Preview: Firebirds Face-Off vs 67’s in Canada’s Capital City Friday
| Flint Firebirds at Ottawa 67’s | |
| Date | Time | Friday, Dec. 14 | 7:00 p.m. |
| Location | Ottawa, Ont. | TD Place (capacity 9,500) |
| Tickets | Online | (613) 232-6767 |
| TV | – Rogers TV ch. 22 / 510 HD Live (Ottawa) – OHL Action Pak: Rogers TV 446 & Cogeco TV 446 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  |
Ottawa, Ont. – The Flint Firebirds continue their eastern conference road trip Friday evening when they face-off against the Ottawa 67’s in Canada’s capital city. Puck drop is set for 7 p.m. at TD Place (capacity 9,500). This will be the second and final meeting between the two teams in the regular season.
Friday marks the homecoming for three Firebirds’ members as goaltender Luke Cavallin (Greely) and defenseman Ryan Bangs (Stittsville) call Ottawa home. Darcy Findlay also makes his hometown debut as a coach in the Ontario Hockey League at TD Place.
The 67’s recently-acquired netminder Michael DiPietro (Vancouver Canucks) and rearguard Kevin Bahl (Arizona Coyotes) have joined Flint captain Ty Dellandrea (Dallas Stars) at Team Canada’s Sport Chek World Junior Showcase. The trio will not be present for Friday evening’s contest.
Last season, these teams split the series with each team winning on home ice. Both games required overtime. All-time, the Firebirds carry a 4-1-1-0 record against the 67’s. In six total meetings, three contests have required overtime.
The 67’s most recently played on Sunday, defeating the Peterborough Petes 4-2 at the TD Place Arena. Sasha Chmelevski (San Jose Sharks) and Tye Felhaber each had one goal and one assist to lead Ottawa in the victory. The Firebirds skated to a 5-2 defeat to the Petes Friday night in Peterborough. Ethan Keppen recorded a two-point night, Evan Vierling scored his first-career goal in the OHL and Luke Cavallin made his return between the pipes for Flint in the event.
On special teams, Flint is steadily improving on the power-play away from home, now scoring on 8.0% of their opportunities. Ottawa ranks 13th on home ice, converting at 19.6% while on the man-advantage. When shorthanded, the Firebirds are ranked 19th on the road, successfully killing penalties at 70.2%. The 67’s have the eighth-best kill on home ice, shutting down the opposition on 81.8% of their chances.
Players to Watch:
Flint Firebirds (3-28-2-0, 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 13 assists through 33 games. He has 10 points (5G, 5A) in his past seven contests. Dallas Stars’ first-round draft pick Ty Dellandrea ranks second in offensive production, but has been gone, competing for a spot in Canada’s roster for the upcoming World Juniors. Eric Uba picked up another assist Thursday night in Peterborough, and now has 12 goals and 11 assists in 33 games. Ethan Keppen had a two-point night yesterday and now ranks third among active players for Flint this weekend with eight goals and 13 assists for 21 points in 33 games-played.
First-year forward Evan Vierling has recorded six points in the last five 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 33 games-played on the season. First-year defenseman Vladislav Kolyachonok has picked up 12 points in 21 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 5.57 GAA and a .853 SAV% across 18 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.
Ottawa 67’s (24-4-3-1, 1st East Division):
Tye Felhaber leads the Ottawa troops in numerous categories this season. He is tied for third in the OHL with 53 total points. His 35 goals are the most by any player in the league. He has scored the first goal of the game 11 times this season, nearly double the number of the player who ranks second in the category. Austen Keating sits second in point-production, scoring 12 times and assisting on a team-high 30 markers for 42 points in 32 games-played. In the OHL, he ranks fourth in total assists. Sasha Chmelevski ranks third with 12 goals and 27 helpers in 30 contests.
First-year forward Marco Rossi leads the newcomers on the team with 27 points (13G, 14A) in 23 games. The defensive squad is led by Noel Hoefenmayer (Arizona Coyotes), who has found the back of the net five times and added 22 assists in 32 games-played.
Ottawa netminder Michael DiPietro will not be active for the 67’s on Friday. For the season, he boasts the league’s best goals-against average (GAA) at 2.26. He is also tied for the OHL’s third-best save percentage (SAV%), currently at a .922. However, the goaltender with the most wins this season is Cedrick Andree, who has 20 victories in 25 appearances. He carries the fourth-best GAA at 2.52 and a SAV% of .912. First-year netminder Will Cranley has appeared in seven contests, posting three victories along with a 3.32 GAA and a .883 SAV%.
NHL: The 67’s have six players with active NHL ties on their roster, consisting of Sasha Chmelevski (San Jose Sharks), Mitchell Hoelscher (New Jersey Devils), Kody Clark (Washington Capitals), Noel Hoefenmayer (Arizona Coyotes), Kevin Bahl (Arizona Coyotes) and Michael DiPietro (Vancouver Canucks). Additionally, forward Graeme Clarke and defensemen Nikita Okhotyuk, Lucas Peric, and Merrick Rippon were listed on the November NHL Central Scouting’s North American ‘Players to Watch’ list for the upcoming NHL Draft.
Ottawa alumni to play in the NHL include Gary Roberts, Kris Draper, Brian Campbell, Bobby Smith, Denis Potvin, Doug Wilson, Andrew Cassels, Shean Donovan, Doug Crossman, Randy Cunneyworth, Michael Peca, Chris Simon, Petr Mrazek, and Darren Pang.
Broadcast Coverage:
Friday 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 30 minutes prior to puck drop at 6:30 p.m.
Friday’s game will be televised live in Ottawa on Channel 22 / 510 (HD) for Rogers TV cable subscribers. The game will also be televised live across the province of Ontario on the OHL Action Pak on channel 446 for both Rogers TV and 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 Friday’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 Friday, the Firebirds will play one more game on the road (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
