PREVIEW: Firebirds Open Home Slate on Saturday Night vs Kitchener
Flint, Mich. – The Firebirds will host the Kitchener Rangers Saturday evening for the club’s annual Opening Night. The first 2,000 fans in attendance will receive a FREE Opening Night rally towel, courtesy of Dort Financial Credit Union. Limited tickets remain, and are available online at ETIX.com or at the Dort Financial Center Box Office. Puck drop is set for 7:00 p.m. at the Dort Financial Center. Flint’s all-time record versus Kitchener stands at 15-12-2-0 but is only 6-8-1-0 in home games. The Birds were victorious in both home contests with the Rangers last season and finished 3-1-0-0 in the series overall. Two of the four meetings were settled by a single goal, including a thrilling 6-5 overtime victory for Flint the last time these teams met back on March 24.
PRESEASON RECAP: The Firebirds ended the preseason with a 2-2-0-0 mark, including a 2-1-0-0 record in three consecutive games versus the Windsor Spitfires. They concluded exhibition play with a loss on the road in Sarnia. The Rangers played six preseason tilts and finished with a 4-1-0-1 record. Simon Slavicek paced the squad in scoring during exhibition play, netting five goals and adding an assist for six points. Nolan Dann logged four points in just three games, stemming from one goal and a trio of helpers. Seattle Kraken prospect Carson Rehkopf ran up the stats for Kitchener in the preseason, scoring five times and assisting on six tallies in just four of their six games. Matthew Sop was next with ten points (4 G, 6 A) in six games.
SCOUTING THE RANGERS: Kitchener snuck into the playoffs last season as the eighth seed in the Western Conference. They swept the top-ranked Windsor Spitfires in the first round before making a second-round exit at the hands of the London Knights. Since then, the team has parted with several key players, including forwards Francesco Arcuri (Dallas), Filip Mesar (Montreal), Francesco Pinelli (LA), Danny Zhilkin (Winnipeg), and Reid Valade (Saint Mary’s University). Defensemen Roman Schmidt (Tampa Bay), Lleyton Moore (Wichita, ECHL), and Ty Hollett are also gone, as are goaltenders Marco Constantini and Marcus Vandenberg. The list of notable newcomers includes four rookie forwards, consisting of Luke Ellinas and Matheas Stark on the left wing and Tanner Lam and Luca Romano playing the right side. The overagers on the roster are forwards Matthew Sop and Mitchell Martin, as well as rearguard Simon Motew. Active players with NHL ties include Carson Rehkopf (Seattle), Hunter Brzustewicz (Vancouver), Matthew Andonovski (Ottawa), and Tomas Hamara (Ottawa). The Rangers played their first regular-season contest on Friday night in their home opener. Third-year winger Antonio Pugliese scored the game-winning marker with just over two minutes remaining in regulation, giving them a 4-3 victory over the visiting Saginaw Spirit. He and Mitchell Martin each had a goal and an assist to lead the way on the scoresheet.
SCOUTING THE FIREBIRDS: Flint also said goodbye to several key pieces of last year’s roster including the three overagers, goaltender Will Cranley (St. Louis Blues), defenseman Tyler Deline (Acadia University), and forward Riley Piercey (Bridgeport, AHL). Additionally, forwards Amadeus Lombardi (Detroit Red Wings) and Braeden Kressler (Toronto Maple Leafs), along with defenders Artem Guryev (San Jose Sharks) and Dmitry Kuzmin (Winnipeg Jets) have moved on with their respective NHL organizations. Returning players with NHL affiliations include forwards Gavin Hayes (Chicago Blackhawks), Coulson Pitre (Anaheim Ducks), and Ethan Hay (Tampa Bay Lightning). Defenseman Tristan Bertucci (Dallas Stars) and goaltender Nathan Day (Edmonton Oilers) were selected in the most recent NHL Draft. Rearguard Blake Smith was also a free-agent invite to the Boston Bruins Prospects Camp. Earlier this week, overage forward Zacharie Giroux was named the fifth Captain in the Firebirds’ franchise history. He and fellow forward Nolan Dann are the overagers on the current Flint roster. Seven rookies are featured on the active players list, including three forwards, three defensemen, and one goaltender. The forwards are first-round selection Jeremy Martin, second-rounder Jimmy Lombardi, and third-round pick Max Anderson. On the blue line are freshmen Mason Taylor, Grayden Strohack, and Ryan Fellinger. The newest goalie to join the organization is rookie Jacob Brown. The Birds also played their first game of the 2023-24 season last night, dropping a lopsided 11-3 contest to the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds in front of more than 4,000 fans at the GFL Memorial Gardens. The Hounds scored five unanswered goals in the first period before Martin put the Birds on the board with his first OHL goal. Kaden Pitre and Daks Klinkhammer also buried pucks for the visitors. Day got the start in net, recording 22 saves before Brown entered and made 14 stops in the final 35:01.
BROADCAST COVERAGE: This evening’s game against the Kitchener Rangers can be heard live on the radio throughout Flint & Mid-Michigan on US 103.1 FM, online at www.us103.com, or by downloading the US 103 app. Brian Gardner will call the play-by-play action on the Firebirds Hockey Network (FHN), starting with the pre-game show at 6:45 p.m. The game will be televised live across the province of Ontario on the OHL Action Pak on channel 466. 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 of the Flint Firebirds home and away games throughout the 2023-24 season can be watched anywhere in the world online at https://watch.chl.ca/ohl. CHL TV is the league’s video streaming platform that delivers high-quality live and on-demand coverage of all regular season and playoff games annually. Fans can get access to OHL Live on CHL TV with a special, limited time discounted offer of $79 for the full season pass, or Firebirds Season Members can get it for $59 by visiting the Dort Financial Center or The Bird’s Nest during business hours.
COMING UP: The Firebirds will look to settle the score with the Soo Greyhounds next Saturday at the Dort Financial Center. The game will be the annual Dort Financial Family Night, where Dort Financial Credit Union Members are eligible to receive up to 4 FREE silver level tickets, with proof of membership. The first 3,000 fans in the building will receive a FREE sublimated Flint Firebirds replica jersey, courtesy of Dort Financial Credit Union. Tickets are available online at ETIX.com or at the Dort Financial Center Box Office.
Story: Brandon Mills / flintfirebirds.com
