Firebirds Tie Game Late but are Beaten by Spits, 5-3
WINDSOR, Ont. — Nolan Dann recorded his second two-goal performance in the last four games and Nathan Aspinall scored his ninth of the campaign but the Flint Firebirds’ comeback attempt fell short they were beaten by the Windsor Spitfires, 4-3, on Wednesday night at the WFCU Centre.
The Spits grabbed the lead when they found the back of the net two times late in the first period. First, Noah Morneau carried the puck up the left-wing side and had his initial shot blocked by the defender. The puck rebounded directly back to him for a second attempt, which he snapped from a wide angle. His shot found the top corner on the short side to give Windsor a 1-0 lead. They added to that lead with a power play goal shortly thereafter. Valentin Zhugin one-timed a cross-ice pass from Oliver Peer that beat Nathan Day high on the glove side to put Windsor on top, 2-0.
After 15 minutes of scoreless play in the middle frame, three goals were netted in a span of less than two minutes. First, with the Firebirds on a power play, Tristan Bertucci was manning the point. He snapped a pass to the right circle, where Dann stood on the faceoff dot. The overage forward wound back blasted a shot that deflected off a defender and between Joey Costanzo’s pads to pull Flint within a goal.
30 seconds later, Liam Greentree carried the puck in from the left point and deked around two defenders on his way to the slot. He drew another Flint skater and dished a backhanded pass to his left. Jacob Maillet was perched below the left circle and made the short-range tap-in to put Windsor back on top by a pair, 3-1.
Dann scored his second of the period, again less than a minute later. This time Kaden Pitre fed Dann on the right and paced him on the left as a two-on-one developed for the Firebirds. Dann faked a pass before snapping a quick high shot over Costanzo’s left shoulder to pull Flint within one.
With the Firebirds still trailing 3-2 and under 11 minutes remaining in regulation, Braeden Kressler won an offensive zone draw in the right circle. Zacharie Giroux pinched in from the right wall and directed the puck back to Matthew Jenken high between the circles. Jenken fired a slapper that deflected off his defender and ricocheted into the left circle. Aspinall spun away from his defender and quickly snapped a rising shot over Costanzo’s right pad and beyond the reach of the blocker to knot the game at three.
Inside the final four minutes of the game, Ryan Abraham passed up the left-wing boards to rookie defender Conor Walton at the point. Walton leaned into a heavy one-timer that deflected off traffic in the slot and past Day on the glove side. Walton’s first career OHL goal gave the Spits a late 4-3 advantage.
The Firebirds called Day to the bench for an extra attacker with 1:45 on the game clock but could not manage the equalizer. Instead it was Maillet who tucked a puck into the empty Flint net, extending the Windsor lead to 5-3.
Dann now has six goals in his last six games and is on a six-game point streak, Aspinall’s goal was the 10th of his OHL career and Giroux recorded two assists in the loss. The Firebirds dropped to 14-19-2-1 in the defeat while Windsor improved to 12-20-3-0.
Flint will return to action at home this weekend for a pair of games on Friday and Saturday night. It’s Firebirds Fight Hunger Weekend, sponsored by Dort Financial Credit Union, and fans who donate five or more nonperishable food items can receive a free ticket. Friday’s puck drop against the Peterborough Petes is scheduled for 7 p.m.
Story: Brandon Mills // flintfirebirds.com
