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Jackals Ring in the New Year in Wheeling

December 31, 2016 - ECHL (ECHL)
Elmira Jackals News Release


Game 29: Elmira Jackals (7-16-5-0) vs. Wheeling Nailers (14-12-2-0)

6:05 p.m., WesBanco Arena, Wheeling, West Virginia

The Jackals match up with their North Division foe Wheeling Nailers to close out 2016 and bring in 2017 on New Year's Eve in Wheeling. It's the first of just three matches between the clubs this year as they don't play again until Mar. 15 in Elmira .

The Nailers have lost back-to-back games, both on the road, after the holiday break. Last night, Wheeling was in Reading and lost to the Royals, 4-2, dropping to 14-12-2-0 and falling five points behind Adirondack for the division's final playoff spot . Tonight begins a four-game homestand for Wheeling, with games against Toledo and Cincinnati coming next week.

The Jackals rebounded from Wednesday's shutout loss to Reading with a 7-4 win against the Norfolk Admirals last night. The win snapped a five-game winless streak (0-4-1-0) and improved the Jackals record to 7-16-5-0. Elmira begins a stretch of four consecutive road games, with a two-game trip to Norfolk looming next week.

Broadcast Coverage

Jackals Pregame at 5:50 p.m. Radio: 1410 WELM TV: WETM-2

Last time out

The scored three goals in the first and second period to sink the Norfolk Admirals, 7-4, last night at First Arena .

Elmira sped out to a 3-0 lead in the first period. Ben Dieude-Fauvel opened the scoring at 2:47 of the first with a slap shot goal for a 1-0 lead. Justin Kea made it 2-0 and Dieude-Fauvel made it 3-0 with both goals coming on loose pucks in the crease. Frankie Simonelli connected on back-to-back goals to make it a 3-2 game into the second period.

Three unanswered second period goals pushed the Jackals lead to four. Kyle Rankin began the run with a goal on a rebound at the left circle at 6:22. Later in the period Mark Bennett and Justin Kea converted on rebounds near the blue paint for a 6-2 Jackals lead. Norfolk pulled back within two early in the third, but Bennett sealed the game with a deflection goal and a 7-4 win.

Career nights

The Jackals routed Norfolk, 7-4, last night at First Arena and in the process a handful of Jackals players had career nights. Mark Bennett set a new career high with three points, including his first career multi-goal game.Benjamin Dieude-Fauvel scored two goals in an ECHL game for the first time in his career and ended up with three points (2g, 1a).Justin Kea set a career-high with four points (2g, 2a).Kyle Rankin logged a career-high three points (1g, 2a).

Home vs. Away

The Jackals continued their trend of strong offensive play at First Arena in last night's win over the Admirals. They tallied seven goal in a game for the second time at home this season.

Elmira has played 14 games both at home and on the road and the Jackals have scored 45 goals at home, a 3.21 average. That almost doubles their numbers on the road, where the Jackals have scored just 24 goals, a 1.71 average.

Not surprisingly, the Jackals are 5-7-2-0 at home and 2-9-3-0 on the road. By comparison, Wheeling is also a better home team, with a 9-4-2-0 record on their home ice and a 5-8-0-0 mark on the road.

Head-to-head

After matching up six times in 2015-16, tonight is the first of just three meetings between the Jackals and Nailers in 2016-17. This is Elmira's only trip to Wheeling and the Nailers come to First Arena twice in a week span in March.

Last season, the Jackals went 4-1-1-0 against the team that eventually represented the Eastern Conference in the Kelly Cup Final. Three of the games went past regulations, with the Jackals winning two games in a shootout and the Nailers picking up one win in overtime. The Jackals won all three trips to WesBanco Arena.

Scouting the Nailers

The Nailers won their final two games before the holiday break, but have slipped up in the first two games out of the break and are now 14-12-2-0. With 30 points, Wheeling trails Adirondack by five points for the fourth and final playoff spot from the North Division.

Wheeling's offense is in the middle of the ECHL, scoring 3.21 goals per game, which ranks 15th in the league. Rookie defenseman Kevin Schulze is the Nailers leading scorer with 24 points (4g, 20a) in 28 games. He ranks seventh in the league among rookies and is tied for third among ECHL defenseman in scoring. Adam Krause (8g, 13a) is next with 21 points and then a trio of Nailers are at 20 points.

In goal, Doug Carr has seen the majority of the action for Wheeling, appearing in 17 games and holding an 8-7-1-0 record with a 3.31 goals-against average and an .889 save percentage. He was loaned to the AHL's Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Thursday leaving rookie Sean Maguire in net. He has played in six games and is 2-4-0-0 with a 3.60 goal-against average and an .870 save percentage .

Special teams

The Nailers check in at 16th in the ECHL on the power play, scoring on 16.0% of their power plays (20-for-125). They are significantly better at home, converting at a 20.0% rate, with goals on 13-of-65 power plays.

The Jackals power play went 1-for-3 last night against Norfolk and they are 17th in the ECHL at 15.9% (14-for-88). Their road power play ranks 23rd overall at 9.8% (5-for-51).

Wheeling's penalty kill is ranked last in the ECHL, giving up a league-high 29 power-play goals in 119 shorthanded chances (75.6%). At home, the Nailers are at 75.8%, which ranks 26th, allowing 15 power-play goals.

The Jackals were a perfect 3-for-3 on the penalty kill last night and are 30-for-32 (93.8%) in the last eight games. They only allowed a power-play goal in one of those seven games, giving up two Dec. 16 at Manchester. Elmira is 9th in the ECHL at 85.4%.

Don't miss a minute of the action with Jackals season tickets! Call (607) 734-7825 or visit jackalshockey.com to order your season tickets today!

Follow the Jackals at www.jackalshockey.com, on Facebook, Twitter (@JackalsHockey) and Instagram for all the latest news and updates.

Group tickets are a great way to entertain employees, co-workers, clients, friends and family. For more information on discounted group tickets and a list of group benefits, call (607) 734-7825 or visit http://www.jackalshockey.com/groups/.

Officially licensed Elmira Jackals replica team jerseys, apparel and headwear can be purchased online at: http://www.jackalshockey.com/

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Upcoming Games:

Saturday, December 31st: Elmira Jackals at Wheeling Nailers - 6:05 p.m.

Friday, January 6th: Elmira Jackals at Norfolk Admirals - 7:30 p.m.

Saturday, January 7th: Elmira Jackals at Norfolk Admiral - 7:15 p.m.

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The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

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