WHEELING, WV- The streaks were fun while they lasted, but unfortunately, they came to an end on Friday night at WesBanco Arena. Goaltender Jan Bednar was perfect on 25 shots and Tyler Spezia scored twice, as the Toledo Walleye blanked the Wheeling Nailers, 4-0. The setback ended Wheeling's 13-game winning streak, 16-game point streak, and ten-game home point streak.
One goal was scored in the opening stanza, and it came from Toledo at the 3:50 mark. Conlan Keenan entered the offensive zone, and dished a pass to his left. Tyler Spezia accepted the feed, navigated his way to the bottom of the left circle, and sifted a shot through Taylor Gauthier's legs. Another highlight from the first period was a fight by Matthew Quercia, who was challenged by Dalton Messina, after Quercia delivered a punishing check on Matt Anderson.
The score remained 1-0 until the early stages of the third period, when the Walleye extended their lead. Brandon Kruse stole the puck in the slot, and fed Sam Craggs, who proceeded to set up Mitchell Lewandowski for a one-time snipe from the right hash mark. Toledo put the game away with two goals in the closing minutes, as Dalton Messina banged in the rebound of Casey Dornbach's initial shot, then Spezia threaded in his second of the night from the left circle 16 seconds later.
Jan Bednar secured the shutout for the Walleye, as he stopped all 25 shots he faced. Taylor Gauthier made 25 saves on 29 shots in the defeat for Wheeling.
The Nailers and Walleye will travel to Toledo to play again on Saturday at 7:15. Wheeling will then finish up the pre-holiday portion of their schedule with a road game in Kalamazoo on Sunday at 3:00. The next home game for the Nailers will be Saturday, December 28th at 7:10 against Iowa, which will feature a re-gifting exchange. Some exciting upcoming promotions include Kids' Neon New Year's Eve on December 31st, and Star Wars Night on January 11th, which is the next Big-6 Promotional Game. Season memberships and other terrific ticket plans for the 2024-25 season are available now by calling (304) 234-GOAL. The Wheeling Nailers, considered one of the top things to do in Wheeling, West Virginia, provide affordable family entertainment for fans throughout the Ohio Valley.