Preview: Firebirds Face Sarnia on “Pink Out The Rink” Night Saturday
| Sarnia Sting at Flint Firebirds | |
| Date | Time | Friday, Oct. 27 | 7:00 p.m. |
| Location | Flint, Mich. | Dort Federal Event Center (Directions) |
| Tickets | Ticketmaster.com | (810) 744-0580 |
| Promotions | – Pink Out The Rink Night – Post-Game Jersey Auction |
| TV | – YourTV channel 6 / 700 HD Live (Sarnia) – OHL Action Pak: Rogers ch. 446 & Cogeco ch. 446 Live (Ontario) – Firebirds’ Broadcast Coverage |
| 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 |
| Media Notes Packet | Here |
| Social Media | @FlintFirebirds  | Facebook  | Instagram  |
Flint, Mich. – The Firebirds look to settle the score in a rematch with Sarnia Saturday evening. The game is the second of three-in-a-row on the weekend, and the second of back-to-back meetings against the Sting. Saturday’s puck drop is set for 7:00 p.m. (ET) at the Dort Federal Credit Union Event Center.
Last night, the Sting were able to hang on, recording a 4-2 victory over the Firebirds in Flint. Jacob Winterton found the back of the net to record his third point in four games, Jack Wismer lit-the-lamp, and newcomer Vladislav Kolyachonok recorded an assist in his first game with Flint. The Firebirds outshot Sarnia 30-24. Emanuel Vella made 20 saves on 23 shots.
All-time, the Firebirds and Sting are deadlocked at 13-13-0-0 in the overall series between the two clubs. Flint is 7-5-0-0 on home ice versus Sarnia. Last season, the Firebirds posted a 3-5-0-0 record against the Sting, who spent part of the year ranked as the first-place team in the OHL.
On special teams, the Sting have the second-ranked power play on the road, converting 30.8% of their opportunities. Flint scored their first goal with the man-advantage on Sunday in a home tilt with the Barrie Colts. The Firebirds scoring on 5.3% of their power-play chances on home ice. When shorthanded on the road, Sarnia is ranked 17th, killing penalties at a 72.2% clip. Flint’s penalty-kill has found success 58.3% of the time at the Dort Federal Event Center. Last night, Flint stymied Sarnia’s only opportunity with the man-advantage.
Promotions:
For the fourth-straight year, the Firebirds are teaming up with the McLaren Flint Foundation to raise money to help in the fight against breast cancer. Because the pink ribbon is an international symbol of breast cancer awareness, the Firebirds are asking all fans to wear pink to the game. Fans can bid on game worn Flint Firebirds’ player jerseys in a live auction that will take place immediately following the game. All proceeds will be donated to breast cancer research through the McLaren Flint Foundation. The Firebirds will also have pink merchandise on sale all week long leading up to the game at the Firebirds’ merchandise store, The Birds Nest, inside the Dort Federal Credit Union Event Center.
Players to Watch:
Flint Firebirds (0-12-0-0, 5th West Division):
Firebirds’ captain Ty Dellandrea (Dallas Stars) leads Flint on the scoresheet with eight points (3G, 5A) in 12 games played. He is on a two-game point streak, having picked up a goal and an assist against Barrie on Sunday, and adding another helper in Sarnia last night. Newcomer Jacob Winterton also scored in Sunday’s tilt, and picked up his fifth goal of the season in last night’s contest with the Sting. He now has five goals and two assists in 12 games. Ethan Keppen ranks third in points for the ‘Birds with three goals and three assists.
In net, Emanuel Vella made 20 saves on 23 shots in Friday’s game. For the season, he carries a 5.36 goals-against average (GAA) and a .851 save percentage (SAV%) after nine appearances. Second-year netminder Luke Cavallin has a 5.59 GAA and a .855 SAV% across seven appearances.
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). Five other Firebirds’ players attended NHL Camps: Hunter Holmes (Philadelphia Flyers), Riley McCourt (Dallas Stars), Hakon Nilsen (New York Islanders), Connor Roberts (Pittsburgh Penguins) and Emanuel Vella (New York Islanders). Additionally, goaltender Luke Cavallin, forward Ethan Keppen and defenseman Vladislav Kolyachonok, were named to NHL Central Scouting’s North American ‘Players to Watch’ list for the upcoming NHL Draft, released Oct 1.
Sarnia Sting (5-6-1-0, 3rd West Division):
Hugo Leufvenius and Ryan McGregor (Toronto Maple Leafs) lead Sarnia in points through 12 games, each with five goals and seven assists. Sean Josling and Adam Ruzicka (Calgary Flames) each have 10 points in 12 games. Josling had an eight-game point-streak snapped last night against the Firebirds. Defenseman Mitch Elliot, who hails from Grosse Pointe, Mich., leads all blue-liners on the club with 10 points, in just 11 games this season. First-year forward Jacob Perreault, the Sting’s first-round pick from this year’s draft, has nine points in 12 games. Perreault also leads the Sting in goals-scored, with six.
In net, the Sting also carry a trio of goaltenders. Aiden Hughes has made seven appearances, picking up two wins and posting a 4.27 goals-against average (GAA) and a save percentage (SAV%) of .876. Ethan Langevein earned his third win of the season last night, making 28 saves on 30 shots. For the season, he now has a GAA of 2.855 and a SAV% of .890 after appearing in seven games. Blair Coffin has played in one regular-season contest, posting a SAV% of .688 and a GAA of 11.80.
NHL: The Sting feature three players with NHL ties, including Ryan McGregor (Toronto Maple Leafs), Adam Ruzicka (Calgary Flames) and Anthony Salinitri (Philadelphia Flyers). Theo Calvas and Mitch Eliot both attended the Carolina Hurricanes camp. Forward Jamieson Rees was also listed on the NHL Central Scouting’s North American ‘Players to Watch’ list for the upcoming NHL Draft, released Oct 1.
13 notable Sting’s alumni to play in the NHL are Reid Boucher, Eric Boulton, Daniel Carcillo, Jakob Chychrun, Alex Galchenyuk, Matt Martin, Connor Murphy, Dalton Prout, Brett Ritchie, Steven Stamkos, Ryan Spooner, Nail Yakupov and Pavel Zacha.
Broadcast Coverage:
Saturday evening’s contest against the Sarnia Sting 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 on the Flint Firebirds Hockey Radio Network. Pregame coverage will begin 30 minutes prior to puck drop at 6:30 p.m.
The game will also be televised live in Sarnia on YourTV channel 6 / 700 (HD) for Cogeco TV cable subscribers. Additionally, the game will be televised live across the province of Ontario on the OHL Action Pak on channel 446 for both Rogers TV cable 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.
Upcoming Home Game:
Spend Sunday afternoon trick-or-treating in a fun, safe and dry environment with the Flint Firebirds. The Firebirds host the Niagara IceDogs at 2 p.m. and special Halloween festivities are slated for the contest. All fans are encouraged to dress up for the costume contest and on-ice costume parade, there will be trick-or-treating throughout the arena, bounce houses and other fun promotions will take place during the duration of the game. Sunday is also a Firebirds’ Family “FUN”day featuring up to two free kids’ tickets with the purchase of an adult ticket, as well as a post-game ‘skate with Firebirds players,’ and an autograph signing session with Firebirds’ players following the game.
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
