Preview: Firebirds & Wolves Tangle in Sudbury Friday

Game 30: Flint Firebirds (14-13-0-2) at Sudbury Wolves (13-14-2-0)
Date | Time	Friday, Dec. 9 | 7:00 p.m.
Location	Sudbury, Ont. | Sudbury Community Arena (capacity 5,100)
Tickets	Online | (705) 671-3000
TV	– Eastlink channel 10 (Sudbury) – OHL Action Pak: Rogers & Cogeco ch. 441 (Ontario)
Video Stream	OHL Live
Radio	WTRX 1330-AM (Flint & Mid-Michigan) | Pregame Show: 6:30p
Radio (Mobile)	Sports Xtra 1330 App: Android | iPhone/iPad
Live Stats	Here
Next Home Game	Wednesday, Dec. 28 vs. Soo (College Night)
Social Media	@FlintFirebirds   | Facebook | Instagram

Sudbury, Ont. – The Flint Firebirds continue their six-game road-swing Friday night as the club faces-off against the Sudbury Wolves for the second of, three games in three nights, this weekend. Puck drop is slated for 7 p.m. at the Sudbury Community Arena (capacity 5,100).

Although the Firebirds have won five of their last seven games in Flint, the Firebirds have a 3-8-1-1 record on the road. The Wolves’ record in Sudbury is 8-7-2-0 this season and have given up the most goals against on home-ice in the OHL with 66. Sudbury has the third-best penalty kill in the league operating at 85.4%.

The two clubs will meet for the first time this season after they split the two game series last season. The Firebirds won the first game 2-0 on Nov. 28 in Sudbury (Highlights) but the Wolves edged-out the Firebirds 5-4 in overtime on Feb. 5 in Flint (Highlights).

Players to Watch:

Flint Firebirds (14-13-0-2, 8th Western Conference):
Ryan Moore has 12 points in his last ten games and is eighth among all OHL skaters with 40 points. Moore is currently in a three-way tie for second most shorthanded goals scored in the OHL with three this season. Nicholas Caamano (Dallas Stars) has 14 goals and 17 assists in 29 games this season. Kole Sherwood (Columbus Blue Jackets) has 10 goals and 17 assists in 25 games played. Mathieu Henderson leads all OHL defensemen in points and is second on the Flint roster in scoring with seven goals and 25 assists. Henderson is also tied for second in game-winning goals among all OHL defenseman with two. Despite not earning in a point in the last two games, Everett Clark was recently on a nine-game point-streak and has eight goals and 11 assists in 26 games this season. Jalen Smereck (Arizona Coyotes) has four goals and 14 assists in 26 games played.

Samuel Duchesne, Jake Durham, Fedor Gordeev and Jack Phibbs are first-time eligible players to be selected in the NHL Draft in June 2017.

In net, Connor Hicks is 7-4-0-2 and statistically the ninth-best goaltender in the league with a 3.19 GAA and a .882 SAV%. Garrett Forrest is 6-8-0-0 and played in the Firebirds last game against the North Bay Battalion. Forrest made 19 saves on 25 shots and has a 3.55 GAA with a .883 SAV%.

NHL: The Firebirds currently have two players that have signed contracts with NHL clubs. Forward Kole Sherwood signed a three-year NHL contract with the Columbus Blue Jackets (July 2015) and defenseman Jalen Smereck signed a three-year NHL contract with the Arizona Coyotes (October 2016). Flint’s Nicholas Caamano was drafted by the Dallas Stars in the most recent NHL Draft in June 2016. Along with Caamano, Sherwood and Smereck, four more Flint Firebirds competed in NHL training camps this fall: Everett Clark (St. Louis Blues), Connor Hicks (Detroit Red Wings), Luke Kirwan (Detroit Red Wings) and Alex Peters (Carolina Hurricanes).

Sudbury Wolves (13-14-2-0, 6th Eastern Conference):
Dmitry Sokolov (Minnesota Wild) leads the Wolves in points with a team-high 19 goals and six assists in 25 games played. Sokolov has scored five goals in his last four games. Second on the Wolves’ roster is Macauley Carson with 13 goals and 11 assists in 29 games. Tied for second in scoring is Ryan Valentini who has nine goals and 15 assists in 29 games played. Sudbury’s David Levin was the first pick overall in the 2015 OHL Draft. In his second season in the OHL, Levin has 21 points (9G, 12A) in 29 games played.

Between-the-pipes, former Flint Firebird Zack Bowman is 6-10-1-0 and has a 3.40 GAA, along with a .904 SAV%. Rookie Jake McGrath is 7-4-1-0 and played in the Wolves’ last game. McGrath recorded his first OHL shutout against the Barrie Colts and is sporting a 3.57 GAA and a .907 SAV%.

NHL: Five players on the Wolves roster have been drafted by NHL teams consisting of Kyle Capobianco (Arizona Coyotes), Liam Dunda (St. Louis Blues), Michael Pezzetta (Montreal Canadians), Dmitry Sokolov (Minnesota Wild), and Chandler Yakimowicz (St. Louis Blues).

Broadcast Coverage:
Friday night’s contest against the Wolves can be heard live on 1330 AM WTRX Sports Radio in Flint & Mid-Michigan and around the world online on the Sports Xtra 1330 Radio app here. Pregame coverage with Dominic Hennig will begin 35 minutes prior to puck drop at 6:30 p.m. Additionally, the game will be televised live in Sudbury on channel 11 for Eastlink TV cable subscribers and throughout the province of Ontario on the OHL Action Pak on channel 441 for Rogers TV & Cogeco TV cable subscribers (Broadcast Information). Fans can also watch the game live online at www.ohllive.com or on the OHL Live App.

Upcoming Home Games:
The Firebirds next home game is Wednesday Dec. 28th at 7 p.m. against the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds. Wednesday’s game is College Night featuring $2 beers & $2 hot dogs for all fans in attendance. In addition, college student’s with valid I.D. receive $2 off their tickets. Flint is then home again on Friday, Dec. 30th against the Saginaw Spirit for Star Wars Night also at 7 p.m..   Star Wars Night will feature a live jersey auction immediately following the game.

Single game tickets for the Flint Firebirds 2016-17 season are $12 for Bronze, $15 for Silver, $19 for Gold and $25 for VIP seating. Prices are unchanged from last season and all seats are reserved / assigned seating. Parking has been reduced to $5 dollars which is new this season. Fans can purchase tickets at the Dort Federal Event Center Box Office or online by clicking ticketmaster.com.