Wheeling Nailers Weekly Report, Nov. 13

Last Week

Fri. 11/10 Toledo Walleye 3 @ WHEELING NAILERS 4 (overtime)Fejes (Ryan)Gardiner (Wydo, Taylor)Wydo (Bourbonnais, Sorkin)Gardiner (Schulze)Maguire- 30/33

Sat. 11/11 WHEELING NAILERS 3 @ Toledo Walleye 5Army (Gardiner, Schulze)Tiffels (Taylor, Army)Wydo (Gardiner)Maguire- 23/27 (1 en)

Sun. 11/12 Norfolk Admirals 3 @ WHEELING NAILERS 5Meurs (Brown)Brown (Bourbonnais, Fick)Meurs (Tiffels)Wydo (Schulze)Fejes (Tiffels, Brown)King- 39/42

Last week, the Wheeling Nailers played their first stretch of three games in three days, and they came out of it on the plus side, going 2-1-0, by winning both of their home contests. On Friday night, the Nailers grabbed a 2-0 lead on goals by Hunter Fejes and Reid Gardiner, before Cody Wydo helped the home side build a 3-1 lead in the third period. The Toledo Walleye battled back to force overtime, but Wheeling had the final say, as Reid Gardiner netted the winning tally at the 3:12 mark of the extra session for a 4-3 final. On Saturday night, the Nailers struck first again in the back end of the home-and-home series, as Derek Army blasted in a shot during a two-man advantage. Toledo scored three straight goals to pull ahead, but Wheeling hung right in there, tying the match on goals by Freddie Tiffels and Wydo. However, the Walleye prevailed 5-3, breaking the deadlock, then adding an empty netter. On Sunday afternoon, the Nailers made their way back into the win column against the Norfolk Admirals. Garrett Meurs scored twice, and Cam Brown added a marker for a quick 3-0 advantage. Norfolk clawed back to within one, but Wheeling was in control, punctuating its eventual 5-3 win with third period strikes from Wydo and Hunter Fejes. Will King made 39 saves for the win on Sunday, after Sean Maguire went 1-1-0 to start the weekend.

The Nailers are 3-0-1 at home and 7-2-2 overall. The 16 standings points are tied for the second most through the first 11 games in team history, trailing only the 2005-06 squad, who began the year 9-2-0. Wheeling has had the lead in ten of its 11 games, and earned a point by battling back to tie the one anomaly. The Nailers continue to own the best power play in the ECHL, although the penalty kill recently went through a hot run, shutting down 19 straight opposition man advantages from November 3rd-11th. Reid Gardiner opened up his ECHL career by recording a point in ten straight games - a streak which ended during Sunday afternoon's win. Cody Wydo is right on Gardiner's heels, having picked up a point in eight consecutive contests. Gardiner and Wydo are tied for second in the league with 17 points, and Gardiner leads the way with four game winning goals. There were a few firsts achieved over the weekend - Jeff Taylor recorded an assist for his first professional point on Friday, Freddie Tiffels scored his first career goal on Saturday, and Will King backstopped his first ECHL win on Sunday.

This Week

Tue. 11/14 Adirondack Thunder @ WHEELING NAILERS, 10:45 a.m.Fri. 11/17 WHEELING NAILERS @ Norfolk Admirals, 7:00Sat. 11/18 WHEELING NAILERS @ Norfolk Admirals, 7:00

This week, the Wheeling Nailers will be right back at it, as they will hit the ice for the first Education Day game of the season on Tuesday morning. The opponent for that tilt is the Adirondack Thunder, who make their first visit to WesBanco Arena since October 30, 2015. Adirondack earned a 4-1 decision that night, but the Nailers have had good success on the road against the Thunder, going 3-0-1 in the past two seasons. This year's Adirondack team is right in the thick of things in a tightly packed North Divsion, as the Thunder and Nailers are tied for second place, trailing Manchester by only two points. Adirondack's leading scorer is a familiar name, as 2015-16 Wheeling forward Ty Loney has nine goals and 15 points in 13 games. On Friday and Saturday nights, Wheeling see the Norfolk Admirals for the second and third time in less than a week, but this time, the contests will take place at Norfolk Scope. Since the Admirals returned to the ECHL, the Nailers are 2-2-0 in Virginia, which includes a 9-2 triumph last season. Norfolk lost both of its road games against the North Division last weekend, but still sits in fifth place in the South Division, despite a 3-9-1 record.

Upcoming Home Games/PromotionsTue. 11/14- Education Day #1, Thundersticks Giveaway (all)Wed. 11/22- Animal House Night, Glass Beer Stein Giveaway (first 1,500 adults), WesBanco Winning WednesdaySat. 11/25- Teddy Bear Toss NightFri. Dec. 1- Frosty FridaySat. Dec. 2- Star Wars Night, Light Saber Giveaway (first 2,500 fans), Nailers Wear Special Jerseys

Nailers LeadersGoals: 10, Reid GardinerAssists: 12, Cam Brown & Cody WydoPoints: 17, Reid Gardiner & Cody WydoPenalty Minutes: 36, Garrett MeursPlus/Minus: +6, Garrett Meurs & Zach TolkinenWins: 4, Sean MaguireGoals Against Average: 3.27, Colin StevensSave Percentage: .907, Colin StevensShutouts: 0

North Division Standings1. Manchester Monarchs 8-3-1-1, 18 pts.2. WHEELING NAILERS 7-2-2-0, 16 pts.3. Adirondack Thunder 7-4-1-1, 16 pts.4. Reading Royals 6-3-1-0, 13 pts.5. Worcester Railers 5-5-1-0, 11 pts.6. Brampton Beast 4-7-1-1, 10 pts.