Flint, Mich. – The Flint Firebirds and London Knights met for the final time in Flint on Wednesday as the standalone game in the Ontario Hockey League. Two of the top three teams in the West put on a show with a playoff-type game that saw Dmitry Kuzmin (Winnipeg Jets) end things in overtime giving the Firebirds the 5-4 win and earning himself Second Star with a goal and an assist. Sahil Panwar had two goals earning him First Star honors and it was Camaryn Baber with a goal and an assist for London that received Third Star honors. Luke Cavallin got the start in net for the Birds and it was Owen Flores for the Knights.

The Knights opened the scoring before most fans found their seats. Kirill Steklov intercepted an outlet pass at the blue line, flipped it nearside to Plymouth, Mich. native Antonio Stranges (Dallas Stars) atop the circle. He wasted no time ripping one high to the glove for his 29th of the year, 45 seconds into the opening frame.

The Firebirds had the answer. After a bad clearing attempt from London, Coulson Pitre found himself with the puck in the slot. He toed around a diving defender and scored five-hole on Flores for his 21st of the season tying the game at one 8:05 into the 1st.

The game was tied at one after one but the Firebirds dominated the opening 20, outshooting London 16-4 and outdrawing them 7-5.

The middle stanza started with a passing play by the Knights to set up Gilmartin on a cross-ice pass that at the game gave the Knights the lead. But after video review, there was goaltender interference and the goal was overturned.

After taking a penalty, Flint’s #1 penalty kill went to work. A bad pass in the offensive end by the Knights led to a 2-on-1 with Ethan Keppen (Vancouver Canucks) and Ethan Hay. The OA forward sauced one over to Hay who pulled it to his backhand and went five-hole on Flores for his eighth of the season (fourth short-handed) 4:03 into the second. 17 seconds later, Flint had another shorty. Dmitry Kuzmin let it fly from the point and the lone man in front of the net, Sahil Panwar, reached up high to deflect it five-hole on Flores making it 3-1 Flint. Simon Slavicek added the secondary assist.

However, London eventually capitalized on their powerplay chance. Kirill Steklov and Isaiah George played catch at the point before George let a shot go. Almost identical to Panwar’s goal 29 seconds prior, Camaryn Baber deflected home his 17th of the year making it a 3-2 game in the blink of an eye.

The Firebirds retaliated with a powerplay goal of their own at the 13:33 mark. Amadeus Lombardi and Tag Bertuzzi made great plays to set up Sahil Panwar atop the nearside circle who let a knuckle puck go that Flores never saw. He beat him high to the glove for his second of the game and 16th of the season.

The middle 20 ended with Flint outshooting London 17-13 but with the Knights outdrawing the Firebirds 16-15.

London wouldn’t go away quietly. Off an offensive zone draw, Camaryn Baber kicked the puck over to Max McCue slipping towards the goal. He ended up all alone in front and beat Cavallin blocker-side for his ninth of the year exactly 4:00 into the 3rd, making it 4-3.

After a back-and-forth third period that saw Luke Cavallin make several highlight-reel saves, London pulled their netminder with 2:30 to go. With the 6-on-5 advantage, Luke Evangelista (Nashville Predators) had the puck in the far circle, worked himself to the middle of the ice and beat a screened Cavallin high to glove for his OHL leading 51st goal of the year. Antonio Stranges and Cody Morgan added assists.

London outshot Flint 18-9 in the 3rd and outdrew them 10-9 as well.

Overtime saw both teams end up with multiple odd-man rushes, only for the goalies to stand tall. Finally, Dmitry Kuzmin burst into the Knights’ zone along the near wall, skated right around Evangelista while cutting to the net and slipped one five-hole on Flores for his 16th of the year and the overtime winner. Tag Bertuzzi and Ethan Keppen picked up the assists.

Flint outshot London 47-40 for the game, and face-offs were deadlocked at 33. Both teams also went 1-for-3 with the man-advantage.

Next Up: The Firebirds will travel to London for a Friday night rematch before returning to home ice Saturday to host the Guelph Storm. Saturday is UAW/United Way Night. Fans are encouraged to arrive early to watch the United Way game at 4:30 p.m. Get into the game by using your ticket to Saturday night’s contest against the Storm. Select UAW and United Way jerseys will be auctioned off on the concourse during the Firebirds game. Puck drop is set for 7:00 p.m. (ET) at the Dort Financial Center, and tickets are available from ETIX HERE.

Photography: Todd Boone / Flint Firebirds

Jack Sznewajs Director of Broadcasting & Communications Flint Firebirds Hockey Club jack@flintfirebirds.com (810) 742-2004 ext. 223