ECHL Wheeling Nailers

Nailers at Fuel Game Day Snap Shot

Published on January 17, 2016 under ECHL (ECHL)
Wheeling Nailers News Release


Close, but Still No Cigar

The Wheeling Nailers were involved in yet another close affair on Saturday night, as they visited the Toledo Walleye at Huntington Center. Unfortunately, for the Nailers, coming close has become a trend over the course of the past few weeks, as they fell short for the fifth time in a row. Both teams exchanged goals during the first ten minutes of play, before the Walleye jumped ahead 3-1 with two late tallies in the opening stanza. Toledo added another goal in the second period, building a 4-1 advantage. Wheeling rallied back with a power play goal in the final minute of the middle frame, then pulled to within one in the third, but could not come up with the equalizer, falling, 4-3. John McCarron, Anton Zlobin, and Connor Leen had the goals for the Nailers, while Casey DeSmith made 30 saves between the pipes.

Not Much to Cheer About

The Indy Fuel are playing the third of six consecutive games at Indiana Farmers Coliseum on Sunday afternoon in what has been a very challenging weekend thus far. On Friday night, Indy suffered a 4-0 loss to the Rapid City Rush, as Taylor Doherty and Tyler Scofield provided the offense with two goals each, and Danny Bottochio was perfect with 26 saves. On Saturday night, the offense remained absent for the Fuel, who were blanked for the second straight night, as Ryan Massa turned in a 38-save performance in a 2-0 triumph for the Orlando Solar Bears. TJ Foster and Johnny McInnis were the goal scorers. Shane Owen and Mac Carruth both received one start in net. Indy's last goal came from Peter Schneider with 2:33 left on Sunday in Wheeling.

The Second Half Begins

Saturday night's defeat brought the Nailers to the end of the first half of the 2015-16 regular season, as they possess a 15-17-4 record through the first 36 games of the campaign. This is the first time that Wheeling has had a losing record at the midway mark of the season since 2007-08. In 2014-15, the team was 18-18-0 in the first 36 tilts, before a second half which resulted in a mark four games over .500 for a second straight playoff appearance. If the Nailers are to reach the postseason again, they will need to improve on a 9-9-3 record at WesBanco Arena, while also turning things around on the road, where they have gone 6-8-1. 21 of the final 36 games will take place away from the Ohio Valley, including a stretch which features ten of twelve contests on enemy ice from January 29th-February 20th. Indy will be playing its 40th game of the year on Sunday and 20th at Indiana Farmers Coliseum.

Butting the Typical Theory

Usually, when a team wins the battle of special teams, that club will come out with a result in the win column, as has been the case in 14 of 19 games involving the Nailers this season. However, the last two results have landed in the minority, as Wheeling has netted a power play goal in back-to-back contests while going 8-for-8 on the penalty kill. Anton Zlobin tallied both of the power play markers, as he extended his point streak to seven games on Saturday night with his seventh goal during that span. Four of the seven have come on the man advantage, as Zlobin is now tied for the team lead with Derek Army and Zack Torquato, as all three players have collected four power play goals. The Nailers have an 18.9% success rate on the man advantage during the last ten games, climbing five spots in the league. The Fuel rank 27th on the man advantage at 12.3%.

The Rubber Match

Sunday afternoon marks the third and final head-to-head meeting between the Nailers and Fuel this season, as well as the second battle at Indiana Farmers Coliseum. The first two results have gone in favor of the road team, and both have been decided by one goal. Wheeling scored with just over half of a period remaining on December 10th for a 2-1 victory at Indy, while the Fuel scored with under three minutes remaining for a 3-2 win at WesBanco Arena on January 10th. Five of the six contests played all-time between the two former divisional opponents have been decided by one goal, with a 3-0 Indy win in Wheeling being the lone exception. Franky Palazzese and Shane Owen have each received three starts against the opposition. Anton Zlobin and Garett Bembridge each have one goal and one assist in the 2015-16 season series.

Wheeling Nailers (15-17-2-2, 34 Pts.) at Indy Fuel (17-20-2-0, 36 Pts.)

WHEELING NAILERS

(15-17-2-2, 34 PTS, 2nd North, T-11th East)

108 GF, 118 GA

PP: 16.2% (24-for-148), 17th

PK: 82.9% (116-for-140), 19th

20-F-Jarrett Burton (14 goals, 18 assists, 32 points in 36 games)

18-D-Mathew Maione (5 goals, 18 assists, 23 points in 34 games)

25-F-John McCarron (8 goals, 11 assists, 19 points in 31 games)

17-F-Anton Zlobin (7 goals, 11 assists, 18 points in 20 games)

27-D-Brett Stern (5 goals, 9 assists, 14 points in 36 games)

11-F-Cody Wydo (6 goals, 5 assists, 11 points in 23 games)

29-G-Franky Palazzese (9-10-2 record, 3.11 GAA, .895 Sv% in 21 games)

INDY FUEL

(17-20-2-0, 36 PTS, 3rd Midwest, T-9th West)

88 GF, 104 GA

PP: 12.3% (17-for-138), 27th

PK: 84.2% (96-for-114), 11th

19-F-Alex Lavoie (9 goals, 20 assists, 29 points in 39 games)

41-F-Garett Bembridge (11 goals, 13 assists, 24 points in 37 games)

22-D-Ben Marshall (5 goals, 17 assists, 22 points in 39 games)

24-F-Dylan Clarke (7 goals, 11 assists, 18 points in 28 games)

7-F-Peter Schneider (8 goals, 9 assists, 17 points in 31 games)

14-F-Cody Sharib (9 goals, 4 assists, 13 points in 36 games)

50-G-Shane Owen (7-13-0 record, 2.40 GAA, .919 Sv% in 21 games)

Head to Head

Season Series: Nailers 1, Fuel 1

Season Series at Indiana Farmers Coliseum: Nailers 1, Fuel 0

All-Time Series: Nailers 3, Fuel 3

All-Time Series at Indiana Farmers Coliseum: Nailers 2, Fuel 1

Check out the Wheeling Nailers Statistics

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ECHL Stories from January 17, 2016


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