Nailers at Komets Game Day Snap Shot

WHEELING NAILERS(16-11-2-0, 34 PTS, T-2nd North, T-4th East)104 GF, 92 GAPP: 22.4% (28-for-125), 1stPK: 80.3% (98-for-122), 23rd

11-F-Cody Wydo (13 goals, 17 assists, 30 points in 26 games)23-F-Garrett Meurs (13 goals, 14 assists, 27 points in 26 games)21-F-Cam Brown (4 goals, 23 assists, 27 points in 29 games)24-F-Reid Gardiner (13 goals, 13 assists, 26 points in 29 games)18-F-Hunter Fejes (15 goals, 8 assists, 23 points in 29 games)26-D-Kevin Schulze (2 goals, 8 assists, 10 points in 16 games)1-G-Will King (4-1-1 record, 2.93 GAA, .922 Sv% in 6 games)

FORT WAYNE KOMETS(17-8-2-0, 36 PTS, 2nd Central, 6th West)109 GF, 81 GAPP: 20.4% (19-for-93), 3rdPK: 83.5% (96-for-115), 13th

27-F-Shawn Szydlowski (14 goals, 19 assists, 33 points in 23 games)48-F-Garrett Thompson (14 goals, 17 assists, 31 points in 27 games)13-F-Artur Tyanulin (9 goals, 13 assists, 22 points in 16 games)4-D-Jason Binkley (3 goals, 17 assists, 20 points in 26 games)14-F-Gabriel Desjardins (11 goals, 8 assists, 19 points in 18 games)55-D-Ryan Culkin (6 goals, 12 assists, 18 points in 27 games)41-G-Michael Houser (12-6-2 record, 2.76 GAA, .905 Sv% in 21 games)

Head to HeadSeason Series: Komets 1, Nailers 0Season Series at Allen County War Memorial Coliseum: First MeetingAll-Time Series: Komets 9, Nailers 8All-Time Series at Allen County War Memorial Coliseum: Komets 6, Nailers 4

A Pile of Coal for the BeastThe Wheeling Nailers entered the holiday break with an excellent performance on home ice, as they trounced the Brampton Beast, 6-2 in a key North Division contest. For the second straight game, Wheeling scored within the first two minutes, as Riley Bourbonnais converted on a shorthanded breakaway. Later in the frame, Hunter Fejes crashed the net, tapping home the rebound of Ross McMullan's initial shot. The Nailers added to their lead in the middle frame, as Jaynen Rissling wired in a one-timer from the left circle, which was set up by Cam Brown. Brampton briefly pulled to within three, before Fejes, Bourbonnais, and Reid Gardiner iced the triumph in the final stanza. Will King was the victorious netminder, as he turned aside 37 of 39 shots, beating Zachary Fucale, who gave up five goals on 26 shots.

Struggling with CincinnatiThe Fort Wayne Komets are coming off of a game against a team that has been a thorn in their sides, as the Cincinnati Cyclones beat them for the fourth time in a row. Fort Wayne built a 2-1 lead in the second period on goals by Logan Nelson and Artur Tyanulin, before the Cyclones rallied to take a 3-2 advantage. Marc-Olivier Roy proceeded to tie the score with eight seconds left in the stanza, sending the tilt to intermission deadlocked, 3-3. With less than eight minutes to go, the Komets ran into penalty trouble, and Cincinnati made them pay, as Justin Vaive poked in a goal during a two-man advantage with 5:39 left, putting the home team ahead for good. Vaive then put the icing on the cake with an empty netter for a 5-3 final. Anthony Peters made 19 saves in the win, getting the better of former Cyclone Michael Houser, who stopped 28 shots in the defeat.

A Busy Month AheadThe next 31 days will be one of the busiest stretches of the season for the Nailers, who will take the ice for 17 games, while battling in the tightest division in the ECHL. Wheeling will play three games in three days during four of the next five weekends, while slotting in three Wednesday night games. Fans in the Ohio Valley will get plenty of chances to see their hometown squad, as 11 of the 17 contests will be played at WesBanco Arena. As far as opponents are concerned, there isn't a heavy overload, as there will be eight games against the North Division, six games against the Central Division, and three games against the South Division. Manchester will be the most popular opponent of the month, appearing on the slate four times. After January, the Nailers will play just one 3-in-3 for the remainder of the season.

A Homecoming for SomeTwo members of the Nailers used to call Fort Wayne "home" during their careers, and while one has returned to town in a visiting sweater before, another will get his first chance to do so on Friday. The latter is Dan Milan, who registered nine points in 61 games with the Komets last season. Milan is having a strong start to his sixth professional season, collecting three goals and seven points in 29 games, while posting a +9 rating (best among Wheeling defensemen). One of those goals was scored against Fort Wayne earlier in the month. The other former Komet on the Nailers side is Garrett Meurs, who has four goals and six points in five games against his former club. After Pittsburgh and Arizona orchestrated a trade, Fort Wayne nearly had a former Wheeling player on its roster, but goaltender Sean Maguire was assigned to the Tucson Roadrunners on Wednesday.

Braving the JungleFriday night marks the second of six head-to-head meetings between the Nailers and Komets this season, as well as the first of two battles at Allen County War Memorial Coliseum. Fort Wayne took the opening match of the set, 3-2 at WesBanco Arena on December 3rd, as Garrett Thompson snapped a 2-2 tie with 6:46 left in the second period, and Michael Houser shut the door with 40 saves. The victory by the Komets ended a seven-game winning streak for the home sides, dating back to the 2014-15 campaign. Last year, Wheeling prevailed in comeback fashion during its lone home tilt, while coming up empty in four trips to "The Jungle." The Nailers last collected a win in Fort Wayne on January 2, 2015, courtesy of a shootout goal by Shawn Skelly. The Komets visit Wheeling next on January 7th, while the Nailers will play their last game of the regular season in Fort Wayne.