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ECHL Wheeling Nailers

Nailers vs. Komets Game Day Snap Shot, February 16

February 16, 2018 - ECHL (ECHL)
Wheeling Nailers News Release


WHEELING NAILERS

(28-20-4-0, 60 PTS, T-2nd North, T-4th East)

189 GF, 171 GA

PP: 20.7% (46-for-222), 3rd

PK: 80.9% (169-for-209), 21st

8-F-Nick Sorkin (6 goals, 37 assists, 43 points in 50 games)

23-F-Garrett Meurs (18 goals, 24 assists, 42 points in 45 games)

14-F-Riley Bourbonnais (17 goals, 14 assists, 31 points in 47 games)

26-D-Kevin Schulze (8 goals, 20 assists, 28 points in 39 games)

28-D-Dylan Zink (4 goals, 18 assists, 22 points in 44 games)

15-F-Chris Francis (8 goals, 10 assists, 18 points in 30 games)

29-G-Adam Morrison (12-9-1 record, 3.04 GAA, .908 Sv% in 23 games)

FORT WAYNE KOMETS

(33-13-2-1, 69 PTS, 2nd Central, T-2nd West)

211 GF, 146 GA

PP: 17.2% (29-for-169), 13th

PK: 84.3% (172-for-204), 9th

27-F-Shawn Szydlowski (24 goals, 37 assists, 61 points in 43 games)

48-F-Garrett Thompson (21 goals, 32 assists, 53 points in 47 games)

14-F-Gabriel Desjardins (24 goals, 23 assists, 47 points in 38 games)

9-F-Mason Baptista (17 goals, 26 assists, 43 points in 44 games)

21-F-Marc-Olivier Roy (13 goals, 23 assists, 36 points in 27 games)

55-D-Ryan Culkin (9 goals, 21 assists, 30 points in 46 games)

41-G-Michael Houser (21-9-2 record, 2.78 GAA, .908 Sv% in 34 games)

Head to Head

Season Series: Komets 3, Nailers 1

Season Series at WesBanco Arena: Komets 2, Nailers 1

All-Time Series: Komets 11, Nailers 9

All-Time Series at WesBanco Arena: Nailers 5, Komets 4

Fun in Florida

The Wheeling Nailers had a very enjoyable road trip, as they got to soak in the beautiful Florida weather, while winning two of three games against the Orlando Solar Bears at Amway Center. The two clubs split the first two contests, setting up a rubber match on Monday night. After a scoreless first period, the Nailers took control of the game in the middle frame, going ahead, 3-0. Riley Bourbonnais opened the scoring at the 3:51 mark, splitting the defense, then ripping a shot through Cal Heeter's legs. Less than four minutes later, Bourbonnais set up the second goal, feeding Kevin Schulze in the bottom of the right circle. Schulze stashed in his own rebound for his second of the night, putting Wheeling in the driver's seat. Orlando's J.J. Piccinich broke up the shutout in the third period, but Cody Wydo's empty netter punctuated the 4-1 Nailers victory. Adam Morrison turned in his best performance of the year, making 41 saves.

Hoosier State Heroes

The Fort Wayne Komets have been the best team in Indiana, since they joined the ECHL in 2012-13 with the Evansville IceMen, and were later joined by the Indy Fuel in 2014-15. On Wednesday night, Fort Wayne improved to 6-1-0 against Indy this season and 29-6-3 all-time, thanks to a 4-2 triumph at Allen County War Memorial Coliseum. It took a while for the first goal to be scored, as Justin Hodgman got the offense started at 12:42 of the second period. Indy's Darian Dziurzynski tied the contest, but the tie lasted for just 12 seconds, before Gabriel Desjardins put the Komets back on top with 51 seconds left in the stanza. Fort Wayne carried that momentum into the third period, icing its win with two goals in the first two minutes, as Shawn Szydlowski and Ryan Lowney lit the lamp. Michael Houser's 22 saves put the finishing touches on the tilt.

Four for us

The fourth season series of the year has been completed for the Nailers, who won two of three games against Orlando to gain the upper hand against the Solar Bears for the first time in the six years that Orlando has been in the ECHL. Wheeling has come out on top in all four of its sets that have been finished, sweeping Greenville 2-0, taking four out of six games from Norfolk, beating Indy three out of five times, and most recently, the 2-1 mark against Orlando. With 20 games left on the slate, the Nailers are finished with the South Division portion of their schedule, as they turned in an 8-2-1 record against their warm weather foes. The next series that will come to an end will be against Kalamazoo on Wednesday, who Wheeling has defeated in its lone clash. The best the Nailers can do against Fort Wayne is split, and they will need to win both remaining matches in order to achieve that.

Shooting Through the Sky

Despite still being in second place in the Central Division, the Komets are experiencing a phenomenal run as of late, as they have posted a 12-1-1 record in their last 14 games. A major reason for Fort Wayne's success has been the performance of its offense, which has racked up 76 goals during that stretch, for an average of 5.43 per game. The lone blemish during the last seven contests (6-0-1) saw Quad City's C.J. Motte post a 60-save performance on Sunday. During the last eight games, the Komets have finished with each goal total from 3-9, with the top outbursts coming in 9-3 and 8-4 blastings of the Wichita Thunder last Wednesday and Friday. Shawn Szydlowski has been the most productive player during the 14-game stretch, tallying 21 points, while Gabriel Desjardins leads the way with 11 goals. Michael Houser and Garrett Bartus have both backstopped six wins.

Two Weeks Since it got Testy

Friday night marks the fifth of six head-to-head meetings between the Nailers and Komets this season, as well as the fourth and final battle at WesBanco Arena. 13 days ago, Wheeling and Fort Wayne collided in a spirited contest in West Virginia, featuring a pair of fights in the third period, as Jeremy Beirnes threw down the gloves with Mason Baptista and former Nailer Bobby Shea. Unfortunately, the end result on the scoreboard wasn't a favorable one for the home team, as the Komets got a hat trick from Gabriel Desjardins as part of a 7-3 decision. Desjardins and ECHL leading scorer Shawn Szydlowski have been the top performers in the season series, tallying six points each, while Wheeling is led by Chris Francis, who had one point with Quad City, before tacking on three more with the Nailers for a total of four. The last game of the set will also be Wheeling's final game of the regular season on April 7th in Indiana.

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