Wheeling Nailers Weekly Report, Dec. 5

Last Week

Wed. 11/30 WHEELING NAILERS 2 @ Reading Royals 4Wydo (Bubela)Wydo (unassisted)Anderson- 27/31

Fri. 12/2 Utah Grizzlies 4 @ WHEELING NAILERS 5Schulze (Wydo, Krause)Army (Schulze, Sorkin)Flemington (Kwas, Ammon)Army (Stern, Webster)Wydo (Hilbrich, Webster)Carr- 34/38

Sat. 12/3 Utah Grizzlies 1 @ WHEELING NAILERS 4Stern (Krause)Schulze (Shalla, McMullan)McMullan (Meurs, Ammon)Sorkin (Bubela, Carr)Carr- 27/28

Last week, the Wheeling Nailers took a short road trip, before coming back home and returning to their winning ways, improving to 11-6-2 with back-to-back victories over the Utah Grizzlies. On Wednesday night, Wheeling had a 2-1 lead after two periods in Reading, thanks to a pair of markers by Cody Wydo. Unfortunately, the third stanza didn't go as planned, as the Royals stormed back with three unanswered goals, swiping away a 4-2 win to pull into sole possession of third place in the North Division. On Friday night, the tilt got off to a rocky start, as the Nailers fell behind Utah 2-0 in the opening frame. However, Wheeling battled back to even the score, as Kevin Schulze and Derek Army both lit the lamp in the second period. Kyle Flemington's first professional goal in North America put the home team ahead 3-2, before the Grizzlies knotted things up with a power play goal moments later. Army's second of the night gave Wheeling another lead, and Wydo scored what turned out to be the winning goal with 1:17 remaining, as the Nailers prevailed, 5-4. On Saturday night, Wheeling took charge from the start, and never looked back. Brett Stern opened the scoring 42 seconds into the clash, and was followed less than three minutes later by Schulze. The Nailers also scored in the first minute of the second period, as Ross McMullan netted his first professional goal. Nick Sorkin added one more insurance tally for a 4-1 final score, giving Doug Carr the win in both weekend games between the pipes.

With the two wins over the weekend, Wheeling improved to 4-0-0 all-time against Utah, with all games having taken place at WesBanco Arena. The Nailers are currently five games over .500, which matches their high mark for the season. Wednesday's two-goal game in Reading added to Cody Wydo's success at Santander Arena, where he has also scored a hat trick and a triple overtime winning goal. Saturday's contest featured Wheeling's fastest goal to start a game this season (0:42), and the team's fastest goal to start a period this season (0:38). Three of Saturday's four goals and five of the nine goals tallied over the weekend were potted by defensemen. In addition to scoring his first professional goal, Ross McMullan added his first professional assist on Saturday for a two-point night. In Friday's game, the Nailers erased a two-goal deficit in a win, which was the second time that occurred in 2016-17, as well as the fourth comeback win of the year. Derek Army became the first player off of the opening night roster to earn a promotion to the AHL, when he was signed to a PTO by the Milwaukee Admirals on Saturday.

This Week

Fri. 12/9 WHEELING NAILERS @ Brampton Beast, 7:15Sun. 12/11 WHEELING NAILERS @ Brampton Beast, 2:00

This week, the Wheeling Nailers will head up the road for a couple of games, as they will do battle with their North Division opponent, the Brampton Beast. Wheeling currently owns a three-point lead over Brampton for fourth place in the North Division, and is four points behind the leaders, Manchester and Adirondack. The season series will nearly be half over at the end of the weekend, as the two sides will face-off for the fourth and fifth times in the 11-game set. After dropping a 3-2 overtime decision on opening night, the Nailers swept a home-and-home series against the Beast, winning 5-2 in Ontario and 6-5 in West Virginia. Kevin Schulze is the leading scorer in the first three games, as he has compiled seven points, including a four-point morning on Education Day. Former Nailer Luke Pither leads the way with five points for Brampton. Wheeling will look to continue its success in the Great White North, as it has gone 8-1-0 in Canada over the course of the last three seasons. Prior to the weekend, the Beast will play a morning game at home on Wednesday against the Indy Fuel, which will be the fourth of six morning games this season for Brampton.

Upcoming Home Games/PromotionsWed. 12/14- McDonald's $6 Kids TicketsFri. 12/16- Flat Screen Friday Presented by The Highlands, Frosty FridayTue. 12/20- McDonald's $6 Kids TicketsThu. 12/22- Ugly Sweater Holiday Party - Wear Your Ugly Sweater to the Game, McDonald's $6 Kids Tickets, Appearance by SantaSat. 12/31- New Year's Eve Presented by Wheeling Island Hotel, Casino, Racetrack, Throwback Night, Nailers Wear Thunderbirds Jerseys, All Tickets are $10, Bam Bam Sticks Giveaway (all), Wine Tasting

Nailers LeadersGoals: 10, Josh ShallaAssists: 14, Kevin SchulzePoints: 18, Kevin SchulzePenalty Minutes: 31, Garrett MeursPlus/Minus: +12, Kevin SchulzeWins: 7, Doug CarrGoals Against Average: 2.16, JP AndersonSave Percentage: .927, JP AndersonShutouts: 1, JP Anderson

North Division Standings1. Manchester Monarchs 13-7-1-1, 28 pts.2. Adirondack Thunder 12-4-1-3, 28 pts.3. Reading Royals 12-8-1-1, 26 pts.4. WHEELING NAILERS 11-6-2-0, 24 pts.5. Brampton Beast 9-7-1-2, 21 pts.6. Elmira Jackals 5-10-4-0, 14 pts.