ECHL Wheeling Nailers

Nailers at Cyclones Game Day Snap Shot

Published on February 3, 2016 under ECHL (ECHL)
Wheeling Nailers News Release


Let's Finish the Swing in Style

The Wheeling Nailers will complete a stretch of four consecutive road games on Wednesday night, hoping to earn at least one point in all four contests. Over the weekend, the Nailers split a pair of games against the Elmira Jackals, winning 4-1 on Friday, before dropping a 4-3 shootout decision the following night. On Sunday afternoon, Wheeling fell behind the Brampton Beast 2-0, but rallied back with two goals in the third period and one in overtime for a thrilling 3-2 victory. Cody Wydo's 11th tally of the year and Jarrett Burton's team-leading 15th brought the score even in the third, before Derek Army's first goal since returning from the AHL put the Nailers into the win column. Franky Palazzese evened his record at 11-11-2 with 19 saves, as he stopped 61 of 64 shots in the two wins against the Jackals and Beast.

Overtime Heroics in the Queen City as Well

The Cincinnati Cyclones experienced a similar script to the Nailers during their last game on Saturday night, as they also fell behind by a pair, before storming back to collect a win in bonus hockey. The Quad City Mallards built a 2-0 lead in the first period, which diminished over time, as Zach Budish scored at the 8:52 mark of the middle frame, and Tommy Mele brought the Cyclones even with 4:35 left in the third. Overtime lasted for 2:16 before Cincinnati came away victorious, thanks to Jack Downing's team-leading 21st goal of the campaign. While the final score turned out to be a nail-biter, the Cyclones controlled the majority of the play, outshooting the Mallards, 42-14. Quad City's shot total shrunk during each successive period, going 5-4-3-2. Former Nailer Brandon Whitney brought his record back to .500 at 8-8-1 with 12 saves.

Army All About the Clutch

Derek Army helped the Nailers improve to 3-1-1 in their last five games, as he snapped a 2-2 tie at the 1:28 mark of overtime on Sunday afternoon against Brampton. Despite playing just 25 of the team's first 42 games due to time in the American Hockey League, Army has certainly made a large impact during his time with Wheeling, accumulating seven goals and 18 points. Five of those seven tallies have been game winners (a new career-high), while one other goal tied the score, forcing overtime. During his two-plus seasons as a Nailer, Derek has recorded 39 goals, 49 assists, and 88 points in 101 games. He has scored the deciding goal in a game on nine different occasions. Wheeling has six players tied for second place on the club with two game winning goals.

Not a Good Forecast for Visitors

The 2015-16 season can be looked at in two different ways for the Cyclones - almost unbeatable at home, and rough sledding on the road. Wednesday will be Wheeling's first visit of the season to US Bank Arena, where Cincinnati has posted a phenomenal 13-4-3 mark in front of its local fan base. The Cyclones have won each of their last three games on home ice, defeating three Midwest Division opponents in Fort Wayne, Indy, and Quad City. The Komets have had the most success of any visiting squad, as they have skated away victorious three different times, including twice in January. The Nailers will have an opportunity to become the first team outside of the Midwest Division to win a game in regulation at 100 Broadway this season, as Cincinnati has a 6-0-1 record at home against non-divisional opponents. Wheeling will be the first of that kind to visit since Toledo on New Year's Eve.

Long Time, No See, Neighbors

Wednesday night marks the second of four head-to-head meetings between the Nailers and Cyclones this season, as well as the first of three battles at US Bank Arena. Wheeling and Cincinnati are located just 232 miles apart, making for the shortest distance between the Nailers and one of their opponents, but the teams are now members of different conferences, limiting the amount of games between them. Wheeling's most memorable game of the season came in the lone prior clash against the Cyclones, when they rallied from a 5-2 deficit with five goals in a span of 4:10 for a 7-5 triumph. Brett Stern scored his first career goal, then added the game winner with 33 seconds left, as he and Clark Seymour both had two-goal days. In 2013-14 and 2014-15, the season series were split, with both teams winning a total of eight games - four each on home ice. The Nailers will travel to Cincinnati once more for a two-game set on March 17th and 18th.

Wheeling Nailers (18-19-2-3, 41 Pts.) at Cincinnati Cyclones (20-17-3-2, 45 Pts.)

WHEELING NAILERS

(18-19-2-3, 41 PTS, 2nd North, 10th East)

123 GF, 133 GA

PP: 17.5% (29-for-166), 12th

PK: 82.9% (141-for-170), 18th

20-F-Jarrett Burton (15 goals, 22 assists, 37 points in 42 games)

18-D-Mathew Maione (5 goals, 26 assists, 31 points in 40 games)

16-F-Derek Army (7 goals, 11 assists, 18 points in 25 games)

17-F-Anton Zlobin (7 goals, 11 assists, 18 points in 25 games)

11-F-Cody Wydo (11 goals, 6 assists, 17 points in 29 games)

27-D-Brett Stern (5 goals, 9 assists, 14 points in 42 games)

29-G-Franky Palazzese (11-11-2 record, 2.97 GAA, .901 Sv% in 24 games)

CINCINNATI CYCLONES

(20-17-3-2, 45 PTS, 3rd Midwest, 8th West)

122 GF, 121 GA

PP: 16.3% (26-for-160), 16th

PK: 79.2% (114-for-144), 24th

19-F-Jack Downing (21 goals, 13 assists, 34 points in 42 games)

24-F-Zach Budish (15 goals, 19 assists, 34 points in 39 games)

40-F-Nick Huard (11 goals, 19 assists, 30 points in 42 games)

18-F-Tommy Mele (13 goals, 11 assists, 24 points in 44 games)

26-F-Branden Gracel (9 goals, 13 assists, 22 points in 42 games)

9-D-Steve Weinstein (3 goals, 16 assists, 19 points in 37 games)

31-G-Brandon Whitney (8-8-1 record, 3.08 GAA, .894 Sv% in 18 games)

Head to Head

Season Series: Nailers 1, Cyclones 0

2014-15 Season Series at US Bank Arena: Nailers 1, Cyclones 1

All-Time Series: Nailers 57, Cyclones 55

All-Time Series at US Bank Arena: Cyclones 30, Nailers 26

Check out the Wheeling Nailers Statistics

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ECHL Stories from February 3, 2016


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