Preview: Firebirds Wrap-Up Six-Game Road Trip, First Half Sunday in Kingston
| Flint Firebirds at Kingston Frontenacs | |
| Date | Time | Sunday, Dec. 16 | 2:00 p.m. |
| Location | Kingston, Ont. | Rogers K-Rock Centre (capacity 5,700) |
| Tickets | Ticketmaster.com | (613) 650-5000 |
| TV | – Cogeco TV ch. 13 / 700 HD Live (Kingston) – OHL Action Pak: Rogers TV 460 & Cogeco TV 491 Live (Ontario) |
| Video Stream | OHL Live |
| Radio | WQUS 103.1 FM (Flint & Mid-Michigan) | Pregame Show: 1:30p |
| Radio (Mobile) | US 103 App: Android | iPhone/iPad |
| Live Stats | Here |
| Next Home Game | Friday, Dec. 28 vs. Erie (Promotions) |
| Social Media | @FlintFirebirds  | Facebook  | Instagram  |
Kingston, Ont. – The Firebirds will conclude their six-game road trip with their final game of the first half of the OHL season on Sunday afternoon. Puck drop is set for 2 p.m. (ET) at the Leon’s Centre (capacity 5,700).
Sunday marks the first of two meetings this season, and the only contest in Kingston. In six total matches between the clubs since Flint’s inception to the OHL, the Frontenacs have yet to surrender a game. Flint is 0-3-0-0 at the Leon’s Centre, and looking to pick up their first-ever victory against the Fronts’ in Sunday’s matinee.
Both teams had the day off on Saturday. On Friday night, the Frontenacs and the Firebirds each skated to a 3-0 defeat. Flint was held scoreless in Ottawa by the top-ranked 67’s. Kingston was shutout by the Owen Sound Attack in Kingston. The Firebirds’ penalty-kill was the highlight of Friday, shutting down the league’s best team on all seven of their power-play opportunities.
On special teams, Flint is steadily improving on the power-play, now scoring on 12.7% of their opportunities. Kingston ranks 14th overall, converting at 17.8% while on the man-advantage. When shorthanded, the Firebirds are now ranked 16th on the road, successfully killing penalties at 73.4%. The Frontenac’s have the 19th-best kill on home ice, shutting down the opposition on 70.6% of their chances.
Players to Watch:
Flint Firebirds (3-29-2-0, 5th West Division):
Jake Durham leads the ‘Birds in goals and total points, averaging nearly a point-per-game this season. He has 20 goals and 13 assists through 34 games. Dallas Stars’ first-round draft pick Ty Dellandrea ranks second in offensive production, and is expected to return to Flint’s lineup for Sunday’s contest from the Hockey Canada World Junior Selection Camp. For the season, Dellandrea has 13 tallies and 16 helpers for 29 points in 28 games-played.
First-year forward Evan Vierling has recorded six points in the last six games and scored his first-career goal OHL goal Thursday in Peterborough.
Fedor Gordeev (Toronto Maple Leafs) leads the defensive unit with three goals and 14 assists for 17 points in 30 games-played on the season. First-year defenseman Vladislav Kolyachonok has picked up 12 points in 22 games since joining the Firebirds after the season had started.
In net, Emanuel Vella holds a 5.28 goals-against average (GAA) and a .865 save percentage (SAV%) in 22 appearances. Vella has backstopped Flint to one win and one overtime defeat this season. Luke Cavallin has compiled a 5.39 GAA and a .855 SAV% across 19 appearances, including two victories and one overtime defeat.
NHL: The Firebirds have three players with NHL ties consisting of Dennis Busby (Arizona Coyotes), Ty Dellandrea (Dallas Stars) and Fedor Gordeev (Toronto Maple Leafs). Additionally, five other Firebirds’ players attended NHL Camps this past off-season: Hunter Holmes (Philadelphia Flyers), Riley McCourt (Dallas Stars), Hakon Nilsen (New York Islanders), Connor Roberts (Pittsburgh Penguins) and Emanuel Vella (New York Islanders). In addition, netminder Luke Cavallin, forward Ethan Keppen and defenseman Vladislav Kolyachonok were named to November’s NHL Central Scouting’s North American ‘Players to Watch’ list for the upcoming NHL Draft.
Kingston Frontenacs (10-22-1-0, 5th East Division):
Brett Neumann leads the Kingston troops this season. He has 24 goals and 20 assists for 44 points in 33 games-played. Ryan Cranford is tied for second with 19 points (9G, 10A) in 30 games. Defenseman Billy Constantinou was acquired from the Niagara IceDogs mid-season, and also has 19 points (5G, 14A) in 31 contests.
First-year defenseman Anthony Aguanno leads the newcomers on the team with 10 points (0G, 10A) in 25 games. Former Flint Firebirds’ forward Lucas Rowe started the season in Flint, but will face his former club for the first time since being acquired by the Frontenacs mid-season.
Between the pipes, Brendan Bonello has appeared in 24 games, earning four wins. He has a 3.72 goals-against average (GAA), along with a save percentage (SAV%) of .892. First-year netminder Ryan Dugas has six wins and one shutout in 14 appearances. His GAA stands at 4.19 and his SAV% is .872.
NHL: Kingston is currently playing without any active NHL ties on their roster. However, some notable former Kingston Frontenac players to play in the NHL are Sean Avery, Sam Bennett, Phil Bourque, Paul Coffey, Lawson Crouse and Philipp Grubauer.
Broadcast Coverage:
Sunday afternoon’s contest 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 here. Dominic Hennig will call the play-by-play action with pre-game coverage beginning 30 minutes prior to puck drop at 1:30 p.m.
Sunday’s game will be televised live in Kingston on YourTV Channel 13 / 700 (HD) for Cogeco TV cable subscribers. The game will also be televised live across the province of Ontario on the OHL Action Pak on channel 460 for Rogers TV cable subscribers and channel 491 for Cogeco TV cable subscribers. 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. Along with Sunday’s game, 65 of the Firebirds’ 68 games throughout the 2018-19 season are also scheduled to be televised live across the province of Ontario on the OHL Action Pak.
All Flint Firebirds home and away games throughout the 2018-19 season can be watched anywhere in the world online on www.ohllive.com or on the OHL Live app. OHL Live is a league video streaming platform that delivers high quality live and on-demand coverage of all regular season and playoff games annually. The cost is $6.99 per game, $69.99 for Flint Firebirds away games only, $179.99 for all 68 home and away Firebirds games and $279.99 for all 1,360 OHL games throughout the 2018-19 season.
Next Home Game:
After the mid-season break, the Firebirds will return to the Dort Federal Credit Union Event Center for a pair of games during the holiday break. The first of the two back-to-back contests is Scout Night on Friday, Dec. 28. The following night, the Firebirds host the Windsor Spitfires on Saturday, Dec. 28 for Superhero Night.
Single game tickets for all Firebirds games are $12 Bronze, $16 Silver, $20 Gold and $26 VIP seating (Seating Chart). All seats are reserved / assigned seating. Fans can purchase tickets by calling (810) 744-0580, in-person at the Dort Federal Event Center Box Office or online at ticketmaster.com here.
For more information:
Dominic Hennig
Director of Broadcasting & Communications
Flint Firebirds Hockey Club
[email protected]
(810) 519-9347
