Preview: Firebirds Continue Road Trip in Peterborough Thursday
| Flint Firebirds at Peterborough Petes | |
| Date | Time | Thursday, Dec. 13 | 7:05 p.m. |
| Location | Peterborough, Ont. | Peterborough Memorial Centre (4,329) |
| Tickets | Online | (705) 743-3561 |
| TV | – Cogeco TV ch. 10 / 700 HD Live (Peterborough) – OHL Action Pak: Rogers TV 439 & Cogeco TV 480 Live (Ontario) |
| Video Stream | OHL Live |
| Radio | WQUS 103.1 FM (Flint & Mid-Michigan) | Pregame Show: 6:30p |
| 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  |
Peterborough, Ont. – The Firebirds’ six-game road trip continues with three contests against Eastern Conference opponents this weekend, beginning with a Thursday night tilt with the Peterborough Petes. Puck drop is set for 7:05 p.m. at the Peterborough Memorial Centre (capacity 4,329).
Peterborough is the oldest continuously-operating team in the OHL. They have played at the Peterborough Memorial Centre since 1956. They have produced more NHL alumni than any other franchise, currently at 248 players. Scotty Bowman coached the Petes from the 1958-59 season until the 1960-61 season. Bowman later went on to win nine Stanley Cups as a head coach in the NHL, including three with the Detroit Red Wings. Along with Bowman, former Red Wings’ Larry Murphy, Mickey Redmond and Steve Yzerman played for the Petes.
Firebirds’ forward C.J. Clarke was the second-round draft pick of the Petes in the 2015 OHL Priority Selection. He played in 80 regular-season games and seven playoff contests with Peterborough before joining the Firebirds midway through the 2016-17 season.
Thursday marks the first of two meetings between the clubs this season, and the only contest in Peterborough. Last season, these teams split the series with each team winning on home ice. All-time, the Firebirds carry a 2-4-0-0 record against Peterborough. Flint has yet to pick up a victory at the Peterborough Memorial Centre.
Most recently, the Firebirds played a tight match with the Hamilton Bulldogs on Saturday. Evan Morrison made his first regular-season start between the pipes, making 23 saves on 26 shots and earning ‘Third-Star’ honors for his performance. Jack Phibbs and Jake Durham lit the lamp for Flint, who eventually surrendered a late empty-net goal in the defeat. The Petes surrendered a contest to the Ottawa 67’s on Sunday 4 – 2. Seymon Der-Arguchintsev (Toronto Maple Leafs) and Pavel Gogolev each scored for Peterborough. Both players hail from Moscow, Russia. Flint will travel to Ottawa for a Friday-night tilt this weekend.
On special teams, Flint is 20th in the 20-team OHL on the power-play, scoring on 12.8% of their opportunities. Peterborough ranks 18th, converting at 14.0% while on the man-advantage. While shorthanded, the Firebirds are ranked 19th on the road, successfully kill penalties at 70.9%. The Petes have the second-best penalty on home ice, shutting down the opposition on 88.9% of their chances.
Players to Watch:
Flint Firebirds (3-27-2-0, 5th West Division):
Jake Durham leads the ‘Birds in goals and total points, averaging a point-per-game this season. He has 20 goals and 12 assists through 32 games. He has nine points (5G, 4A) in his past six contests. Dallas Stars’ first-round draft pick Ty Dellandrea ranks second in offensive production, but is competing for a spot in Canada’s roster for the upcoming World Juniors. Eric Uba continues to produce, now with 12 goals and 10 assists in 32 games. Ethan Keppen ranks third among active players for Flint this weekend with 19 points in 32 games-played.
First-year forward Jacob Winterton leads all first-year players in goals-scored and points, with six tallies and 13 total points in 32 contests.
Fedor Gordeev (Toronto Maple Leafs) leads the defensive unit with three goals and 14 assists for 17 points in 32 games-played on the season. First-year defenseman Vladislav Kolyachonok has picked up 11 points in 20 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 5.61 GAA and a .854 SAV% across 17 appearances. He has completed serving his five-game suspension, and should be back in the lineup for the Firebirds beginning Thursday.
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.
Peterborough Petes (17-13-0-0, 3rd East Division):
The Petes are led in offensive production by defenseman Declan Chisholm (Winnipeg Jets). He has found the back of the net three times, and assisted on a team-high 25 tallies for 28 total points in 30 games-played. Seymon Der-Arguchintsev is on a seven-game point streak (3G, 8A) and ranks second for the Petes with 24 points in 28 contests. Christopher Paquette (Tampa Bay Lightning) ranks first in scoring for Peterborough with 13 goals and seven helpers for 20 points in 30 games. His four short-handed goals have him tied for second-most in the OHL.
First-year forward Erik Cermak tops the newcomers on the Petes’ roster with four goals and seven assists through 30 games.
Between the pipes, Hunter Jones ranks top-five in most categories for netminders. His 16 wins are the third-most in the OHL. He is one of five goaltenders with two shutouts in the campaign, which is the most by anyone this season. He has a 2.72 goals-against average (GAA), and his .921 save-percentage (SAV%) is the fifth-highest in the league. He has appeared in 28 games, which is the most of any OHL goalie. First-year netminder Tye Austin has made six appearances this season, posting one victory and logging a 4.27 GAA with an SAV% of .879.
NHL: The Petes are currently playing with seven players who have active NHL ties on their squad, consisting of Zach Gallant (Detroit Red Wings), Christopher Paquette (Tampa Bay Lightning), Liam Kirk (Arizona Coyotes), Seymon Der-Arguchintsev (Toronto Maple Leafs), Cole Fraser (Detroit Red Wings), Austin Osmanski (Buffalo Sabres), and Declan Chisolm (Winnipeg Jets). Additionally, forwards Nicholas Robertson and Erik Cermak and netminder Hunter Jones were listed on the November NHL Central Scouting’s North American ‘Players to Watch’ list for the upcoming NHL Draft.
Peterborough has 248 alumni that have played in the NHL. Four former Petes’ players that were inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame are Steve Yzerman, Bob Gainey, Larry Murphy, and Chris Pronger. Other notable players from Peterborough to play in the NHL include Tie Domi, Keith Crowder, Steve Downie, Danny O’Shea, Jamie Langenbrunner, Steve Montador, Mickey Redmond, Mike Ricci, Luke Richardson, and Eric Staal.
Broadcast Coverage:
Thursday evening’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 35 minutes prior to puck drop at 6:30 p.m.
Thursday’s game will be televised live in Peterborough on Channel 10 / 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 439 for Rogers TV subscribers and channel 480 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 Thursday’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 Thursday, the Firebirds will play two more games on the road (Friday in Ottawa and Sunday in Kingston) before returning 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
