ECHL Wheeling Nailers

Nailers at Komets Game Day Snap Shot

Published on March 23, 2016 under ECHL (ECHL)
Wheeling Nailers News Release


A Statement Win Against the Beasts of the East

The Wheeling Nailers have been experiencing an incredible run over the past few months, and on Tuesday night, they picked up one of their most impressive victories during the stretch, if not the entire 2015-16 season. Wheeling played host to the Eastern Conference leading Toledo Walleye, and thanks to a 30-save performance by Brian Foster, the Walleye were held scoreless for the first time since December 31st. Cody Wydo opened the scoring for the Nailers with a power play goal at the 7:54 mark of the first period, giving him points in 17 of his last 19 contests. The score remained 1-0 until the first minute of the third period, when Wheeling netted a critical insurance tally to boost the lead to two. John McCarron started what turned out to be a three-goal third period for the home team, as Jordan Kwas and Chris Ciotti also lit the lamp in the 4-0 victory for the Nailers. Wheeling is now 8-0-2 in its last ten games, marking the seventh time in history that the club has had a double digit point streak.

Back on This Side of the Country

The Fort Wayne Komets had quite the road trip to start the month of March, as they played seven games against the Colorado Eagles, Rapid City Rush, and Alaska Aces, going 3-2-2. Last week, the Komets returned to the eastern portion of the country, as they took the ice for three games in three days, all against divisional foes. Fort Wayne started the week on Thursday by blanking the Evansville IceMen, 4-0 on a 25-save shutout by Pat Nagle. The defense and goaltending were also good the following night, but Vladimir Nikiforov's goal with seven minutes left in the second period was the difference in a 2-1 victory by the Quad City Mallards. Fort Wayne and Quad City met again on Saturday, and although both teams got a point, it was the Mallards who prevailed again, when Austin Coldwell dented the twine at 1:46 of overtime for a 4-3 final score. The Komets are currently tied for second place in the Western Conference, and are four points ahead of the Cincinnati Cyclones for the top spot in the Midwest Division.

Clutch Contributions From Another Unit

While most of the attention over the past few weeks has rightfully gone to the dynamic offensive numbers of Cody Wydo and Riley Brace, another line has begun producing at a rapid rate for the Nailers. With 3:23 left in the third period on Tuesday, Jordan Kwas found the back of the net for the sixth time in 25 games since joining Wheeling in late January. Kwas has recorded at least one point in each of the last four games, and has also played a valuable role in the face-off circle as well as the defensive zone. One of Kwas' linemates, Dan O'Donoghue, is beginning to find his offensive game as well, as he dished out two assists in Saturday's victory at Kalamazoo, as well as a pair of helpers in Tuesday's triumph over Toledo. Chris Ciotti also found his way onto the scoresheet on Tuesday, capping off the win with an empty net tally for his eighth goal since joining the Nailers.

A Few Familiar Faces on the Other Side

Now that they are in opposite conferences, Wheeling and Fort Wayne have become very unfamiliar with each other, meaning lots of preparation will be done prior to the game to learn each other's tendencies. For the second year in a row, the Komets are led in scoring by Shawn Szydlowski. Last season, Szydlowski had 38 goals and 74 points in 57 games, while this year, the assists have been a major part of his productivity, as he has 47 helpers and 66 points in 53 contests. Fort Wayne has a couple of former Nailers on its roster in defenseman Jordon Southorn and forward Paul Crowder. Southorn, who was with Wheeling during the 2011-12 campaign, is second behind Szydlowski in scoring with 37 points in 57 games. Meanwhile, Crowder, who wore a Wheeling uniform for three seasons from 2010-13, joined the Komets later in the season, but has already racked up 17 points in 20 tilts. Pat Nagle has been the ace between the pipes for the second consecutive year, having gone 25-10-7 in 45 appearances. Nagle has played the second most minutes in the league, trailing only Kalamazoo's Joel Martin, who the Nailers will see over the weekend.

Funny Seeing You Guys

Wednesday night marks the first and only head-to-head meeting between the Nailers and Komets this season, and it takes place at Allen County War Memorial Coliseum. Last year, the two sides met on four occasions, with Wheeling coming out victorious in three of those contests. Only one of those games was played in Indiana, and for the second straight year, it featured the Nailers erasing a three-goal deficit. On January 2nd, Wheeling fell behind 3-0, but battled back to square the game 4-4, before Shawn Skelly's goal in the fifth round of the shootout made the visitors into winners. The Nailers also won twice at home, ending with a 2-1 triumph on March 27th, in which Cody Wydo picked up a goal and an assist in his professional debut. Wheeling has won seven of the ten historical games played between the two long standing organizations, including four of the five in Fort Wayne. Unless there is a Kelly Cup Final match, the two squads will bid farewell to each other after the game until 2016-17, when both teams reach milestone seasons, with the Nailers turning 25 and the Komets turning 65.

Wheeling Nailers (34-23-3-4, 75 Pts.) at Fort Wayne Komets (35-20-6-2, 78 Pts.)

WHEELING NAILERS

(34-23-3-4, 75 PTS, 2nd North, 6th East)

197 GF, 187 GA

PP: 18.1% (43-for-238), 7th

PK: 84.4% (206-for-244), 13th

23-F-Riley Brace (23 goals, 36 assists, 59 points in 48 games)

18-D-Mathew Maione (9 goals, 40 assists, 49 points in 62 games)

11-F-Cody Wydo (22 goals, 25 assists, 47 points in 51 games)

17-F-Jordan Kwas (8 goals, 19 assists, 27 points in 52 games)

25-F-John McCarron (10 goals, 14 assists, 24 points in 43 games)

27-D-Brett Stern (6 goals, 17 assists, 23 points in 64 games)

29-G-JP Anderson (2-0-0 record, 1.50 GAA, .936 Sv% in 2 games)

FORT WAYNE KOMETS

(35-20-6-2, 78 PTS, 1st Midwest, T-2nd West)

213 GF, 172 GA

PP: 21.0% (50-for-238), 2nd

PK: 86.3% (226-for-262), 5th

19-F-Shawn Szydlowski (19 goals, 47 assists, 66 points in 53 games)

10-D-Jordon Southorn (9 goals, 28 assists, 37 points in 57 games)

24-F-Kyle Thomas (13 goals, 22 assists, 35 points in 52 games)

22-F-Jamie Schaafsma (20 goals, 12 assists, 32 points in 61 games)

23-F-Garrett Meurs (13 goals, 15 assists, 28 points in 43 games)

25-F-Mason Baptista (10 goals, 13 assists, 23 points in 59 games)

31-G-Pat Nagle (25-10-7 record, 2.34 GAA, .916 Sv% in 45 games)

Head to Head

2014-15 Season Series: Nailers 3, Komets 1

2014-15 Season Series at Allen County War Memorial Coliseum: Nailers 1, Komets 0

All-Time Series: Nailers 7, Komets 3

All-Time Series at Allen County War Memorial Coliseum: Nailers 4, Komets 1

Check out the Wheeling Nailers Statistics

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ECHL Stories from March 23, 2016


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