Wheeling Nailers Weekly Report, Feb. 26

Last Week

Wed. 2/21 WHEELING NAILERS 5 @ Kalamazoo Wings 6 (overtime)Meurs (Sorkin, Vankleef)Bourbonnais (Tedesco, Milan)Vankleef (Meurs, Schneider)Bourbonnais (Tedesco, Basara)Sorkin (Meurs)Stevens- 46/52

Sun. 2/25 WHEELING NAILERS 2 @ Adirondack Thunder 3 (overtime)Tiffels (McMullan, Josephs)Tiffels (Basara, Sorkin)Stevens- 22/25

Last week, the Wheeling Nailers completed the first half of their season-high six-game road trip, picking up points in back-to-back contests. On Wednesday night, the Nailers fell behind 1-0 to the Kalamazoo Wings, but Garrett Meurs' goal in the dying seconds of the first period gave the team tons of momentum. Wheeling lit the lamp three straight times in the middle frame, as Riley Bourbonnais notched two goals and Tyler Vankleef potted his first marker in a Nailers uniform. Nick Sorkin found the back of the net in the third period, but unfortunately, the star of the night was on the other side of the ice, as Aaron Irving scored four goals, including the game winner, as the Wings rallied for a 6-5 overtime triumph. On Sunday afternoon, Wheeling erased a 2-0 deficit against the Adirondack Thunder, as Freddie Tiffels returned from the AHL with a goal in the final minute of the second period and the equalizer at the 3:48 mark of the third. However, in the last minute of overtime, Desmond Bergin scored on a breakaway, giving the Thunder the 3-2 decision.

The Nailers have earned at least one point in six of their last nine road games (4-3-2), and are 12-12-4 on the road overall, with eight games remaining away from WesBanco Arena. Wheeling currently sits in fourth place in the North Division, four points back of Reading and seven points ahead of Worcester. Colin Stevens played in both games last week, with Wednesday being his first start with the Nailers since January 12th. Wheeling has earned at least one point in six of Stevens' eight decisions, with five of those eight tilts requiring overtime to be decided. In Sunday's game, the Nailers allowed just two shots on goal in the second period to Adirondack - the fewest shots on goal allowed by the team in a period this season. Nolan Descoteaux, Andrew Schmit, Nick Schneider, Daniel Tedesco, Kyle Thacker, and Dylan Vander Esch all made their Wheeling debuts last week, bringing the season total to 48 different players with at least one game played this season.

This Week

Wed. 2/28 WHEELING NAILERS @ Manchester Monarchs, 7:00Fri. 3/2 WHEELING NAILERS @ Worcester Railers, 7:05Sat. 3/3 WHEELING NAILERS @ Worcester Railers, 7:05

This week, the Wheeling Nailers will make their second trip of the season to New England, after going 2-1-0 against the same two teams in the middle of January. On Wednesday night, the Nailers will look for their first ever win at SNHU Arena, as they battle the Manchester Monarchs, who lead the North Division with 71 points. Wheeling has split the first four games of its set against the Monarchs, winning 7-4 and 4-2, while falling 5-2 and 3-2. Manchester went 1-1-1 last week, playing all three games at home, and would be the first round opponent for Wheeling if the playoffs began today. On Friday and Saturday, the Nailers will try to add to their seven-point lead over the Worcester Railers, before the two teams meet at WesBanco Arena on March 7th. Wheeling and Worcester will play each other five times in 20 days, and so far, the Nailers have had good success, winning three of four head-to-head matches. The Railers won two of three games last week, as they finished a six-game road trip, going 3-2-1. Wheeling is about to knock off another historical milestone, as it begins the week with 1,999 standings points all-time.

Upcoming Home Games/PromotionsWed. Mar. 7- Education Day Game #2 (10:45 a.m. start)Fri. Mar. 9- Ladies Night, Pregame Wine Tasting Event, Frosty FridaySat. Mar. 10- Pittsburgh Penguins Night, See the Stanley Cup, Carter Rowney Bobblehead Giveaway (first 2,500 fans), Nailers Wear Special JerseysFri. Mar. 23- Can Koozie Giveaway (first 2,000 fans), Frosty FridaySat. Mar. 24- Charity Night for WVU Children's Hospital

Nailers LeadersGoals: 26, Reid GardinerAssists: 39, Nick SorkinPoints: 50, Cody WydoPenalty Minutes: 108, Garrett Meurs & Dan MilanPlus/Minus: +13, Riley BourbonnaisWins: 12, Adam MorrisonGoals Against Average: 3.20, Adam MorrisonSave Percentage: .904, Adam MorrisonShutouts: 0

North Division Standings1. Manchester Monarchs 33-17-3-2, 71 pts.2. Adirondack Thunder 31-20-3-3, 68 pts.3. Reading Royals 31-20-4-0, 66 pts.4. WHEELING NAILERS 28-22-6-0, 62 pts.5. Worcester Railers 24-22-4-3, 55 pts.6. Brampton Beast 20-25-6-3, 49 pts.