ECHL Wheeling Nailers

Nailers at Walleye Game Day Snap Shot

Published on March 19, 2014 under ECHL (ECHL)
Wheeling Nailers News Release


WHEELING NAILERS

(32-24-1-5, 70 PTS, 2nd Atlantic, 7th East)

177 GF, 176 GA

PP: 15.6% (33-for-212), 13th

PK: 84.2% (207-for-246), 13th

15-F-Zack Torquato (14 goals, 34 assists, 48 points in 40 games)

17-F-Carter Rowney (12 goals, 30 assists, 42 points in 37 games)

21-F-Sahir Gill (10 goals, 32 assists, 42 points in 57 games)

16-F-Cody Sylvester (22 goals, 16 assists, 38 points in 43 games)

2-D-Mike Ratchuk (14 goals, 23 assists, 37 points in 59 games)

7-F-Max MacKay (14 goals, 17 assists, 31 points in 50 games)

29-G-Eric Hartzell (5-4-1 record, 3.18 GAA, .898 Sv% in 10 games)

TOLEDO WALLEYE

(18-37-3-1, 40 PTS, 5th North, 13th East)

165 GF, 225 GA

PP: 18.6% (41-for-221), 4th

PK: 83.8% (181-for-216), 15th

10-F-David Gilbert (15 goals, 19 assists, 34 points in 43 games)

17-F-Kyle Rogers (12 goals, 13 assists, 25 points in 51 games)

29-F-Maxim Shalunov (12 goals, 10 assists, 22 points in 31 games)

24-D-Richard Nedomlel (7 goals, 10 assists, 17 points in 47 games)

14-D-Joe Gleason (3 goals, 13 assists, 16 points in 45 games)

9-F-Kyle Bodie (6 goals, 7 assists, 13 points in 44 games)

30-G-Hannu Toivonen (9-11-0 record, 3.58 GAA, .903 Sv% in 21 games)

Head-to-Head

Season Series: Nailers 3, Walleye 3

Season Series at Huntington Center: Walleye 2, Nailers 1

All-Time Series: Nailers 20, Walleye 19

All-Time Series at Huntington Center: Walleye 11, Nailers 6

To Be the Best, We Beat the Best

The Wheeling Nailers took the ice for three games last weekend, as they battled the Reading Royals and Cincinnati Cyclones - the two teams which made up last season's Eastern Conference Final. Wheeling came away with victories in all three contests, defeating the Royals 5-1 and the Cyclones 2-0 at home, before concluding the weekend with a 3-2 overtime triumph in Reading. The Nailers have now won four straight games for the second time this season, and are one victory away from matching their season high. Chaz Johnson, Cody Sylvester, and Dustin Stevenson scored the goals for Wheeling in Sunday's finale, while Eric Hartzell made 25 saves for his second win in a row.

Cincinnati Has Been the Saving Grace

The Toledo Walleye have been swimming in extremely rough waters for the past month or so, going 4-15-1 in their last 20 games, dropping to 13th place in the Eastern Conference Standings. Oddly enough, all four Walleye victories have come against the same opponent, as Toledo has gone 4-1-0 against the Cincinnati Cyclones during the 20-game stretch. During the past month, the Walleye made a significant change, as Nick Vitucci resigned as the team's head coach, with former assistant Dan Watson taking over behind the bench. Last weekend, Toledo went 0-3-0, dropping two contests to Kalamazoo and one against Fort Wayne, with all three tilts taking place at Huntington Center. The Walleye have three games left on their six-game homestand.

Historical Week of Accolades

In addition to a 3-0-0 record for the team, the Nailers had two indivduals with dynamic performances last week, as Mike Condon was named CCM ECHL Goaltender of the Week, while Cody Sylvester took home Sher-Wood Hockey ECHL Player of the Week honors. Condon turned in a pair of victories, while holding the opposition to just one goal, as he won the award for the second time this season. Sylvester is also a two-time winner, thanks to his five-goal, six-point week, which featured a hat trick, as well as a shorthanded game winning goal. This is the first time that Wheeling has won both awards in the same week.

Toivonen Taking Over the Crease

Former NHL goaltender Hannu Toivonen has been one of the bright spots for the Walleye this season, as he has won nine of his 21 appearances to lead the team, while also posting a .903 save percentage. After a pair of stints in the AHL with Milwaukee and Iowa, Toivonen returned to Toledo, where he has been the starting netminder in five straight games (2-3-0). The Finnish backstop has faced over 35 shots in five straight games, while facing at least 30 shots in each of his last seven. Jared Coreau has returned from the AHL's Grand Rapids Griffins, and will share the crease with Toivonen. Coreau is 1-11-4 in 17 games with the Walleye.

Looking for the First Lead

Wednesday night marks the seventh of ten head-to-head meetings between the Nailers and Walleye this season, as well as the fourth and final battle between the two clubs at Huntington Center. Wheeling has yet to have the lead in the season series, but has the opportunity to do so on Wednesday, as both sides enter with three victories. The Nailers won the most recent two games, taking 4-1 decisions on January 24th and February 12th. Since Toledo returned to the ECHL in 2009, the two squads have collided on 39 occasions, with Wheeling coming out on top 20 times.

Check out the Wheeling Nailers Statistics

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