Opening Night Preview: Rangers Begin Season vs. Sarnia at the Aud Friday
September 29, 2022 – Ontario Hockey League (OHL) – Kitchener Rangers News Release
Kitchener, Ont. – The Kitchener Rangers are set to begin their 60th-anniversary season this Friday when the club hosts the Sarnia Sting for the 2022-23 regular season opening game. Puck drop is set for 7:30pm at The Aud and great seats are still available.
Ticket Information:
Tickets to the Rangers’ Opening Night are $21 for children and $25 for adults and can be purchased online now. Additionally, fans can purchase tickets via the phone by calling the Centre In The Square Box Office at (519) 578-1570. Tickets can also be purchased in person at the Activa Box Office at the Kitchener Memorial Auditorium at 400 East Ave. Kitchener, ON N2H 1Z6 or at the Centre In The Square Box Office at 101 Queen St N, Kitchener, ON N2H 6P7.
Promotions:
Arrive early and be loud Friday as the first 5,000 fans in attendance will receive the Rangers Season Calendar. Be the first to see the Rangers in action this season as the Blueshirts will be introduced in a special pre-game ceremony at center ice before the game.
Additionally, in honour of National Day for Truth and Reconciliation and Orange Shirt Day on Sept 30th 2022, the Kitchener Rangers would like to invite all fans to bring donations of non-perishable food items and hygiene products to the game on Friday. For more information, click here.
Head-to-Head:
Kitchener has won 10 of the last 12 games against the Sting, posting a 10-1-0-1 record dating back to the 2018-19 season. The Rangers started last season with four consecutive victories over the Sarnia and finished the campaign with a 6-1-0-1 overall record. Kitchener has a 5-0-0-1 record in the past six games against Sarnia on home-ice at The Aud.
Scouting the Rangers:
The Blueshirts feature 20 returning players on the 23-man roster heading into Opening Night this Friday. Joseph Serpa returns to Kitchener as the leading point-man from a season ago after recording 69 points (20G, 49A) in 62 games played. Francesco Pinelli (Los Angeles Kings) tallied 60 points (22G, 38A) in 55 games and Reid Valade totaled 55 points (30G, 25A) in 63 games.
New to the Rangers this season are defencemen Tomas Hamara, the Ottawa Senators’ third-round selection in the most recent 2022 NHL Draft, as well as Hunter Brzustewicz who was acquired in a trade with the Barrie Colts last season before committing to the Rangers this summer. Justin Bottineau, the Rangers third-round pick in the 2022 OHL Priority Selection, is the lone new forward on the veteran roster.
Between-the-pipes, goaltender Jackson Parsons returns for his second season after recording a 3.77 goals against average (GAA) and a .898 save percentage (SAV%) last year. Along with Parsons, Marcus Vandenberg will also mind the net for the Rangers this season after spending last year between Kitchener (OHL) and Stratford in the Greater Ontario Junior Hockey League (GOJHL).
Scouting the Sting:
Ty Voit (Toronto Maple Leafs) returns as Sarnia’s leading point-scorer with 80 points (26G, 54A) in 67 games. Nola Burke recorded 59 points (34G, 25A) in 64 games. Ethan Ritchie returns on the backend and tallied 38 points (12G, 26A) in 65 games last season.
Benjamin Gaudreau (San Jose Sharks) tallied a 3.71 GAA and a .891 SAV% in 44 games with the sting last campaign.
Broadcast Coverage:
Friday’s contest vs. the Niagara IceDogs will be televised live throughout Kitchener and the Waterloo Region on Rogers TV, cable channel 20, and can be watched across the province of Ontario on the Super Sports Pak on channel 470 for cable subscribers. The game will be streamed live online on OHL Live on CHL TV. Additionally, fans can listen to Friday’s Opening Night on the radio on CityNews 570 AM CKGL.
Rangers back from NHL Camps:
Seven Kitchener Rangers were away competing at NHL Training Camps for the past month but all have returned and are available to play in Friday’s Opening Night game at The Aud: Tomas Hamara (Ottawa Senators), Mitchell Martin (Detroit Red Wings), Simon Motew (Washington Capitals), Francesco Pinelli (Los Angeles Kings), Roman Schmidt (Tampa Bay Lightning), Joseph Serpa (Chicago Blackhawks), Reid Valade (Ottawa Senators)
Rangers partner with Sun Life for Helmet Decal:
The Kitchener Rangers, in partnership with Sun Life, are excited to announce that Kids Help Phone will be the official helmet decal sponsor of the Kitchener Rangers for the 2022-23 season. A partnership that will bring awareness to Kids Help Phone’s services and promote youth mental health.
As part of their renewed strategic partnership with the Kitchener Rangers Hockey Club, Sun Life has secured the inaugural helmet branding rights for the Kitchener Rangers as part of a one-year pilot program being introduced by the Ontario Hockey League (OHL). In support of Sun Life’s commitment to youth mental health in Canada, they have donated the helmet decal to Kids Help Phone. For more information on the partnership, click here.
Next up:
The Rangers hit the road Saturday for game two of the regular season as the Blueshirts face-off against the Owen Sound Attack. Puck drop is set for 7:30pm at the Harry Lumley Bayshore Community Centre in Owen Sound.
• Discuss this story on the Ontario Hockey League message board…
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.
