ECHL Wheeling Nailers

Thunderbirds vs. Beast Game Day Snap Shot

Published on January 2, 2016 under ECHL (ECHL)
Wheeling Nailers News Release


One is a Start

The Wheeling Nailers have battled through some difficult situations over the past few weeks, with as many as 11 different players making their way to the AHL and another four missing games due to injury. On Thursday night, the Nailers stared adversity in the face, and earned a point for the first time in four games, battling back from a 3-1 deficit, before falling to the Brampton Beast, 4-3 in overtime. After Brampton opened the scoring, Matia Marcantuoni responded for Wheeling, banking a shot off of Edward Pasquale's skate from the right corner. In the third period, the goals came from Anton Zlobin and Andrew Cerretani, both of which were set up by Mathew Maione, who had two points in his first contest against his former club. Franky Palazzese made his fifth straight start in goal, stopping 22 of the 26 shots he faced.

Masters of the Extra Session

The Brampton Beast were once again involved in a game in which sixty minutes wasn't enough time to decide a winner. Thursday was Brampton's fourth straight game which required bonus hockey, as well as the sixth in its last seven tilts. Three of those last four have gone in favor of the Beast, including New Year's Eve, as Brandon Marino's breakaway goal at 1:01 of overtime snapped a 3-3 tie, lifting the visitors to victory. The winner was Marino's second in five days, following Sunday's wild comeback against Reading. Scott Howes, Jordan Henry, and Jeff Brown scored in regulation for Brampton, who received a 31-save performance in goal from Edward Pasquale. Each of the last three wins for the Beast have come in overtime, with their last regulation triumph occurring on December 6th against Kalamazoo.

Talk About an Introduction

Forward Andrew Cerretani made his professional debut for the Nailers on Thursday night, and although the final score didn't go in the team's favor, it was a special moment for him. The 23-year old New Hampshire native netted the tying goal in the third period for Wheeling, ultimately forcing overtime. Cerretani becomes the second player this season to score in his debut, joining Matt Tabrum, who completed the feat exactly three weeks earlier. However, Andrew wasn't the only Nailer to light the lamp for the first time in 2015-16, as Matia Marcantuoni and Anton Zlobin also found the back of the net. Marcantuoni had scored a goal earlier in the year with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins, while Zlobin ended a 32-game regular season goal scoring drought, which dated back to the 2013-14 campaign. Anton was limited to just six games last season, due to injury.

Preparing for the Celebration

For one night only, hometown fans will get to relive some glorious moments of the past, as the team will take the ice in throwback Thunderbirds jerseys for Saturday night's game. Wheeling's professional hockey team was known as the Thunderbirds from 1992-96, before a name change put the Nailers onto the ice at the start of the 1996-97 season. Coming up in October, the organization will celebrate its 25th season of professional hockey in the Ohio Valley, as the team remembers all of its previous successes, while continuing to look forward toward the evolution of the present and future.

It's a Rematch

Saturday night marks the fifth of nine head-to-head meetings between the Nailers and Beast this season, as well as the fourth of five battles at WesBanco Arena. Road teams have had the historical edge, as Wheeling came out with the victory in three of its four trips to Canada last season, as well as its only game there this year, while Brampton has returned the favor with wins in two of three visits to West Virginia in 2015-16. Thursday's clash was the first time that the two North Division rivals needed extra hockey to settle the score, as the game was deadlocked at three. Three of the eight all-time tilts have now been decided by one goal, while the other five have all had margins of victory of at least three. Following Saturday, the Beast will travel to the Ohio Valley once more, while the Nailers still have three trips left to Powerade Centre.

Wheeling Thunderbirds (14-12-2-2, 32 Pts.) vs. Brampton Beast (11-15-3-1, 26 Pts.)

WHEELING THUNDERBIRDS

(14-12-2-2, 32 PTS, 2nd North, 10th East)

90 GF, 94 GA

PP: 14.6% (19-for-130), 23rd

PK: 81.9% (95-for-116), 17th

20-F-Jarrett Burton (11 goals, 15 assists, 26 points in 30 games)

18-D-Mathew Maione (5 goals, 15 assists, 20 points in 28 games)

27-D-Brett Stern (5 goals, 8 assists, 13 points in 30 games)

4-D-Paul Cianfrini (10 assists, 10 points in 30 games)

17-F-Anton Zlobin (1 goal, 7 assists, 8 points in 14 games)

11-F-Cody Wydo (5 goals, 1 assist, 6 points in 17 games)

29-G-Franky Palazzese (8-7-2 record, 3.01 GAA, .898 Sv% in 17 games)

BRAMPTON BEAST

(11-15-3-1, 26 PTS, 4th North, 13th East)

83 GF, 103 GA

PP: 20.8% (25-for-120), 4th

PK: 77.8% (105-for-135), 25th

22-F-Brandon Marino (9 goals, 24 assists, 33 points in 30 games)

18-D-Mike Vernace (2 goals, 20 assists, 22 points in 25 games)

5-D-Jeremie Blain (2 goals, 20 assists, 22 points in 30 games)

13-F-Scott Howes (11 goals, 10 assists, 21 points in 23 games)

16-F-Chris Auger (10 goals, 9 assists, 19 points in 26 games)

11-F-Luke Pither (8 goals, 6 assists, 14 points in 17 games)

40-G-Edward Pasquale (4-5-2 record, 3.27 GAA, .896 Sv% in 11 games)

Head to Head

Season Series: Nailers 2, Beast 2

Season Series at WesBanco Arena: Beast 2, Nailers 1

All-Time Series: Nailers 5, Beast 3

All-Time Series at WesBanco Arena: Beast 2, Nailers 1

Check out the Wheeling Nailers Statistics

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ECHL Stories from January 2, 2016


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