Nailers vs. Road Warriors Game Day Snap Shot
December 20, 2014 - ECHL (ECHL)
Wheeling Nailers News Release
Wheeling Nailers (12-11-0-0, 24 PTS) vs. Greenville Road Warriors (17-9-0-1, 35 PTS)
WHEELING NAILERS
(12-11-0-0, 24 PTS, 3rd North, 9th East)
69 GF, 71 GA
PP: 21.2% (18-for-85), 5th
PK: 83.2% (84-for-101), 12th
23-F-Riley Brace (9 goals, 19 assists, 28 points in 21 games)
16-F-Derek Army (9 goals, 8 assists, 17 points in 23 games)
15-F-Zack Torquato (7 goals, 8 assists, 15 points in 16 games)
12-F-David Gilbert (6 goals, 7 assists, 13 points in 23 games)
20-F-Jarrett Burton (2 goals, 7 assists, 9 points in 11 games)
3-D-Morgan Ellis (2 goals, 7 assists, 9 points in 15 games)
29-G-Franky Palazzese (7-7-0 record, 3.38 GAA, .886 Sv% in 14 games)
GREENVILLE ROAD WARRIORS
(17-9-0-1, 35 PTS, 2nd East, 4th East)
80 GF, 67 GA
PP: 11.1% (10-for-90), 26th
PK: 85.3% (81-for-95), 8th
27-F-Vinny Saponari (8 goals, 10 assists, 18 points in 23 games)
10-F-Kyle Jean (8 goals, 7 assists, 15 points in 16 games)
18-F-Michael St. Croix (4 goals, 11 assists, 15 points in 20 games)
19-F-Trevor Parkes (5 goals, 9 assists, 14 points in 22 games)
29-F-Josh Nicholls (5 goals, 8 assists, 13 points in 14 games)
7-D-Ryan Hegarty (4 goals, 9 assists, 13 points in 25 games)
31-G-Jason Missiaen (6-4-1 record, 2.60 GAA, .915 Sv% in 11 games)
Head-to-Head
Season Series: Nailers 1, Road Warriors 1
Season Series at WesBanco Arena: Nailers 1, Road Warriors 1
All-Time Series: Road Warriors 10, Nailers 9
All-Time Series at WesBanco Arena: Nailers 5, Road Warriors 4
One Was All it Took
The Wheeling Nailers and Greenville Road Warriors will take the ice against each other for the second consecutive night, following a defensive showdown on Friday. Vinny Saponari and Emerson Clark exchanged passes on a give-and-go at the 4:10 mark of the first period, resulting in Saponari's eighth goal of the season and a 1-0 lead for visiting Greenville. As it turned out, that was the only tally of the evening, as the two sides were unable to convert on the other 56 shots in the contest. The shutout was the third of the year for the Road Warriors and the second of the campaign suffered by Wheeling.
Missiaen: Impossible
Greenville goaltender Jason Missiaen got off to a slow start to the 2014-15 season, going 3-6-1 in his first ten games between the Road Warriors and the AHL's Hartford Wolf Pack. Since then, the fourth year backstop has been nearly unbeatable, allowing just four goals in five games, while posting a 4-0-1 record. This week, Missiaen has been solved once in three games, as Toledo's Marek Tvrdon scored at the 18-minute mark of Tuesday morning's second period. On Wednesday, he blanked Cincinnati on 22 shots, before Friday's 21-save effort at WesBanco Arena. Counting the playoffs, Friday's shutout was the Chatham ON native's third in his career against the Nailers.
First Time in a Decade
1-0 final scores tend to be especially rare in professional hockey, and that statement couldn't be more accurate for the Nailers. While Wheeling has earned a 1-0 victory in each of the last four seasons, 1-0 losses have been nearly nonexistent. Prior to Friday night, the last time the Nailers fell by that score was February 18, 2011, when Matt Dalton and Patrick Killeen combined to stop all 84 shots they faced, before Reading scored on two of four shootout attempts to secure the win. The last time Wheeling dropped a 1-0 result in regulation was all the way back on December 5, 2004 at Carver Arena against the Peoria Rivermen, spanning ten years and 14 days. January 31, 2002 against Cincinnati was the last time it occurred at WesBanco Arena.
East Excelling Against North
All five interdivisional games on Friday night featured victories by the East Division over the North Division, spreading the season margin to a 40-26 deficit for the North. While the Nailers have kept a .500 record at 8-8-0, the majority of the struggles have come from the Cincinnati Cyclones and Indy Fuel, who have combined to win just one of 14 games against the East Division. Gwinnett is currently the lone squad from the East Division with a losing mark against the North, while Florida (5-1-0), Fort Wayne (3-1-0), Toledo (6-2-3), and Orlando (7-3-0) are among the teams that have performed exceptionally well in interdivision play.
The Streak is Over
Saturday night marks the third of five head-to-head meetings between the Nailers and Road Warriors this season, with all five clashes taking place at WesBanco Arena. The two sides have split the first two contests, with Wheeling grabbing a 4-2 victory on November 26th, before Greenville responded with the 1-0 win on Friday night. Although the Road Warriors were 3-0 in West Virginia during the 2014 postseason, Friday's game ended a five-game regular season home winning streak in the historical series for the Nailers. The end result also gave Greenville a 10-9 lead, entering the 20th all-time game on Saturday.
The December 20th game is a season ticket redemption night, team picture giveaway (holiday edition), and there will be an Ugly Christmas Sweater Contest. Both games are slated for 7:35 starts against the Greenville Road Warriors. There will also be three home games on January 9th, 10th, and 11th, highlighted by Girl Scout Night and Princess Party on Saturday the 10th.
Holiday packs are also available. For $49, fans can purchase the Elf Package, receiving four ticket vouchers, a t-shirt, and an autographed puck. For $99, fans can purchase the Reindeer Package, receiving ten ticket vouchers. For $129, fans can purchase the Santa Package, receiving four ticket vouchers, a replica jersey, and a Reebok hat.
Wheeling Nailers 2014-15 season tickets, flex tickets, group tickets and single-game tickets are on sale now. For more information, call 304-234-GOAL or visit wheelingnailers.com.
Listen to all Nailers regular season and post-season games live on the Valley's rock station EAGLE 107.5 FM, on www.iheartradio.com or watch live on www.echl.tv. Catch every road game live on WLUTV on Comcast Cable 14.
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