Firebirds Face-Off with the Storm for CHL Top Ten Showdown Tonight in Guelph
October 7, 2022 – Ontario Hockey League (OHL) – Flint Firebirds News Release
Guelph, Ont. – The Firebirds conclude their two-game road trip 60 miles West of Toronto, where they’ll meet one of only two OHL teams ranked higher than them in the Kia CHL Top Ten. The Storm rank 7th and Flint ranks 9th. Puck drop is set for 7:30 p.m. (ET) tonight at the Sleeman Centre in Guelph.
On Wednesday, the Firebirds picked up their first win of the season on the road in Sault Ste. Marie. Riley Piercey and Brennan Othmann (New York Rangers) had a goal and an assist each. Dmitry Kuzmin (Winnipeg Jets) chipped in two helpers and netminder Will Cranley (St. Louis Blues) earned his victory with the Firebirds, posting 37 saves on 40 shots. For the second time in as many games, Cranley was recognized with the Canadian Superstore Save of the Night. Cranley was also named the OHL Performer of the night. The Storm started their campaign with a 5-4 overtime defeat at home against the Hamilton Bulldogs before dropping a 10-6 decision to the Spirit in Saginaw last Saturday.
The last time the Birds and Storm met was Saturday, April 2 when Guelph skated to a 5-1 victory at the Dort Financial Center. In total, Flint finished last season with a 4-1-0-0 record versus the Storm, with a perfect 3-0 record at the Sleeman Centre. All time, the Firebirds are 15-8-2-0 against Guelph, with a 9-3-1-0 road record in the series.
Through their first two regular season contests, Flint has scored two power-play markers on 10 attempts, ranking them tenth in the OHL. Guelph has scored once on 12 chances with the man advantage, which is 15th best. When shorthanded, the Firebirds also rank 10th with an 81.8% rate of success. The Birds are the only OHL team with two shorthanded tallies in their first two games of the season. The Storm sit 20th with a 57.1% penalty-kill efficiency.
Players to Watch
Flint Firebirds (1-1-0-0, West Division):
Brennan Othmann (New York Rangers) led the team on the scoresheets all season, logging a franchise-best 50 goals and pitching in 47 assists for 97 points in 66 games. Othmann scored both Flint goals in the regular season home-opener last Saturday against the Niagara IceDogs, and then picked up another goal plus an assist in Wednesday’s tilt in the Soo. He leads his club with four points in two games. Riley Piercey ranks second with a goal and two helpers through two contests. Three players are tied with a pair of points each. Zacharie Giroux and Gavin Hayes (Chicago Blackhawks) each have a goal and an assist, and defenseman Dmitry Kuzmin (Winnipeg Jets) has two helpers.
Flint carries a trio of netminders, led by overage veteran Will Cranley (St. Louis Blues). Cranley comes in with a 3.00 GAA and .914 SV% with one win to date. Second-year goalie Nathaniel Day carried the heftiest exhibition workload, making three appearances and recording a 3.62 GAA with a .898 SV% and one victory. Rookie goaltender Boe Piroski was acquired via trade from the Niagara IceDogs prior to pre-season play, and sports a 3.07 GAA and a .923 SV% through one pre-season game.
NHL: The Firebirds have six players with NHL ties consisting of Will Cranley (St. Louis Blues), Gavin Hayes (Chicago Blackhawks), Braeden Kressler (Toronto Maple Leafs), Dmitri Kuzmin (Winnipeg Jets), and Brennan Othmann (New York Rangers).
Despite Flint playing in just seven OHL seasons thus far, Alex Nedeljkovic (Detroit), Kole Sherwood (Columbus), and Ty Dellandrea (Dallas) are three former Firebirds to play in the NHL. Brennan Othmann (NY Rangers), Riley Piercey (Detroit), and Gavin Hayes (Chicago) all played in NHL Preseason contests this year, joining Firebirds’ alumni Ethan Keppen (Vancouver), Vili Saarijarvi (Detroit), and Jalen Smereck (Arizona). In total, the team has produced 24 signed or drafted players into the NHL.
Guelph Storm (0-1-1-0, Midwest Division):
Matthew Poitras (Boston Bruins) tops the stats for the Storm with two goals and two assists through two contests. Behind him is a four-way tie among teammates with three points each. Jake Karabela (Washington Capitals), Cooper Walker, and Valentin Zhugin have each lit the lamp once and contributed a pair of assists. Defender Cam Allen has three assists to round out the tie for second in points on the team.
Guelph also has three goaltenders on their roster. Jacob Oster returns for his second season between the pipes and has a 5.95 goals-against average (GAA) and a .756 save percentage (SV%) through two appearances. Rookie netminder Ethan Kowatsch has 14 minutes of regular-season action thus far and has one save on six shots. Dixon Grimes appeared in three pre-season games, earning one victory with a 0.56 GAA and a SV% of .971.
NHL: The Storm have five players with NHL ties, consisting of Jake Karabela (Washington Capitals), Sasha Pastujov (Anaheim Ducks), Danny Zhilkin (Winnipeg Jets), Matthew Poitras (Boston Bruins), and Michael Buchinger (St. Louis Blues).
12 notable Guelph Storm skaters to play in the NHL are Craig Anderson, Todd Bertuzzi, Tyler Bertuzzi, Dustin Brown, Ryan Callahan, Dan Cloutier, Drew Doughty, Aaron Downey, Robby Fabbri, Daniel Girardi, Manny Malhotra and Richard Panik.
Broadcast Coverage:
Tonight’s contest against the Guelph Storm is one of only a handful of games not broadcast live on the radio throughout Flint & Mid-Michigan on US 103.1 FM. The game will be televised live across the province of Ontario on the OHL Action Pak on channel 470. 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.
All Flint Firebirds’ home and away games throughout the 2022-23 regular season can be watched anywhere in the world online on https://watch.chl.ca/ohl. CHL TV is the league’s new and improved video streaming platform that delivers high-quality live and on-demand coverage of all regular season and playoff games annually. The cost is $7.99 for 24-hour access, $29.99 for monthly access, $119.99 for all-access to the 2022-23 Firebirds and OHL season, or $179.99 for all-access to the entire 2022-23 CHL season.
Next Up: The Firebirds will return to the Dort Financial Center for a Saturday night tilt with the Sudbury Wolves. Puck drop is set for 7:00 p.m. (ET) in Flint and tickets are available now from Etix.
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