Nailers at Admirals Game Day Snap Shot, Dec. 19

WHEELING NAILERS(12-11-2-0, 26 PTS, T-5th Central, T-11th West)82 GF, 75 GAPP: 19.0% (20-for-105), 7thPK: 84.2% (96-for-114), 14th

NHL Affiliate: Pittsburgh PenguinsAHL Affiliate: Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins

13-F-Nick Saracino (11 goals, 18 assists, 29 points in 24 games)21-F-Cam Brown (7 goals, 19 assists, 26 points in 25 games)22-D-Kevin Spinozzi (8 goals, 13 assists, 21 points in 23 games)27-F-Zac Lynch (8 goals, 12 assists, 20 points in 25 games)17-F-Winston Day Chief (6 goals, 8 assists, 14 points in 23 games)23-F-Michael Phillips (6 goals, 8 assists, 14 points in 25 games)31-G-Jordan Ruby (3-1-1 record, 1.93 GAA, .932 Sv% in 5 games)

NORFOLK ADMIRALS(12-13-1-1, 26 PTS, 5th South, T-11th East)78 GF, 102 GAPP: 17.1% (21-for-114), T-14thPK: 85.9% (85-for-99), 8th

NHL Affiliate: Arizona CoyotesAHL Affiliate: Tucson Roadrunners

23-F-Taylor Cammarata (10 goals, 12 assists, 22 points in 27 games)12-F-Ben Duffy (6 goals, 15 assists, 21 points in 25 games)18-F-Luke Nogard (9 goals, 7 assists, 16 points in 20 games)5-D-Jalen Smereck (1 goal, 14 assists, 15 points in 26 games)52-D-TJ Melancon (5 goals, 9 assists, 14 points in 27 games)16-F-Connor Hurley (5 goals, 8 assists, 13 points in 25 games)33-G-Ty Reichenbach (9-10-1 record, 4.08 GAA, .889 Sv% in 20 games)

Head-to-HeadSeason Series: Nailers 1, Admirals 1Season Series at Norfolk Scope Arena: Admirals 1, Nailers 0All-Time Series: Nailers 8, Admirals 6All-Time Series at Norfolk Scope Arena: Admirals 5, Nailers 3

Six was the NumberThe Wheeling Nailers extended their point streak to six games on Sunday afternoon, and in doing so, their offense had a very good day, turning on the red light six times. Wheeling's offense came flying out of the gates, scoring twice in the first 2:27 of the contest against the Fort Wayne Komets, as Nick Saracino squeezed a shot through from the high slot, and Renars Krastenbergs slammed in a one-timer from in front of the net. The two teams then exchanged two goals each as the stanza went along, with the Nailers collecting their pair of strikes from difficult angles, as Cam Brown and Krastenbergs both banked attempts off goaltender Lukas Hafner. The Komets pulled to within a goal at the 11-second mark of period two, but a key insurance tally from Brown with 6:10 left in the game helped secure the 6-3 win for Wheeling. Zac Lynch put the finishing touches on that score with an empty netter, while Matt O'Connor made 35 saves.

Tossed Around Like Teddy BearsThe Norfolk Admirals were last in action on Saturday night, when they dropped a 5-1 decision to the Nailers at WesBanco Arena. The night started with the annual Teddy Bear Toss, as Zac Lynch snapped home a feed from Cam Brown on a 2-on-1 shorthanded break just 2:19 into the contest. Since then, the stuffed animals have been counted, and thanks to the generosity of the Wheeling community, 3,357 stuffed animals will become holiday presents for local children. After falling behind by two, the Admirals got on the scoreboard with Taylor Cammarata's second period power play goal, but that was the only time Norfolk was able to solve Matt O'Connor, who stopped 37 of the 38 shots he faced. In the goal crease for the Admirals, Brad Barone had a busy night, coming up with 39 saves on 44 shots, as he was the netminder of record for just the second time in the last 14 games.

A December to RememberCam Brown is playing at an incredibly high level for the Nailers, as his seven-game point streak has helped him become just the fifth player in ECHL history to win Player of the Week honors in consecutive weeks. However, it's not just a point here and a point there for Brown, who has multiple points in six of seven games during the run, including a pair of four-point tilts on December 9th against Indy and December 15th against Norfolk. With 18 points already, and six contests still remaining on the slate in December, Cam is on pace to earn the first 20-point month for a Wheeling player since Paul Crowder amassed 23 in March of 2013. Nick Saracino is also having an outstanding December, with 15 points during his seven-game point streak. The last time two Nailers reached the 20-point plateau in the same month was December of 2010, when Nick Petersen had 21 points and Ben Street had 20 points.

Battling the Injury BugOne of the areas that has hampered the Admirals in recent weeks has been the injury bug, and the results have shown, as Norfolk has lost six straight games to drop under .500 for the first time this season. In addition to having four players in the American Hockey League (Domenic Alberga, Darik Angeli, Merrick Madsen, Daniel Maggio), the Admirals have six players that were in the lineup on opening night against the Nailers, who have all missed games recently due to injury. 2015 ECHL All-Star Chris Crane has been out the longest, missing 17 straight games, while forward Matt McMorrow and defenseman Zane Schartz have missed ten and nine games respectively. Jacob Graves, John Gustafsson, and Patrick D'Amico have been more recent players to sit out, and because of the numbers piling up, Norfolk was forced to play with just 15 skaters in its lineup Friday at Toledo and Saturday at Wheeling.

Time to do Damage on the RoadWednesday night marks the third of five head-to-head meetings between the Nailers and Admirals this season, as well as the second of four battles at Norfolk Scope Arena. The home teams have taken the first two tilts of the set, as Norfolk prevailed 5-3 back on opening night, before Wheeling drew even with a 5-1 triumph on Saturday. Home ice advantage has played a big part in the series since the Admirals returned to the ECHL in 2015, as the home side has been victorious in seven of the last eight clashes and ten of 14 overall. This three-game trip to Virginia begins a stretch of five straight contests on the road for the Nailers, who will travel to Indy and Kalamazoo after the holiday break. Wheeling has already clinched a winning record against the South Division for the second straight season, coming into the last three matches with a 5-1-1 mark.