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ECHL Wheeling Nailers

Johnstown Hands Wheeling 7-1 Loss

March 7, 2008 - ECHL (ECHL)
Wheeling Nailers News Release


JOHNSTOWN, PA - The first shot of the game resulted in a goal for the Johnstown Chiefs and they rolled from there to a 7-1 win over the Wheeling Nailers Friday night at the Cambria County War Memorial. It was the fifth win in a row for the Chiefs.

Nathan Saunders scored his first goal of the season just 62 seconds after the opening faceoff. Joey Olson's pass connected with the wall and allowed Saunders to waltz in and tee off towards Curtis Darling. It flew past his glove and into the net to set the tone for the home team.

Saunders' goal was the beginning of a big period for his club as Jean Desrochers, Justin Coutu and Joey Olson all scored before the first 20 minutes ran off the clock. On a delayed penalty, Desrochers dug a puck free from Darling and slid it in for his 25th tally of the season.

Head coach Greg Puhalski decided to bring in rookie Peter Vetri for his first ECHL action in goal after Darling had allowed two goals on four shots in the first 5:04 of the first period.

After only 4:55 in net, Johnstown unintentionally scored on Vetri to increase their lead to 3-0. Coutu's dump-in hit a partition in the glass and deflected into the vacant net as Vetri had ventured out to play the puck.

The Chiefs struck again at 12:27 of the frame with Olson's first of two on the night. This time it was a power play that lead to the goal after Mike Gooch, playing in his first professional game, was called for holding. Randy Rowe and Ryan Garlock setup Olson for his ninth goal of the season.

When the second period began, Darling was back in the net but Johnstown was still on the attack. Olson again at 5:16, Garlock at 7:01 and Mark Tobin at 14:14 built the Chiefs a 7-0 lead before the Nailers scored their lone goal.

Kyle Rank spoiled the shutout for Ryan Nie at 17:08 of the second period. He chased down a loose puck and his wrist shot from a sharp angle snuck through Nie for his seventh of the year and second in the past three games.

Nie made 25 saves in the win while Darling made 19 saves on 26 shots in a total of 45:04 and Vetri stopped 15 of 17 in 14:56 of work. Wheeling went 0-for-4 on the power play while Johnstown scored twice on their seven chances.

The Nailers will jump right back on the ice on Saturday at 12:00pm in Trenton, NJ. They return home for a Sunday matchup with the Reading Royals at 6:05pm. It is the final Sunday Family Funday of the year and all of the players will be on the ice to skate with the fans following the game. Wheeling Park will provide skates while supplies last. Call 304-234-GOAL for more information or visit www.wheelingnailers.com.

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