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Flint Firebirds (OHL, 2024-25)

2024-25 Game Program
     The Flint Firebirds completed their 10th season of operation in the Ontario Hockey League, playing it's home games out of the 4,021-seat Dort Federal Event Center (originally the IMA Sports Arena). The Firebirds trace their history back to 1990, as the Detroit Compuware Ambassadors. Head Coach Paul Flache returned behind the bench, and Dave McParlan was General Manager. 

     After a rocky start in their inaugural season, the Firebirds have stabilized both on and off the ice. The team has qualified for the postseason five times in nine years (the 2020 playoffs and 2020-21 season were canceled due to COVID-19) and attendance has steadily increased.

     Flint finished the 2024-25 season with a mediocre 29-34-2-3 record, third place in the West Division. Their 63 points were 16 behind second-place Saginaw and 1 point ahead of the Soo Greyhounds. Average attendance climbed to 3,185 per game, the highest for the franchise since 2004-05 (3,226 per game as the Plymouth Whalers) and highest for a Flint-based hockey team since the 1997-98 Generals drew 3,306 per game.

     Flint scored the 8th-fewest goals this past season, with 229 goals. They were led by Tampa Bay prospect Kaden Pitre, with 22 goals and 53 points in 57 games. Chris Thibodeau had 22 goals and 50 points in 57 games, the only other Firebird with 20 goals. Sam McCue, acquired from Owen Sound late in the year, scored 18 goals and 24 points in just 20 games.

     Flint was ninth in goals-against in 2024-25, allowing 249 goals. Nathan Day, an Edmonton Oilers prospect, was the main netminder that year, playing in 59 games, with a 26-25-5 record, 3.07 GAA and 2 shutouts. He then joined the Oilers ECHL affiliate in Fort Wayne and played spectacularly, going 2-0-0 in 3 games with a 0.43 GAA and 2 shutouts in his pro debut. Best of luck on his pro career, Edmonton could use a netminder down the road. Noah Bender was his backup, playing 13 games with a 3-8-0 record and 5.09 GAA. Jacob Brown made it into 1 game, sporting a 0-1-0 record and 6.23 GAA. Day played all of Flint's five playoff games.

     Matthew Mania was the top scoring defenseman, with 7 goals and 45 points in 66 games. The top +/- number was held by defenseman Blake Smith, who was a +15 and had 10 goals and 32 points in 64 games. The lowest +/- was Urban Podrekar, who was a -14 in 65 games, scoring 10 goals and 27 points. 

     Flint drew the second-seeded Kitchener Rangers in the opening round of the OHL playoffs. Kitchener went 47-15-4-2 and finished second place in the Midwest Division, and was one of the few teams in the Western Conference to give the London Knights much of a challenge. Flint wasn't expected to give the Rangers much of a challenge in the playoffs, and except for a Nathan Day 2-0 shutout in Flint in Game 3, the Firebirds went down quietly in 5 games, outscored 17-8 in the process. I went to Game 4 in Flint, during Spring Break, figuring if I didn't go to this game, I might not get to another hockey game until the fall. I was correct, as the Firebirds were blown out, 5-1, in a pretty chippy hockey game. 

     The Firebirds always put out a great-looking program, and this year was no different. It's a 46-page program, all in color. The NHL draft picks on the Firebirds roster are on the cover, with Nathan Day front and center. Connor Clattenburg is featured in an article on pages 14-16, while Nathan Aspinall has one on page 17. Player profiles are located in the middle of the program. Assistant Coach Reijo Ruotsalainen, a former NHL defenseman and Stanley Cup Champion, is featured on pages 41-42, and head coach Paul Flache is on pages 36-39. 

     Local advertisements include Commercial Graphics of Michigan Inc., Dort Financial Credit Union, The DM Burr Group, View Newspapers, Maxi Quality Meats, and The Genesee Group. 

References:

Ontario Hockey League Regular Season Statistics: 2024-25,  from hockeydb.com

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