Gutierrez thriving in crucial role in Flint front office

The Flint Firebirds are on the verge of clinching a berth in the Ontario Hockey League playoffs. If and when that happens, Firebirds director of marketing Dominic Gutierrez won’t need to shift into postseason gear.

He operates on that level every day.

Gutierrez, 32, occupies a crucial role in the organization, connecting the on-ice product to a passionate market that has supported hockey since the Flint Generals entered the International Hockey League in the fall of 1969.

“I still see season-ticket holders that were Generals season-ticket holders way back in the day,” Gutierrez told NHL.com. “I’ll walk around the concourse and talk to people during games. They’ll relate back to the old Flint Generals days, especially during the Generals [tribute] nights. We see people who haven’t been here to experience a Flint Firebirds game, and they’re taken aback [by] the building as far as all the [recent] upgrades.”

Gutierrez has worked in the Firebirds’ front office since their inaugural season of 2015-2016, after the former Plymouth Whalers moved to Flint upon the purchase by current owner Rolf Nilsen.

Gutierrez’s background includes a finance degree from the University of Michigan-Flint. He also has a valuable credential that can’t be acquired in an academic setting -- he grew up in nearby Grand Blanc, Michigan, playing youth hockey for the Flint Icelanders at what is now the 810 Sports Complex.

The other part of Gutierrez’s hockey education came as a fan of the Detroit Red Wings. His father, Ben, fell in love with the sport after moving to Flint from the Philippines at age 10 and shared that enthusiasm with his family. Dominic experienced two hockey milestones when he was 4 years old; he put on skates for the first time, and the Gutierrez family watched the Red Wings win the Stanley Cup in 1997.

A Sergei Fedorov fan, Gutierrez cherishes one visit to Joe Louis Arena above all the rest. As a young defenseman -- around 7 or 8 years old -- he was invited to participate in the intermission shootout during a game between the Red Wings and San Jose Sharks.

“My mom still has the video,” he said, smiling. “I scored and rode my stick to center ice.”

In his office at the Dort Financial Center, Gutierrez has a picture of Steve Yzerman hoisting the Stanley Cup. His position in the hockey world has allowed Gutierrez to meet the man in that photo.

“I’ll never forget the first time I saw him,” Gutierrez recalled. “I was holding the door in the lobby to walk up to the media suite. He said, ‘Thank you.’ I was just staring at him, like, ‘I don’t know what to say.’”

Gutierrez’s life experiences enhance his skills as a leader in hockey and beyond. He has both Filipino and Hispanic heritage on his father’s side; his paternal grandmother moved to the United States to complete her Ph.D. Dominic’s mother, Kim, graduated from Grand Blanc High School and works in the insurance industry.

“Growing up here, it’s a very diverse community,” Gutierrez said. “When you’re able to connect to kids or family members that aren’t the stereotypical hockey player, it definitely helps to bridge that gap.”

As a college student, Gutierrez worked at a retail location for Perani’s Hockey World, an institution and cultural touchstone within the hockey community (the company’s website notes that Hockey Hall of Famer Mike Modano purchased his first pair of skates at a Perani’s store in Michigan). One day, Gutierrez approached a customer who was looking at goaltending equipment and realized it was Flint-area native Tim Thomas, who helped the Boston Bruins win the Stanley Cup in 2011.

On another occasion in 2015, Gutierrez helped Susana Wight, a member of the Firebirds’ front office, purchase hockey equipment for her family. When Wight mentioned that the team was looking to hire an assistant marketing and merchandising director, Gutierrez was inspired to apply. He’s been with the Firebirds ever since.

Marketing efforts are especially crucial for the three U.S.-based OHL franchises. Even in traditional American hockey areas, fans don’t always possess a deep knowledge of how the Canadian Hockey League fits into the NHL development pipeline. Gutierrez helps the Firebirds tell the story of how quickly players can graduate from the OHL to the NHL.

“It’s fascinating to educate people on what the Ontario Hockey League is,” Gutierrez said. “It’s the premier developmental league for the NHL. These kids are drafted in this league at 16 years old. They’re moving from Ottawa, Canada, and living here in Genesee County and ultimately playing here.

“Just trying to educate people that the product we have here is like placing a Big Ten football team, almost, into the heart of Genesee County.”

Firebirds president Jeremy Torrey is dedicated to creating an in-arena experience that appeals to families, a concept best illustrated when youth hockey players wearing Flint Jr. Firebirds sweaters are in attendance. This season, all Jr. Firebirds players have punch cards that enable them to attend every OHL game in Flint.

The Dort Financial Center may be the same building that hosted the Generals more than 50 years ago, but the seating bowl feels like an OHL-sized version of a modern professional venue. There’s a good reason for that -- the Firebirds wisely purchased the seats and LED boards from the Palace of Auburn Hills after the NBA’s Detroit Pistons left in 2017.

Flint’s best OHL season was 2021-22, when the Firebirds, led by forward Brennan Othmann fell to Windsor in a seven-game Western Conference Final.

Othmann was a first-round pick (No. 16) by the New York Rangers at the 2021 NHL Draft.

“It was the longest playoff run we’ve had in franchise history,” Gutierrez said. “Seeing the atmosphere of the games here at the arena, along with the high caliber of talent that had come with it. Those games were phenomenal, fast, exciting. … It was probably the loudest I’ve ever heard this building.”

They’re about to have the opportunity to do it again, while providing Gutierrez with a new chance to tell the story of a proud hockey market and its team.