Wheeling Nailers Weekly Report, Mar. 6

Last Week

Fri. 3/3 WHEELING NAILERS 3 @ Indy Fuel 2 (overtime)Carrier (Cutting, Hilbrich)Currier (McMullan, Kwas)Wydo (Schulze)Carr- 21/23

Sat. 3/4 WHEELING NAILERS 3 @ Fort Wayne Komets 4Meurs (Webster, Currier)Wydo (Krause, Schulze)Quinney (Sorkin, Schulze)Carr- 33/37

Sun. 3/5 WHEELING NAILERS 1 @ Fort Wayne Komets 2Quinney (Wydo)Maguire- 41/43

Last week, the Wheeling Nailers ended their difficult seven-game road trip by picking up one win in three tilts in the State of Indiana. That triumph came in dramatic fashion on Friday night, as the Nailers made their second and final visit to Indiana Farmers Coliseum. Alexandre Carrier had a busy first period, as he scored his first goal in a Wheeling uniform, while dropping the gloves as well. The Indy Fuel battled back to take a 2-1 lead, before Tyler Currier knotted things up for the Nailers, which eventually forced overtime. In the extra session, Cody Wydo was the hero, as he roofed a shot past his college teammate Eric Levine, giving Wheeling the 3-2 decision. On Saturday night, the Nailers surrendered an early goal to the Fort Wayne Komets, but stormed back to lit the lamp three times in a row, including twice in the second period on the man advantage. The tallies came from Garrett Meurs, Wydo, and Gage Quinney. Unfortunately, the third period took a different turn, as the Komets responded with a three-spot, including the game winner on the power play with under two minutes to go for a 4-3 final score. On Sunday, Sean Maguire and Pat Nagle put on a nice show from the crease, limiting each team to one goal in the first two stanzas. Wheeling's marker came from Quinney. However, the game was decided at the 26-second mark of the third period, when Fort Wayne potted a power play goal for a 2-1 win.

Despite the 1-2 record last week, the Nailers gained ground in the March to the Playoffs, as they pulled to within six points of the Adirondack Thunder for fourth place in the North Division. Friday night was Wheeling's second overtime win in 2016-17, and the eighth time in nine games that a tilt has gone past regulation, but not required a shootout. The deciding goal was scored by Cody Wydo, who is tied for the team lead with Nick Sorkin, as both players have accumulated five game winning goals this season. That was also Wydo's third career overtime tally with the Nailers, as he had one in the regular season and one in the playoffs last year. All three players involved in the Wheeling-Indy trade earlier this season (Currier, Cutting, Shalla) earned at least one point on Friday. Garrett Meurs scored in all but one visit to his former home building - Allen County War Memorial Coliseum in Fort Wayne. The home team won all five games in the season series between the Nailers and Komets, extending the all-time streak to seven consecutive contests, dating back to the 2014-15 campaign. Wheeling has been involved in five straight one-goal games, and seven of its last eight matches have featured one-goal differentials.

This Week

Fri. 3/10 Quad City Mallards @ WHEELING NAILERS, 7:35Sat. 3/11 Quad City Mallards @ WHEELING NAILERS, 7:05Sun. 3/12 Toledo Walleye @ WHEELING NAILERS, 5:05

This week, the Wheeling Nailers will return to the comforts of home at WesBanco Arena for the first time since the middle of February, where they will take the ice for three games in three days. The first two games on the docket are Friday and Saturday night against the Quad City Mallards. Wheeling has fared well against Quad City thus far this season, sweeping a pair of 3-2 results at iWireless Center in November, before securing a 5-2 victory in West Virginia on January 27th. The Mallards have had an interesting season, as they made a coaching change during the middle of January, dismissing Terry Ruskowski in favor of Phil Axtell. On the ice, Quad City has responded well to the changes, as it currently resides in third place in the Central Division, leading Kalamazoo by three points and Tulsa by nine points, while holding games in hand against both clubs. On Sunday, the Nailers will host the only team that has clinched a spot in the 2017 Kelly Cup Playoffs thus far - the Toledo Walleye. The season series between Wheeling and Toledo has been a classic this season, as the Walleye have a 5-4 lead, with both teams winning once in overtime. The road clubs won the first two games of the set, before home ice became a huge advantage, leading to seven in a row for the team defending its den. Toledo has a seven-point lead over Fort Wayne for the top spot in the Central Division, and a one-point edge over Colorado in the race for the Brabham Cup.

Upcoming Home Games/PromotionsFri. 3/10- Flat Screen Friday Presented by The Highlands, Frosty FridaySat. 3/11- Duck Dynasty Night Starring John Godwin & Justin Martin, Camouflage Hat Giveaway (First 2,500 Fans), St. Baldrick's NightSun. 3/12- Youth Hockey Day, Family Funday, McDonald's $6 Kids Tickets, Post Game Skate With the TeamWed. 3/22- WesBanco Winning Wednesday, McDonald's $6 Kids TicketsFri. 3/24- Mascot Night, Flat Screen Friday Presented by The Highlands, Frosty Friday

Nailers LeadersGoals: 25, Cody WydoAssists: 39, Kevin SchulzePoints: 48, Kevin SchulzePenalty Minutes: 96, Garrett MeursPlus/Minus: +20, Christian HilbrichWins: 14, Doug CarrGoals Against Average: 3.12, Sean MaguireSave Percentage: .900, Sean MaguireShutouts: 2, Sean Maguire

March to the Playoffs1. Manchester Monarchs- 73 points, 14 games remaining. This Week: 3/10 vs. ADK, 3/11 at ADK, 3/12 vs. NOR2. Reading Royals- 71 points, 14 games remaining. This Week: 3/9 at BRM, 3/10 at BRM, 3/11 at ELM3. Brampton Beast- 71 points, 15 games remaining. This Week: 3/9 vs. REA, 3/10 vs. REA, 3/12 at ADK4. Adirondack Thunder- 68 points, 15 games remaining. This Week: 3/10 at MAN, 3/11 vs. MAN, 3/12 vs. BRM5. WHEELING NAILERS- 62 points, 15 games remaining. This Week: 3/10 vs. QC, 3/11 vs. QC, 3/12 vs. TOL