FLINT, MI - And then there were none.

The Flint Firebirds inaugural season ended on a down note with a 5-3 loss Saturday night against the Guelph Storm, capping off a tumultuous campaign for the Ontario Hockey League team in the Vehicle City.

A near capacity crowd of 4,279 -- the largest of the year -- packed the Dort Federal Credit Union Event Center for the final game of the season.

The Firebirds ended the 2015-16 campaign out of contention for the playoffs, finishing 10 points behind the Saginaw Spirit for the eighth and final playoff spot in the OHL's Western Conference.

But it didn't deter the enthusiasm from the fans on the evening, with the biggest cheers rising up at fights on the ice during a penalty-filled game that assisted in three power play goals for the Storm. The Firebirds were 0-for-3 on the power play.

Davison resident Larry Hubbard said it's nice to have a hockey team back in the city.

"I grew up when the Flint Generals were the IHL, triple A and one step from the NHL," said Hubbard, 47. "To have it come back and be a little higher level than it was in the past, it's cool."

He was a little leery about the team's future after the firing, rehiring, and subsequent firing of coach John Gruden.

A strike was held by players early on in the season over the initial firing. The league suspended Firebirds owner Rolf Nilsen and his appointees on the coaching and management staff indefinitely after the second firing.

"You fire a coach you hire him back then you fire him again after losing a lot in a row," said Hubbard. "I mean what doesn't kill you makes you stronger, so hopefully they learn from what happened this year and next year they'll be better."

Costa Papista, team president, said the organization is currently waiting for the league to make decisions on the owner and staff "and then we'll respond accordingly."

Despite issues, Hubbard said getting a chance to watch players that could potentially see time in the NHL, such as Detroit Red Wings prospect Vili Saarijarvi and Canadian product Will Bitten.

"That's always a good thing when you get to say wow, I saw this kid when he was 17 years old," Hubbard said. "That's fun."

Papista said the product is high quality and was confident of the plan for the offseason, starting with two high picks for the team during the April draft, to opportunity for season ticket sales in its second season in Flint.

"We were a little bit behind the 8-ball this year (in terms of sales) because we started a little bit late, the whole project, so we all feel very positive about next year and I think we really did connect with the community and I think people really want to support this team," he said.

With Saturday's announced attendance of 4,279 patrons, the team's average home attendance came in at 2,983 for its 34 games at Dort Federal Credit Union Event Center according to figures on the team's website.

Flint native Kevin Blight was disappointed with the team's troubles during the season, including an extended losing streak but he said "Hopefully they're over the hump" and can move forward in the next season.

Blight, who used to own season tickets with his father during the Generals' IHL days in Flint, does appreciate the quality of the new team.

"I gave up on some of the stuff they tried to pawn off in Flint," he said, other than the Flint Spirits, a former affiliate of the NHL's New York Rangers. "Most of the hockey has been pretty mediocre at best. I'm impressed with this kind of hockey. It's exciting watching young guys, they're up and coming."

Papista shared his thanks to the team for their fight throughout the season.

"The team played extremely hard all year, right down to the bitter end of every game" he said. "I'm really proud of the guys, all of us are. We continue that type of attitude into next year, we'll be in great shape."