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ECHL Wheeling Nailers

Nailers vs. Royals Game Day Snap Shot

February 5, 2016 - ECHL (ECHL)
Wheeling Nailers News Release


Feels Good to be .500 Again

The Wheeling Nailers found themselves in a challenging situation, as they left for a four-game road trip with an overall record that stood three games under .500. However, the Nailers rose to the occasion at the most critical time, posting a 3-0-1 mark to earn seven out of eight possible points. Wheeling took three out of four points in Elmira to begin the trip, then proceeded to Brampton, where it rallied from a 2-0 deficit to take down the Beast, 3-2 in overtime. On Wednesday night, the journey came to an end in Cincinnati, where the Nailers jumped out to a 2-0 lead on shorthanded goals by Matt Tabrum and Chris Ciotti. The Cyclones pulled to within a goal at the 18:35 mark of the second period, but Anton Zlobin quickly restored Wheeling's two-goal lead, slapping in a power play goal 47 seconds into the third. Franky Palazzese started three of the four games, going 3-0-0, and his 25 saves on Wednesday gave him a total of 86 on 90 shots during the trip.

Late Game Magic Twice in a Row

The Reading Royals have kept their fans on the edges of their seats during their last two games, and both times, the end result saw them earn two points. On Saturday night, the Royals took 1-0 and 2-1 leads on the Adirondack Thunder, only to see Adirondack bounce back to tie the score both times. With 1:05 left in the third period, Mike Pereira broke the final tie with his second goal of the contest, lifting Reading to the victory. On Wednesday night, the deciding goal came a bit earlier, but there was much more scoring before it. The Royals and Manchester Monarchs clawed their way to a 4-4 tie, before Yannick Tifu put Reading ahead for good at the 15:40 mark of the third period. Justin Crandall added an empty netter in the last minute for a 6-4 final score. Martin Ouellette was the winning goaltender in both games, but he has since joined the AHL's Lehigh Valley Phantoms. The Royals are 3-1-2 in their last six tilts, with the lone regulation setback coming against Adirondack, who has defeated Reading in five of seven games thus far.

Shorties are Better in Pairs

Shorthanded goals aren't the most common occurrences at hockey games, as the ECHL's leaders, the Fort Wayne Komets and Utah Grizzlies, have both potted ten, while playing over 40 games this season. The Nailers have scored shorthanded goals in just three of their first 43 games, but in all three occasions, when one has been scored, a second has followed later in the contest. That was the case on Wednesday night, as Matt Tabrum opened the scoring at 8:48 of the first period, and Chris Ciotti made the score 2-0 at 8:53 of the middle frame. Ciotti assisted on Tabrum's tally, bringing him into a tie for the team lead in shorthanded points with Sahir Gill, as both have amassed two. Wheeling's first two shorties of the year came in the home opener against Brampton, when Gill and Clark Seymour both lit the lamp with a teammate in the penalty box. The other game with two shorthanded goals was December 12th, when Riley Brace and John McCarron converted as part of a 6-2 thumping of Toledo. The Nailers are 3-0-0 when scoring a shorthanded goal (or in their case, two) and 0-5-2 when allowing at least one shorthanded goal. Reading has scored five and allowed three in shorthanded situations.

The Return of Knapp & Niedert

Martin Ouellette has shouldered the bulk of the workload between the pipes for the Royals in the past few weeks, as he has been the goaltender of record in 13 of the team's past 14 games, going 5-6-2. The lone contest he didn't play took place on January 27th, when ex-Nailer Nick Niedert was called into action to face another one of his former clubs, the Elmira Jackals. Niedert came away with a thrilling 7-5 win, making 34 saves at First Arena, and will serve as Reading's backup goaltender on Friday night. The starting nod goes to Connor Knapp, who will play in his first game since December 18th, when he suffered an injury against Elmira. Knapp allowed one goal on two shots that evening, and ended up getting saddled with the loss, despite a 5-2 final score in favor of the Jackals.

We Missed You Guys

Friday night marks the fifth of 11 head-to-head meetings between the Nailers and Royals this season, as well as the third of six battles at WesBanco Arena. For the second consecutive year, the home teams have held the decided edge early, as Wheeling and Reading have both picked up a pair of victories in their own back yards. Dating back to last season, that gives the two squads a combined record of 15-1-0 at home. Despite a long rivalry, which typically features a plethora of games each year, the Nailers and Royals have gone more than two months without seeing each other, as the last clash took place on November 29th at Santander Arena - a 3-2 win for Reading. Three of this season's four games have been decided by one goal, with a 6-1 Wheeling triumph on November 13th serving as the lone exception. After this weekend's two-game set, the teams will meet again on March 4th and 5th in Reading.

Wheeling Nailers (19-19-2-3, 43 Pts.) vs. Reading Royals (21-17-4-3, 49 Pts.)

WHEELING NAILERS

(19-19-2-3, 43 PTS, 2nd North, 10th East)

126 GF, 134 GA

PP: 18.0% (30-for-167), 10th

PK: 83.4% (146-for-175), 16th

20-F-Jarrett Burton (15 goals, 23 assists, 38 points in 43 games)

18-D-Mathew Maione (5 goals, 26 assists, 31 points in 41 games)

11-F-Cody Wydo (11 goals, 6 assists, 17 points in 30 games)

4-D-Paul Cianfrini (2 goals, 13 assists, 15 points in 42 games)

27-D-Brett Stern (5 goals, 9 assists, 14 points in 43 games)

22-F-Jordan Kwas (3 goals, 10 assists, 13 points in 31 games)

30-G-Casey DeSmith (1-2-2 record, 2.68 GAA, .912 Sv% in 6 games)

READING ROYALS

(21-17-4-3, 49 PTS, 3rd East, T-7th East)

134 GF, 120 GA

PP: 19.1% (33-for-173), 5th

PK: 82.7% (129-for-156), 18th

19-F-Justin Crandall (12 goals, 34 assists, 46 points in 39 games)

7-F-Robbie Czarnik (18 goals, 17 assists, 35 points in 37 games)

14-F-Mike Pereira (17 goals, 15 assists, 32 points in 32 games)

28-F-Cam Reid (11 goals, 20 assists, 31 points in 38 games)

10-F-Yannick Tifu (11 goals, 15 assists, 26 points in 42 games)

43-D-Kevin Young (2 goals, 11 assists, 13 points in 31 games)

31-G-Connor Knapp (7-6-1 record, 2.85 GAA, .901 Sv% in 15 games)

Head to Head

Season Series: Nailers 2, Royals 2

Season Series at WesBanco Arena: Nailers 2, Royals 0

All-Time Series: Royals 82, Nailers 65

All-Time Series at WesBanco Arena: Nailers 37, Royals 35

Check out the Wheeling Nailers Statistics



ECHL Stories from February 5, 2016


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