year at 7 p.m. All college students with valid I.D. receive $2 off their admission on college nights!

Saarijärvi Named to Finnish National Team WJC Selection Camp Roster

Firebirds' defenseman Vili Saarijärvi is among the 27 players that have been selected to Team Finland's World Junior selection camp roster for the 2016 World Junior Championship to be held in Helsinki, Finland from December 26th to January 5th.

The IIHF Ice Hockey World Junior Championships (WJC), commonly known simply as the World Juniors, is an annual event organized by the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) for national under-20 ice hockey teams from around the world. It is traditionally held in late December, ending in the first week of January.

The main tournament features the top ten ranked hockey nations in the world, comprising the 'Top Division', from which a world champion is crowned. Canada is the defending champion of the tournament, after having beaten Russia to win the 2015 edition on January 5th.

Firebirds Acquire Goaltender Brent Moran from Niagara

The Flint Firebirds announced that the club completed a trade with the Niagara Ice Dogs for goaltender Brent Moran (Dallas '14), and three OHL Priority Selection second round picks and two third round picks. In return, Flint traded goaltender Alex Nedeljkovic (Carolina '14), who is expected to miss three weeks while competing with Team USA at the 2016 IIHF World Junior Championship, and defenseman Josh Wesley (Carolina '14) to the Ice Dogs.

Firebirds Trade for Goaltender Johnston with Windsor

The Flint Firebirds announced that the club has completed a trade with the Windsor Spitfires for goaltender Brendan Johnston. Johnston was selected by Windsor in the fifth round of the 2013 OHL Priority Selection and has played 38 games in the OHL with the Spitfires. The Firebirds in return have traded their sixth round pick in the 2017 OHL Priority Selection.

Firebirds Give Back Throughout Holiday Season

The Flint Firebirds commitment to making an impact on the Flint and Genesee County Community is in full swing this holiday season. The Firebirds are partnering with numerous non-profit organizations to give back to the community that has showed great support for the club in its inaugural season in the OHL. Click here for more information.

Flint Firebirds Dressing Room & Facilities

Home of the Flint Firebirds, the Dort Federal Event Center received a multi-million dollar renovation in the summer of 2015 that provides the club a first class dressing room, facilities and other amenities to help the players and staff maximize their careers and goals to advance to the National Hockey League. Click here to see a photo album of the Flint Firebirds dressing room and facilities.

Group Ticket Packages

Whether you're entertaining corporate clients, celebrating a special occasion, having a fun night out with the family and friends or rewarding employees...we have a fun, easy and affordable plan for you. It's more than a ticket, it's an experience! Contact Shane Stout to book your group outing today: (810) 742-2004 or via email at shane@flintfirebirds.com.

Flint Firebirds Hockey Radio Coach's Show

Join the Voice of the Firebirds Dominic Hennig and Head Coach John Gruden from 6-7 p.m. every Tuesday night on 1330 WTRX Sports Radio and around the world online on the iHeartRadio App here. Hennig and Gruden recap the previous week of events, preview the upcoming games on the ice and take your phone calls, emails and tweets! Tune in each Tuesday from 6-7 p.m. on 1330 AM WTRX Sports Radio.

Firebirds Gear

Stop by the Flint Firebirds Merchandise Store at the Dort Federal Event Center, Monday - Friday, 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. to stock up on the best Firebirds' gear around. Jerseys, shirts, hats, hoodies, game pucks, mouse pads and other accessories and collectables are available at the Flint Firebirds Merchandise Store.

Social Media

Stay connected with the Flint Firebirds 24-7-365. Like us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, Instagram, Vine, YouTube, etc. Find all of the Firebirds social media handles online at www.flintfirebirds.com/socialmedia.

Tweet Your Seat!

Follow the Flint Firebirds on Twitter @FlintFirebirds, take a selfie in your seat then "Tweet Your Seat" at each of this weekend's home games for a chance to win four NCG movie tickets, courtesy of Dort Federal Credit Union.

Check out the Flint Firebirds Statistics



Ontario Hockey League Stories from December 11, 2015


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

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