ECHL Wheeling Nailers

Nailers Announce Protected List

Published on June 1, 2012 under ECHL (ECHL)
Wheeling Nailers News Release


The Wheeling Nailers, proud member of the ECHL, have announced their protected list for the 2012-13 season. If the Nailers named a player to this list, that means that they have the ability to sign said player, before another team in the ECHL can. Players under NHL and AHL contracts do not have to be protected, as they would still be able to play for Wheeling, as long as they are signed by Pittsburgh, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, Montreal, or Hamilton. This season's protective list consists of 24 players.

To start off, the Nailers have protected both of their top two scorers from last season, following an ECHL All-Rookie Team season by leading scorer Chris Barton (29-31-60), and a 23-goal performance by captain and third year pro, Paul Crowder.

Fellow 20-goal scorer Peter Lenes is also on the list, after arriving in Wheeling with a bang last January, posting 30 points in 38 games with the club. Matt Schepke, Jordon Southorn, Adam Ross, and Chase Watson complete the list of players who were acquired via trade, and made a strong impact to be included in this group.

Along with Barton, the Nailers' rookie class made incredible strides during the 2011-12 season, leading eight additional players to appear on the protected list. The highest scoring player among those eight is Denver Manderson, who battled his way into the lineup in early November, and never looked back, posting 18 goals and 40 points in 52 games. Ben Farrer also established himself as the season progressed, and ultimately finished with 11 goals and 19 points, while also netting the winning goal in the opening game of the playoffs. Zach Hansen carried his success over from the end of the 2010-11 season, and is joined on the list by Patrick Johnson, Nick Plastino, Scooter Vaughan, Tim Priamo, Cam Fergus, and Eric Kroshus.

Five of the remaining players joined Wheeling's roster this season with prior professional experience, either with the Nailers, or elsewhere. Zack Torquato played his first full season in the pros with the Toledo Walleye in 2010-11, before coming to Wheeling last season, where he matched Denver Manderson, with a 40-point campaign. After starting the year in the AHL with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, Cody Chupp came to the Nailers in stride, recording 17 goals and 34 points in 43 games. Peter Merth provided a second consecutive year of defensive stability, as his plus-20 rating was the best on the team. Matt Lombardi added 11 goals and 22 points, while Christiaan Minella produced a solid balance of scoring and toughness.

AHL mainstays Matt Rust, Andrew Lord, and Brandon DeFazio complete the 2012-13 protected list for the Wheeling Nailers.

PROTECTED LIST

F Chris Barton 69 GP, 29 G, 31 A, 60 PTS, 40 PIM, +13

F Cody Chupp 43 GP, 17 G, 17 A, 34 PTS, 14 PIM, +11

F Paul Crowder 57 GP, 23 G, 27 A, 50 PTS, 50 PIM, +5

F Brandon DeFazio (spent entire season in AHL)

F Ben Farrer 57 GP, 11 G, 8 A, 19 PTS, 19 PIM +5

F Cam Fergus 8 GP, 0 G, 3 A, 3 PTS, 2 PIM, -1

D Zach Hansen 68 GP, 2 G, 22 A, 24 PTS, 55 PIM, +3

F Patrick Johnson 24 GP, 6 G, 11 A, 17 PTS, 16 PIM, +2

F Eric Kroshus 3 GP, 0 G, 1 A, 1 PTS, 0 PIM, +1

F Peter Lenes 70 GP, 22 G, 20 A, 42 PTS, 28 PIM, -1

F Matt Lombardi 40 GP, 11 G, 11 A, 22 PTS, 12 PIM, -1

F Andrew Lord (spent entire season in AHL)

F Denver Manderson 52 GP, 18 G, 22 A, 40 PTS, 44 PIM, +11

D Peter Merth 50 GP, 3 G, 9 A, 12 PTS, 54 PIM, +20

F Christiaan Minella 52 GP, 8 G, 14 A, 22 PTS, 49 PIM, -7

D Nick Plastino 13 GP, 4 G, 5 A, 9 PTS, 12 PIM, +12

D Tim Priamo 22 GP, 1 G, 3 A, 4 PTS, 6 PIM, Even

D Adam Ross 69 GP, 2 G, 13 A, 15 PTS, 131 PIM, +9

F Matt Rust 3 GP, 0 G, 0 A, 0 PTS, 0 PIM, -4

F Matt Schepke 70 GP, 16 G, 26 A, 42 PTS, 38 PIM, -1

D Jordon Southorn 50 GP, 8 G, 13 A, 21 PTS, 44 PIM, +8

F Zack Torquato 60 GP, 12 G, 28 A, 40 PTS, 78 PIM, +14

F Scooter Vaughan 20 GP, 1 G, 5 A, 6 PTS, 21 PIM, -2

F Chase Watson 25 GP, 3 G, 8 A, 11 PTS, 6 PIM, -2

Check out the Wheeling Nailers Statistics

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