WHEELING, WV- The Wheeling Nailers had plenty to be thankful for on Wednesday night, as they celebrated a 5-2 victory over the Indy Fuel in the annual Thanksgiving Eve game at WesBanco Arena. Wheeling got goals from five different players, including Randy Hernández, who put the Nailers ahead for good when he snapped a 2-2 tie at the 2:09 mark of the third period. Defenseman Brent Johnson had a goal and an assist, with his goal coming 53 seconds into play, and Maxim Pavlenko made the score stand up with 29 saves.

The Nailers came out flying and scored the opening goal just 53 seconds into the match. Wheeling had a pair of forwards creating traffic next to the crease, which allowed Brent Johnson to send a seeing-eyed wrist shot into the bottom-right part of the cage from the blueline. The home team added to its lead at the 8:03 mark. Jack Works picked up the puck in neutral ice and turned on the burners, as he rushed into the offensive zone. After blazing past the defense, Works chipped a shot up and under the crossbar for his fourth goal in seven games. Indy got one back 2:23 later on the power play. Harrison Israels found the twine with a wrist shot from the right circle, and snapped a streak of 25 straight successful penalty kills by the Nailers.

The score stayed 2-1 until the closing minutes of the middle frame, when the Fuel pulled even with a power play strike. Matt Petgrave set up Sahil Panwar for a one-timer from the right circle. Maxim Pavlenko got a piece of the shot, but the puck squirted into the crease, where it was touched home by Israels for his second of the contest.

The third period belonged to Wheeling, starting with the go-ahead strike at the 2:09 mark of the stanza. Randy Hernández made a dazzling move to dangle around a defender, then cruised into the slot, where he wired in his first goal in a Nailers uniform. Insurance followed a little more than eight minutes later. Ryan Mahshie centered a puck to the top of the crease, where Max Graham converted the feed with a redirection into the left side of the cage. David Breazeale tacked on one more for Wheeling in the 5-2 triumph, as he blasted in a one-timer off of a drop pass from Brayden Edwards in the left circle.

Maxim Pavlenko secured the win for the Nailers, as he turned away 29 of the 31 shots he faced, including all ten attempts sent his way in the third. Mitchell Weeks made 25 saves on 30 shots in the loss for Indy.

The Nailers will take a quick trip over to Toledo on Black Friday at 7:15, before returning to WesBanco Arena for games on Saturday and Sunday against Cincinnati. Saturday's 7:10 tilt is Bluey Night, and fans will be able to meet Bluey and get pictures taken throughout the night. Sunday at 4:10 is Pups & Pucks Day, when fans can bring their dogs to the game. The annual Puppy Parade will take place during the first intermission, plus there will be a post game skate with odd-numbered players. Also coming up in the near future is Wizards & Wands: Spells in the Snow on Saturday, December 6th at 7:10. Season memberships and other terrific ticket plans for the 2025-26 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.