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ECHL Wheeling Nailers

Nailers at Royals Game Day Snap Shot

November 11, 2015 - ECHL (ECHL)
Wheeling Nailers News Release


A Memorable Matinée

The Wheeling Nailers nearly saw their four-game winning streak in home morning games come to an end on Tuesday morning, as they trailed the Cincinnati Cyclones, 5-2, with under five minutes left to play. However, the Nailers rallied for one of their most remarkable comebacks in their 24-year history, scoring five times in a span of 4:10, erasing the three-goal deficit for a 7-5 victory in front of the second sellout crowd of the season - 5,511 at WesBanco Arena. Brett Stern was one player in particular who had a day to remember, as his first professional goal put Wheeling on the scoreboard in the first period. Later on, his second goal broke the 5-5 deadlock with 32 seconds remaining. Clark Seymour also chipped in with a pair of goals from the blueline, bringing the Nailers within one, setting the table for Zack Torquato's equalizer. Derek Army and Jarrett Burton were the other two goal scorers for Wheeling, helping Franky Palazzese pick up his third win of the year.

No Rabbits Allowed in Reading

The Reading Royals entered last weekend with a .500 record, after going 3-3-0 in their first six games. That's when the Greenville Swamp Rabbits made their first visit to Santander Arena, and were quickly sent packing, with two strong performances by the Royals. On Saturday night, five different players found the back of the net for Reading, who also went 2-for-4 on the power play in a 5-1 victory. One day later, Connor Knapp and the Royals defense turned in a perfect performance, blanking Greenville on 30 shots. For the second straight contest, the Reading offense provided five goals from five different players, led by Yannick Tifu and Justin Crandall, who both registered three points. The Royals have scored at least five goals in all five of their wins, while being held to two or less in all three of their defeats.

Couldn't Have Done it Without the D

It might sound strange to say with a 7-5 final score, but Wheeling's defense played a large part in Tuesday morning's win over Cincinnati. Brett Stern and Clark Seymour both had big days on the blueline, combining for four goals and one assist for five points, with all but one of the points coming during the third period comeback. Seymour's three-point day gives him four goals and seven points on the season, which are both tops on the team among defensemen. His seven points are tied for ninth most among ECHL defensemen, while his four goals are tied for fourth most. Although he was held off of the scoresheet on Tuesday, Paul Cianfrini has contributed four points from the back end, which ties him with Stern for second most on the club. Mickael Beauregard and Harrison Ruopp both have one assist.

Keep an Eye on Crandall

One specific player to watch on the Royals tonight is forward Justin Crandall, who leads all ECHL rookies with 13 points, having collected four goals and nine assists in his first eight games of the season. Crandall attended the University of Minnesota-Duluth, where he was teammates with Wheeling's Adam Krause, as they both completed their senior seasons last spring. After the NCAA schedule was completed the two turned pro, with Krause picking up four points in six games with the Nailers, and Crandall accumulating three points in four games for Reading. Five of Crandall's 13 points came in an 8-3 thumping of Elmira on October 28th. Reading has four players in second place with eight points, including defenseman Adam Comrie, who has lit the lamp five times.

Let's Make it Two Years in a Row

Wednesday night marks the first of 11 head-to-head meetings between the Nailers and Royals this season, as well as the first of five battles between the two clubs at Santander Arena. Last year, Wheeling got the upper hand on Reading in the season series for the first time since 2006-07, winning all six games at home, before edging the Royals 2-1 on April 8th in Eastern Pennsylvania, ending Reading's five-game home winning streak against the Nailers. This will be the 144th all-time meeting between the two long-time rivals, the third highest total for Wheeling against a single opponent, trailing only Johnstown (173) and Dayton (155). This is also the first of five times this season that the Nailers and Royals will lock horns multiple times in the same week.

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Wheeling Nailers (5-4-0-0, 10 Pts.) at Reading Royals (5-3-0-0, 10 Pts.)

WHEELING NAILERS

(5-4-0-0, 10 PTS, 1st North, T-5th East)

29 GF, 28 GA

PP: 21.4% (9-for-42), 9th

PK: 75.0% (30-for-40), 25th

16-F-Derek Army (3 goals, 7 assists, 10 points in 9 games)

20-F-Jarrett Burton (6 goals, 3 assists, 9 points in 9 games)

21-F-Sahir Gill (3 goals, 5 assists, 8 points in 9 games)

22-D-Clark Seymour (4 goals, 3 assists, 7 points in 9 games)

23-F-Riley Brace (1 goal, 5 assists, 6 points in 9 games)

25-F-John McCarron (1 goal, 5 assists, 6 points in 9 games)

31-G-Brian Foster (2-2-0 record, 3.01 GAA, .891 Sv% in 4 games)

READING ROYALS

(5-3-0-0, 10 PTS, T-2nd East, T-5th East)

34 GF, 19 GA

PP: 21.6% (8-for-37), 8th

PK: 85.2% (23-for-27), 10th

19-F-Justin Crandall (4 goals, 9 assists, 13 points in 8 games)

11-D-Adam Comrie (5 goals, 3 assists, 8 points in 8 games)

28-F-Cam Reid (3 goals, 5 assists, 8 points in 6 games)

7-F-Robbie Czarnik (3 goals, 5 assists, 8 points in 8 games)

14-F-Mike Pereira (3 goals, 5 assists, 8 points in 8 games)

37-F-Joe Rehkamp (2 goals, 5 assists, 7 points in 8 games)

31-G-Connor Knapp (3-2-0 record, 2.28 GAA, .908 Sv% in 5 games)

Head to Head

2014-15 Season Series: Nailers 7, Royals 5

2014-15 Season Series at Santander Arena: Royals 5, Nailers 1

All-Time Series: Royals 80, Nailers 63

All-Time Series at Santander Arena: Royals 45, Nailers 28

Check out the Wheeling Nailers Statistics



ECHL Stories from November 11, 2015


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