By Nathan Waters
Saturday, March 21 saw the Flint Firebirds end their season with a 5-4 win over the London Knights, adding to a newly minted record for points and wins in a season, but falling just short of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) West Division Title. The Firebirds are now playoff bound, with their first matchup against the Owen Sound Attack on Thursday, March 26.
A Quick Recap
Flint was on pace at the midway point of the season to challenge for the league’s best regular season record, but a slight drop in form, combined with surges from Windsor, Ottawa, Kitchener, Barrie, and eventual champions Brantford, left Flint in a respectable sixth place overall, third in the Western Conference, and second in the West Division of the Western Conference with a final season record of 20-9-2-1 (wins – losses – overtime losses – shoot out losses).
The Windsor Spitfire were able to claw the division title out of Flint’s hands on the final day of the season with a 5-3 win over the Soo Greyhounds. With a loss Windsor would have tied Flint with 95 points and Flint would hold the first tiebreaker with more total wins on the season. Windsor’s accomplishment came with an impressive two goals from three shots in the third period to put the Firebirds out of contention.
(Photo Credit Todd Boone, Flint Firebirds)
A Record Breaking Season
The Firebirds’ 2025-26 season was not without other accolades. Following Coach Paul Flache’s record number of wins, the Firebirds continued to scratch new feats into the record book.
Coach Flache finished out the season by extending his tally to 103 wins, and the players would not be denied their opportunity either. On March 14 Nathan Aspinall racked up his 58th assist in a 5-1 dismantling of the Saginaw Spirit – passing Amadeus Lombardi’s 57 assists in the 2022-23 season for sole handle of the record. Aspinall would finish the season with 61.
Overage goaltender Mason Vaccari’s excellent season hit a high mark on the last night of the regular season to have his name remain alongside Luke Cavallin’s with a mark of 36 wins set in 2021-22.
As a collective though, the squad will also have their names etched in history.
The 2025-26 Flint Firebirds set a new high for both wins and points for a regular season with 44 wins and 95 points. This passed the previous high water mark of 42 wins and 89 points, both set in the 2021-22 season.
Post-Season
With the end of the regular season, eyes now turn to the OHL Playoffs and the hunt for the J. Ross Robertson Cup. The Firebirds will start their playoff run with a Best of 7 series against the sixth-seeded Owen Sound Attack. The series starts at Dort Financial Center on Thursday, with the second game in the series to follow on Saturday, March 28 before the Firebirds head to Owen Sound for away games on Monday, March 30 and Wednesday, April 1. Three additional games on April 4, 6, and 7 will be played alternating between Flint and Owen Sound, should they be required.
Flint and Owen Sound faced off four times this season, with Flint coming out on top in three of the four contests. A 6-2 win at home in October was followed up by another 6-2 win at home and a 6-3 win in Owen Sound in November. The pair had some time off with the final, most recent contest seeing a 3-4 Flint loss in Owen Sound on March 18. The March 18 bout was a closely fought match that saw Owen Sound pull away with seven minutes remaining.
Should Flint advance from the first round of playoffs, their most likely opponent would be the Windsor Spitfire. If there is any kind of upset for the teams ranked above Flint, their next most likely opponent would be the winner of the series between the Soo Greyhound and the London Knights.
Lead photo: Nathan Aspinall #74 celebrates with Darels Uljanskis #8, Christopher Thibodeau #9, Jimmy Lombardi #10 and Luka Graziano #14 after breaking the Flint Firebirds assist record against the Saginaw Spirit at Dort Financial Center on March 14, 2026. (Photo courtesy Flint Firebirds)
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