Playoff Game Four Tonight in Wheeling
Published on April 15, 2009 under ECHL (ECHL)
Wheeling Nailers News Release
Wheeling, WV - After a 3 day hiatus the Kelly Cup Playoffs resume tonight in Wheeling as the Nailers and Cincinnati Cyclones get set to play Game 4 of their best of 7 series. The North Divisional Semifinal matchup is set for 7: 05pm at WesBanco Arena.
Interestingly, the home team has yet to win in the series. The Nailers took games 1 and 2 down in Cincinnati last Thursday and Friday by scores of 4-1 and 3-1. Cincinnati got one of them last Saturday with a 7-3 victory in Wheeling.
Game 5 will also be in Wheeling on Friday night at 7:35pm.
If the series goes to games 6 and 7 then both would be played in Cincinnati on Saturday and Monday nights.
The series pits two of the highest scoring teams in the league. Wheeling and Cincinnati finished 2nd and 3rd in the league in total offense trailing only the Brabham Cup winning Florida Everblades. So you know the goalies for each side are preparing to see a lot of rubber! Wheeling had 3.65 goals per game for 2008-09 while Cincinnati scored 3.56.
Wheeling won the regular season matchup vs. Cincinnati with a 6-3-2 record against the Cyclones but the last time the two teams saw each other was January 17th when Mark Van Guilder scored an overtime game-winner for Cincinnati at WesBanco Arena.
The Nailers are appearing in the Kelly Cup Playoffs for the first time in 3 years. The last time they were in the playoff in 2006 they knocked off the Reading Royals in the opening round 3 games to 1 before bowing out to the Toledo Storm in the division finals 3 games to 2 in a hard-fought series. Wheeling is making their 9th all-time appearance in the playoffs. Wheeling is trying to make it to the finals for the first time since 1993 when they lost a tough series to Toledo 4 games to 2 and current Nailers head coach Greg Puhalski played for the Storm and led his team in postseason scoring.
Wheeling's all-time record in first round playoff series is 5-3.
Cincinnati is the defending league champions and repeated as North Division titlists as well. Last year their run saw them sweep Johnstown 4-0 in the opening round, squeak past Reading 4 games to 3 in the division finals, beat South Carolina 4 games to 1 in the conference finals, and then knock off Las Vegas 4 games to 2 in the Kelly Cup playoffs clinching the title in front of an ECHL postseason record crowd of over 12,000 fans at US Bank Arena in June 5, 2008.
This is Cincinnati's 6th all-time appearance in the ECHL postseason and they have won the first round each of their last three appearances in 2008, 2007 and 2003.
Two Great Coaches:
Wheeling's Greg Puhalski and Cincinnati's Chuck Weber rank 1st and 2nd in ECHL history for the best record in their first two years at the bench.
Puhalski had a .692 (89-36-13) win percentage at Toledo in the 94-95 and 95-96 campaigns to set an ECHL mark which still stands. On March 28th Greg Puhalshi recorded his 600th all-time coaching victory when the Nailers won at the Elmira Jackals. Puhalski's all-time record in the ECHL regular season is 211-136-43. His all-time Kelly Cup record is 23-12 stemming mostly from his games as the Toledo Storm head coach from 1994-98.
Weber had a .677 (89-36-13) mark his first two years at the bench which is the closest two year mark any coach has had since Puhalski set the standard. Weber has lead his team to back to back North Division titles and also won the Brabham Cup and Kelly Cup in 2008. His team's 115 points fell one shy of the all-time league record of 116 by Louisiana in 2001-02 and also featured a league record 17 game win streak.
Racking Up The Wins:
The Wheeling Nailers have the all-time ECHL record for total wins and also hold the marks for most home wins and most away wins. The records include their seasons as the Carolina and Winston-Salem Thunderbirds in their first four years in the ECHL from 88-89 to 91-92 prior to moving to Wheeling.
The Nailers have 722 total wins all-time, most in league history well ahead of 2nd place Johnstown's mark of 651. Wheeling recorded their milestone 700th victory on the road at the Dayton Bombers on December 5th with a 5-2 win.
Wheeling has 418 wins at home all-time. They recorded their milestone 400th home-ice victory on October 17th with their season opener against Cincinnati. Johnstown's total of 385 is 2nd highest in the ECHL
The Nailers all-time total of road wins stands at 305. On January 23rd at Johnstown the Nailers recorded their 300th all-time road victory. South Carolina has 285 total road victories to place 2nd all-time.
Records and Affiliations:
Cincinnati Cyclones (41-26-5, 87 points, 1st place North Division) - Montreal Canadiens (NHL), Nashville Predators (NHL), Hamilton Bulldogs (AHL), Milwaukee Admirals (AHL)
Wheeling Nailers (36-26-8, 80 points, 4th place North Division) - Pittsburgh Penguins (NHL), Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (AHL)
Home Ice Advantage:
Wheeling was a distinctly better team on their home ice this year sporting a WesBanco record of 20-11-5 compared with their away record of 16-17-3. Cincinnati was a different story though. Strangely, they had a better a record on the road than they had at home with a league best 22-13-1 mark when they hit the bus to travel elsewhere.
Fan Support:
Hey Fans, Thanks for coming out and cheering on the Wheeling Nailers in 2008-09. We need your continued support for the playoffs so come out to WesBanco Arena this Saturday night and cheer for your Wheeling Nailers against the defending league champions. We look forward to seeing you there as exciting playoff hockey returns to Wheeling.
Playoff Schedule:
Thursday, April 9, 7:30: Game 1 - Wheeling 4 at Cincinnati 1
Friday, April 10, 7:30: Game 2 - Wheeling 3 at Cincinnati 1
Saturday, April 11, 7:35: Game 3 - Cincinnati 7 at Wheeling 3
Wednesday, April 15, 7:05: Game 4 - Cincinnati at Wheeling
Friday, April 17, 7:35: Game 5 - Cincinnati at Wheeling
Saturday, April 18, 7:30: Game 6 - Wheeling at Cincinnati
Monday, April 20, 7:30: Game 7 - Wheeling at Cincinnati
Season Series:
Wheeling finished the season 6-3-2 vs. Cincinnati including 3-1-1 at U.S. Bank Arena in Cincinnati and 3-2-1 at home.
Oct 17, W - CIN 5 at WHL 7
Oct 24, W - CIN 7 at WHL 9
Nov 21, SOL - WHL 3 at CIN 4
Nov 22, W - WHL 3 at CIN 1
Dec 12, W - WHL 6 at CIN 2
Dec 27, L - CIN 5 at WHL 4
Dec 31, W - CIN 1 at WHL 6
Jan 6, W - WHL 4 at CIN 2
Jan 11, L - CIN 6 at WHL 4
Jan 14, L - WHL 4 at CIN 10
Jan 17, OTL - CIN 5 at WHL 4
Head Coaches:
Wheeling Nailers - Greg Puhalski (2nd season)
Cincinnati Cyclones - Chuck Weber (3rd season)
Season Accolades:
Bryan "Boomer" Ewing racked up several honors through the last week of the regular season including ECHL All-Rookie Team honors, ECHL First-Team Selection and ECHL Rookie of the Year. Boomer set a Wheeling Nailers record with 43 goals breaking the old mark of 42 by Steve Gibson in 95-96. He was the first Wheeling Nailers to record 90 points since 96-97 when John Varga (101) and Eric Royal (92) eclipsed the mark.
The Wheeling Nailers shattered the ECHL record by placing four of their players on the league All-Rookie squad. Bryan Ewing and Jordan Morrison were selected as forwards while Mitch Ganzak and Elgin Reid were chosen as defensemen. The old record for most All-Rookie selections from a single team was two done by several teams including by Wheeling in 2005-06 when goalie Andy Franck and forward Sean Collins were both chosen.
Wheeling Nailers Most Goals in a Season:
62 - Darren Schwartz 92-93
56 - John Varga 96-97
54 - Darren Schwartz 93-94
46 - Devin Edgerton 92-93
43 - Bryan Ewing 08-09
42 - Steve Gibson 95-96
41 - Derek DeCosty 94-95
39 - Vadim Slivchenko 93-94
37 - Vadim Silvchenko 94-95
37 - Steve Gibson 94-95
37 - Jason Jaffray 03-04
35 - Samuel Groleau 95-96
Most Points in a Season:
117 - Devin Edgerton (92-93)
114 - Darren Schwartz (92-93)
101 - John Varga (96-97)
95 - Steve Gibson (95-96)
94 - Keli Corpse (95-96)
92 - Eric Royal (96-97)
92 - Darren Schwartz (93-94)
91 - Bryan Ewing (08-09)
Most Assists in a Season:
71 - Devin Edgerton (92-93)
62 - Keli Corpse (95-96)
61 - Eric Royal (96-97)
58 - Eduard Pershin (03-04)
58 - Louis Dumont (94-95)
58 - Tim Roberts (94-95)
58 - Tim Roberts (93-94)
57 - Tim Tisdale (93-94)
53 - Steve Gibson (95-96)
52 - Darren Schwartz (92-93)
48 - Bryan Ewing (08-09)
48 - Jordan Morrison (08-09)
Most Games, Season (Goalie)
59 - Andy Franck (06-07)
55 - Andy Franck (05-06)
49 - Curtis Darling (08-09)
47 - Joel Laing (00-01)
44 - Mike Valley (02-03)
43 - Joel Laing (01-02)
43 - Luciano Caravaggo (98-99)
43 - Brett Abel (93-94)
43 - Francis Ouellette (92-93)
Most Minutes, Season
3470 - Andy Franck (06-07)
3214 - Andy Franck (05-06)
2823 - Curtis Darling (08-09)
2614 - Joel Laing (00-01)
2439 - Mike Valley (02-03)
2381 - Joel Laing (01-02)
2376 - Francis Ouellette (92-93)
2358 - Brett Abel (93-94)
Most Saves, Season
1736 - Andy Franck (06-07)
1426 - Curtis Darling (08-09)
1378 - Andy Franck (05-06)
1351 - Joel Laing (01-02)
1294 - Mike Valley (02-03)
1283 - Joel Laing (00-01)
1202 - Brett Abel (93-94)
Most Wins, Season
33 - Andy Franck (05-06)
27 - Andy Franck (06-07)
26 - Geoff Finch (94-95)
23 - Olie Sundstrom (96-97)
21 - Curtis Darling (08-09)
20 - Nick Boucher (03-04)
20 - Joel Laing (01-02)
20 - Tomas Vokoun (95-96)
On The Air:
As always, you can catch all the action on the air on The Mix 97.3fm in Wheeling and the surrounding area and online at wheelingnailers.com. B2 has live video streaming of the game as well available via the wheelingnailers.com website. Broadcasts begin 20 minutes prior to game-time with the USA Steak Buffet Countdown to Faceoff including the Main Street Bank Coach's Conversation with Greg Puhalski. The Voice of the Nailers, Bob Rotruck, has all the exciting play-by-play action of every game. Former Wheeling Thunderbird defenseman Brock Woods provides color commentary on the home games. Chris Thoburn has interviews and scoreboard updates throughout the broadcasts.
Get Your Tickets Now!!
Tickets are on sale now for the Kelly Cup Playoffs! The Wheeling Nailers have schedule home games in their opening round series against Cincinnati for Saturday, April 10th and Wednesday April 15th in games 3 and 4 of their Best of 7 series. The Nailers would also host Game 5, if necessary, on Friday, April 17th.
Post-season playoff packages are available now. Purchase your 6-game playoff package that is good for the entire post-season. You get a discount vs. the gate price and any unused playoff credits are forwarded to the following season.
Season tickets are on sale now for the 2009-10 campaign. Reserve your season ticket for as low as $50. There are some great incentives to reserve your season ticket ahead of time. If you pay for your season ticket in full by May 1 the Nailers will give you free parking in the back lot for the season. Those who deposit $100 by May 1 will have the $18 arena fee waived.
For more information contact the Nailers at 304-234-GOAL (that's 234-4625) or log on at wheelingnailers.com.
ECHL Stories from April 15, 2009
- Steelheads fall to Salmon Kings - Idaho Steelheads
- Utah Upends Alaska in OT - Alaska Aces
- Nailers power hour returns Thursday night - Wheeling Nailers
- Nailers and Cyclones Playoffs Tied at 2-2 - Wheeling Nailers
- Cyclones Tie Series With Wheeling In 4-3 Victory! - Cincinnati Cyclones
- Devils Bitten by Jackals, 5-0 - Trenton Devils
- ECHL Transactions - ECHL
- Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre Brings Baby T-Rex To Victoria This Friday - Victoria Salmon Kings
- Wranglers Kelly Cup Daily - Las Vegas Wranglers
- Bakersfield Condors vs. Las Vegas Wranglers - Bakersfield Condors
- Game Preview (game 3): Stockton Thunder Vs. Ontario Reign - Stockton Thunder
- Visit the Bombers Official Online Store - Dayton Bombers
- James Sixsmith Returns To Grizzlies - Utah Grizzlies
- Playoff Game Four Tonight in Wheeling - Wheeling Nailers
- Six Former Grizzlies On NHL Playoff Rosters - Utah Grizzlies
- Kelly Cup Quest Daily - South Carolina Stingrays
- ECHL Today - ECHL
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