![]() List of coaches with multiple seasons in parentheses. It was their 37th win of the season, another club record. On February 21, 2020, the Firebirds won their 15th consecutive game, setting a new franchise record. On October 18, former associate coach Eric Wellwood was named head coach. On October 12, 2018, Ryan Oulahen stepped down as head coach. The OHL then appointed Ryan Oulahen as head coach and Eric Wellwood as an assistant. In May 2016, the OHL named George Burnett, former head coach and general manager of the Belleville Bulls, as the new general manager. ![]() After the five-year suspension passed, the OHL reinstated Rolf Nilsen on April 6, 2021. The OHL placed the Firebirds under league stewardship and appointed Joe Birch as director of operations. Had Nilsen attempted to get involved in hockey operations while suspended, the OHL could have forced him to sell the Firebirds. The league also stripped the Firebirds of their 2016 first-round draft pick. On April 6, 2016, the OHL suspended Nilsen for five years, with no requests for reinstatement to be entertained for three years. Nilsen and his staff were then ordered to cooperate with a league investigation and comply with its findings. The league also ordered counseling be provided to players, at Nilsen's cost. The next day, OHL Commissioner David Branch suspended Nilsen, as well as his appointees on the management and coaching staff, from hockey operations until further notice. On February 17, 2016, Rolf Nilsen again fired head coach John Gruden and assistant coach Dave Karpa. Following a meeting with OHL commissioner David Branch, Firebirds' owner Rolf Nilsen stated publicly that he had made an "irresponsible mistake" and apologized to the players. The player revolt proved to be successful, as less than 24 hours later the coaching staff was not only rehired, but given three-year contract extensions. In response to the firings, the entire team, including Håkon Nilsen, stormed into the team's front office, threw their jerseys on the floor, and quit the team in a show of solidarity with the coaching staff. However, head coach John Gruden has denied that this was the reason for his dismissal. Prior to the game against Oshawa, the entire team with the exception of Hakon Nilsen met with head coach John Gruden and his staff and were informed that the owner had insisted that his son receive more playing time, and indeed Nilsen ultimately played 17 minutes, including power-play time, in the subsequent game. The Firebirds garnered international attention in November 2015 when, following an overtime victory over the Oshawa Generals, owner Rolf Nilsen fired the team's entire coaching staff for failing to adequately increase the playing time of his son, Håkon Nilsen, a Firebirds' defenseman described by one NHL player agent as "a borderline OHL player". The nine finalist nicknames were Firebirds, Force, Fury, Nationals, Pride, Spark Plugs, Sparks, United, and Vikings. However, after various others voiced their displeasure at their team possibly being named after a comedy movie's protagonist team, and the chance of the novelty wearing off after a while, the name did not make the list of finalist choices. Likewise, a popular suggestion was the Flint Tropics, after the fictional American Basketball Association team of that name in the 2008 movie Semi-Pro. Īlthough there was sentiment towards resurrecting the Flint Generals nickname that had been used by two past teams in the city, the OHL quickly nixed that idea because of the Oshawa Generals using that name. The purchase and relocation was approved by the OHL on February 2, 2015. On January 14, 2015, it was announced that longtime Whalers owner Peter Karmanos had sold the team to IMS USA, Inc., with the intention to move the franchise to Flint and the Perani Arena. Since then, the franchise has been the Detroit Junior Red Wings, the Detroit Whalers and the Plymouth Whalers. The Firebirds trace their roots back to the 1990–91 season, when the Detroit Compuware Ambassadors were added as an expansion team in the OHL.
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