Nailers at Wings Game Day Snap Shot

WHEELING NAILERS(28-22-4-0, 60 PTS, 4th North, 6th East)192 GF, 181 GAPP: 20.3% (46-for-227), 2ndPK: 80.8% (173-for-214), 22nd

8-F-Nick Sorkin (6 goals, 37 assists, 43 points in 52 games)23-F-Garrett Meurs (18 goals, 24 assists, 42 points in 47 games)14-F-Riley Bourbonnais (18 goals, 14 assists, 32 points in 49 games)5-D-Danny Fick (1 goal, 17 assists, 18 points in 51 games)2-D-Nolan Descoteaux (1 goal, 15 assists, 16 points in 43 games)6-D-Dan Milan (4 goals, 10 assists, 14 points in 53 games)30-G-Colin Stevens (2-2-2 record, 3.57 GAA, .894 Sv% in 8 games)

KALAMAZOO WINGS(26-21-3-2, 57 PTS, 4th Central, 7th West)193 GF, 189 GAPP: 19.8% (42-for-212), 4thPK: 81.5% (145-for-178), 20th

19-F-Josh Pitt (21 goals, 18 assists, 39 points in 44 games)20-F-Brendan Bradley (12 goals, 26 assists, 38 points in 52 games)7-D-Kyle Bushee (9 goals, 26 assists, 35 points in 49 games)44-D-Aaron Irving (9 goals, 25 assists, 34 points in 40 games)26-F-Tyler Biggs (16 goals, 17 assists, 33 points in 39 games)23-F-Jimmy Mullin (16 goals, 15 assists, 31 points in 48 games)49-G-Joel Martin (18-12-4 record, 3.24 GAA, .899 Sv% in 35 games)

Head to HeadSeason Series: Nailers 1, Wings 0Season Series at Wings Event Center: First MeetingAll-Time Series: Nailers 27, Wings 24All-Time Series at Wings Event Center: Nailers 12, Wings 12

Turning the PageThe Wheeling Nailers are coming off of their roughest loss of the season, as they were blanked 6-0 by the Reading Royals on Sunday afternoon at Santander Arena. Wheeling took the ice with 15 skaters, as call-ups and injuries certainly left their mark on the roster, and the Royals took advantage. Alex Krushelnyski and Matt Willows got the scoring started with goals 1:06 apart from each other during the opening stanza. In the early stages of period two, Brian Morgan and Steven Swavely ended Adam Morrison's day, despite Morrison making three breakaway saves out of his 12 total stops. Nolan Zajac converted on a late power play in the middle frame, before Krushelnyski's second of the afternoon capped the scoring in the third period. Colin Stevens was 9-of-11 in relief for the Nailers, playing in his first game since January 12th. Branden Komm recorded back-to-back shutouts in his first two starts for Reading, coming up with 25 saves on Sunday.

Couldn't Close out the 'ClonesThe Kalamazoo Wings picked up a point for the first time in five games on Sunday, and were in good position to skate away with a win against the Cincinnati Cyclones at U.S. Bank Arena. Lane Scheidl was the lone player to light the lamp in the first period, as he gave Kalamazoo an early lead. Cincinnati came back from that, as well as a 2-1 score, which was created by Brendan Bradley's marker at the 6:18 mark of the middle frame. The Wings went on to put themselves in a better position, as J.T. Stenglein and Josh Pitt scored 38 seconds apart for a 4-2 advantage, despite 22 shots in the second period by the Cyclones. Daniel Muzito-Bagenda scored 36 seconds into the third period, and Eric Knodel followed with the equalizer at 7:15, forcing overtime. In the extra session, Eric Diodati netted his first professional goal, propelling Cincinnati into the win column, 5-4. Jonas Johnansson beat Michael Garteig in goal, with Garteig making 43 saves.

Look for Special Teams to Play a PartTwo of the better power plays in the ECHL will clash on Wednesday night, as the Nailers bring their league-leading 46 tallies and second place 20.3% success rate to Kalamazoo, where the Wings have clicked at a 19.8% clip, placing them fourth in the league. Wheeling is one of only three teams in the ECHL with a power play percentage greater than 20, and will be looking to end a three-game drought on the man advantage. One interesting note about Kalamazoo's power play is the amount of goals that have gone in the other way. The Wings are tied for the third most shorthanded goals allowed in the league, surrendering 11. The two teams rank 22nd (Wheeling) and 20th (Kalamazoo) on the penalty kill respectively. Kalamazoo scored the lone marker on the man advantage during the game on January 24th - the only time this season that the Nailers have secured a win when the opponent scores on the power play and they don't.

We Know Them, but They May Not Know UsThe transactions continue to fly in at an incredibly high rate for the Nailers, who will have three new players in the lineup on Wednesday night. The first is defenseman Nolan Descoteaux, who was acquired in a trade with the Indy Fuel, and of the three, he is the most experienced at the ECHL level, having appeared in 216 games. Descoteaux was a member of the 2015 Kelly Cup Champion Allen Americans, who defeated the South Carolina Stingrays in seven games to capture the title. Next is another experienced blueliner in Nick Schneider, who is approaching his 500th career game in five different leagues. Finally, Wheeling acquired forward Daniel Tedesco from the Idaho Steelheads. Tedesco has split his rookie season between the ECHL and SPHL. These will be the 43rd, 44th, and 45th players to suit up for the Nailers this season. The Wings haven't seen nearly this much movement with their roster this season, using 26 players in their first 52 games.

Only Trip to the ZooWednesday night marks the second and final head-to-head meeting between the Nailers and Wings this season, as well as the lone battle at Wings Event Center. Wheeling enjoyed tremendous success in the lone prior clash, dusting Kalamazoo, 6-2 at WesBanco Arena on January 24th. Reid Gardiner tucked in a couple of goals that evening, while Nick Sorkin and Jeff Taylor both posted three-point games. The Nailers are looking for their second straight season series win against the Wings, after coming away victorious in seven of the ten tilts played in 2016-17. This is the shortest season set played between Wheeling and Kalamazoo since the Wings joined the ECHL in 2009. There were three games played during the 2011-12 and 2012-13 campaigns. Both teams enter play in fourth place in their respective divisions, and Kalamazoo has two former Nailers on its roster - defenseman Kyle Bushee and forward Tyler Biggs.