Thibodeau Strikes Twice But Birds Fall to Spirit, 5-3
March 5, 2025 - Ontario Hockey League (OHL)
Flint Firebirds News Release
Flint Firebirds right wing Christopher Thibodeau
(Flint Firebirds, Credit: Todd Boone)
FLINT - Chris Thibodeau potted two goals on Wednesday night, but it wasn't enough as the Flint Firebirds fell 5-3 to the Saginaw Spirit at the Dort Financial Center.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
The Saginaw offense was ready to roll right at puck drop. Three minutes into the contest, the Spirit jumped out to a 2-0 lead. The first came from Michael Misa, who finished off a feed from Igor Chernyshov. A few moments later, Carson Harmer buried a rebound in front of the Flint net to give Saginaw the early 2-0 lead.
Flint worked its way into the scoring column late in the first period. In the final seconds of a Firebirds penalty kill, Flint had a 2-on-1 that became a 3-on-1 as Hayden Reid left the box. Thibodeau carried the puck into the zone and dropped a pass to Reid, who quickly returned it to Thibodeau to snipe the puck under the crossbar to make it 2-1 at the end of one.
Chernyshov pushed Saginaw back up by two goals with his first of two goals on the night. Thibodeau answered back for the Firebirds with his second goal of the game, making the score 3-2. Thibodeau received an entry pass from Matthew Mania and skated off two defenders to the right circle, where he roofed a shot over the blocker of Kaleb Papineau.
The Spirit struck again, though, for the final tally of the second period. Zayne Parekh crashed the net toward a loose puck to punch it home and put Saginaw in front 4-2 at the end of two.
The Firebirds pushed for a comeback in the third period. Flint found the first goal it needed seven minutes into the final frame. Alex Kostov carried the puck down the left wall and cut towards the front of the net, and the loose puck bounced onto the stick of Mania, who snapped it into the open net.
Flint had its chance to tie the game late in the third following two Spirit penalties for a 5-on-3 Firebirds power play with four minutes remaining. Flint had multiple close calls, including a shot from Mania ringing off the post, but the Firebirds came up empty on the man-advantage. With one minute remaining, Chernyshov slid home the empty-netter for Saginaw, sealing the Firebirds' defeat, 5-3.
With the loss, the Firebirds' five-game winning streak came to an end, and they dropped to 27-28-2-3 while the Spirit improved to 35-23-2-1.
POSTGAME NOTES:
Chris Thibodeau recorded his fifth two-goal game of the season and his second against Saginaw...the Spirt now lead the Coors Light I-75 Divide Cup, 4-2...Matthew Mania has now matched his career-high with 38 points on the season...Flint went 2-for-2 on the penalty kill and has now killed off 17 consecutive penalties.
UP NEXT:
The Firebirds are back on Friday night with a game against the Brantford Bulldogs. Puck drop at the Dort Financial Center is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.
Images from this story
 Flint Firebirds right wing Christopher Thibodeau (Todd Boone) |
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- Thibodeau Strikes Twice But Birds Fall to Spirit, 5-3 - Flint Firebirds
- Parekh Takes Franchise Assists Record as Spirit Beat Firebirds, 5-3 - Saginaw Spirit
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