Firebirds Welcome Rival Spirit for Preseason Finale Tonight at Iceland
September 24, 2022 – Ontario Hockey League (OHL) – Flint Firebirds News Release
Flint, Mich. – The Firebirds, currently ranked 7th in the 60-team CHL, are set to finish off their five-game preseason schedule tonight against the rival Saginaw Spirit at 7:00 p.m. at Flint Iceland Arena.
These two teams met just last night at the Dow Event Center in Saginaw and it was a tight back-and-forth contest between the rivals that saw the home team edge out a 3-2 win. It was Sahil Panwar, in his Firebirds preseason debut, and Ethan Hay picking up the goals for Flint. Nathaniel Day stopped 34 of 37 in net for the Birds.
A pair of sophomores sit atop the stats for the Firebirds, with defenseman Tristan Bertucci leading the way with a goal and four assists and forward Coulson Pitre has four helpers. Rookie Nathan Aspinall and sophomore rearguard James Petrovski lead the team in scoring with a pair of tallies each. Returning defenseman Luca D’Amato also has three points, including one goal and two assists. Newcomers Alex Bradshaw (1 G, 1 A), Daks Klinkhammer (1 G), and Kaden Pitre (1 G) have all found their way onto the scoresheet early in the year, as well.
Three netminders have seen action in exhibition play, led by second-year goaltender Nathaniel Day with two appearances. Day carries a 4.29 goals-against average (GAA) and a save percentage (SV%) of .889%. He also has the lone win for the Birds thus far. Veteran Will Cranley (St. Louis Blues) has one appearance and a .865 SV%. Boe Piroski was acquired via trade from Niagara recently and has also appeared in one contest. Piroski currently holds a 3.07 GAA with a .923 SV%.
On special teams, the Firebirds have scored on 23.1% of their power-play chances to date. That ranks them 7th among the 20 OHL clubs in this year’s exhibition play. They rank 12th on the penalty kill, shutting down the opposition 79% of the time. The Spirit are killing penalties at the league’s second-best rate of 91.7%. Their power play ranks 12th, converting on 16.7% of their chances with the man-advantage.
The Spirit are wrapping up a six-game exhibition schedule, having gone 2-3 thus far. They are led by Luke McNamara, exceptional status forward Michael Misa and defenseman Zayne Parekh each with five points. McNamara and Parekh each lead the way with three goals. In net, Brett Fullerton has seen action in three preseason games to lead the Spirit. He comes in with a 1.75 GAA and .923%. Andrew Oke (Detroit Red Wings) and Tristan Lennox (New York Islanders) have both seen action in net this preseason but are away at their respective NHL training camps alongside Josh Bloom (Buffalo Sabres), Pavel Mintyukov (Anaheim Ducks) and Matyas Sapovaliv (Vegas Golden Knights).
NHL: The Firebirds now have six players on their roster with NHL ties consisting of Braeden Kressler (Toronto Maple Leafs), Gavin Hayes (Chicago Blackhawks), Brennan Othmann (New York Rangers), Amadeus Lombardi (Detroit Red Wings), Dmitry Kuzmin (Winnipeg Jets), and Will Cranley (St. Louis Blues). Riley Piercey (Detroit Red Wings) and Sahil Panwar (Florida Panthers) have also participated in prospect camps and tournaments with NHL clubs recently.
Despite Flint playing in just six OHL seasons thus far, Alex Nedeljkovic (Carolina Hurricanes / Detroit Red Wings), Kole Sherwood (Columbus Blue Jackets), Ty Dellandrea (Dallas Stars), and Vladislav Kolyachonok (Arizona Coyotes) are four former Firebirds to play regular-season games in the NHL. Brennan Othmann (New York Rangers) and Firebirds’ alumni Ethan Keppen (Vancouver Canucks), Vili Saarijarvi (Detroit Red Wings) and Jalen Smereck (Arizona Coyotes) have all played in NHL preseason contests. In total, the team has produced 24 signed or drafted players into the NHL.
Next Up: The Flint Firebirds open the 2022-23 season on home ice Saturday, October 1 at 7:00 p.m. against the Niagara IceDogs. Season Memberships are on sale NOW starting as low as $12 per game or $408 for the full season. More information on becoming a 2022-23 season membership holder can be found HERE. Additionally, single-game tickets are on sale NOW. Tickets can be purchased at Etix.com in person at the Dort Financial Center Box Office during regularly scheduled hours, or over the phone by calling 1-800-514-3849.
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