Firebirds Strike Late but Fall to Rangers, 3-1
FLINT, Mich. — Nathan Day made 20 saves and the Firebirds outshot the visiting Kitchener Rangers, 34-23 but Flint fell to Kitchener by a final score of 3-1 on Sunday afternoon at the Dort Financial Center.
The Firebirds came out hot and heavily outchanced the Rangers early but it was Kitchener who struck first. Adrian Misaljevic sprung free from a scrum between the circles and lifted a backhand top shelf, near side for his 17th of the season and the early Kitchener lead. The score remained 1-0 through the opening 20 minutes, despite Flint outshooting the Rangers 17-6.
The middle frame was a goaltending showcase, with Nathan Day and Jackson Parsons both turning aside everything sent their way. Into the third period, with the Rangers still leading 1-0, Tanner Lam forced a turnover as Flint was breaking out of their zone. He fed Matthew Sop as he quickly curled back into the offensive end. Sop carried the puck between the circles and deked from his forehand to his backhand and roofed a shot behind Day on the glove side to give Kitchener a 2-0 lead.
Day was called to the Flint bench with the team still trailing by a pair and two minutes left in regulation. Tristan Bertucci was teed up for a one-timer the right point but his stick broke on the shot attempt. The underpowered shot trickled to Zacharie Giroux who was loose below the right circle. Giroux fired a snap shot through Parsons high on the short side a put the Firebirds on the board with just 1:23 to play.
Day returned to the net for the ensuing faceoff but was called off the ice as soon as the Firebirds gained control in the offensive zone. The Rangers regained control of the puck however and with less than a minute to go, the OHL’s leading scorer Carson Rehkopf hit the empty net from center ice and pushed the score to its 3-1 final.
Giroux’s goal was his fourth in his last four games and Nathan Day finished with 20 saves on 22 shots in net. The Firebirds dropped to 11-11-1-1 in the loss while Kitchener improved its league-best record to 18-7-0-0.
Flint will now hit the road for three games next week over the span of four days. It begins on Thursday night in Peterborough for the first game of the season between the Firebirds and the Petes. Puck drop is scheduled for 7 p.m. at the Peterborough Memorial Centre.
Story: Brandon Mills // flintfirebirds.com
Photo: Todd Boone
