WHEELING, WV- The Wheeling Nailers are excited to announce their 2026-27 Season Opening Roster and the team's captains, as the club prepares to open its 35th season on Friday night with a road contest against the Indy Fuel.

Head Coach Nate DiCasmirro begins his first season with the organization, as he returns to North America following two seasons as an assistant coach with the ICE Hockey League's Graz 99ers. While this is DiCasmirro's first time serving as a head coach, Wheeling will be the third professional team he coaches in North America, as he previously served as an assistant coach with the AHL's Iowa Wild and Bakersfield Condors. Associate Coach Jason Payne enters his eighth season as a coach in the ECHL. Payne won Central Division Championships as both a head coach and an assistant coach with the Cincinnati Cyclones, and most recently served as an associate coach for the Greenville Swamp Rabbits. This is Jason's second time being a member of the Nailers organization, as he concluded his playing career with Wheeling in 2008-09. Assistant Coach Peter Laviolette III begins a new chapter in his hockey career, and he does so in his hometown, which is also the same city where he began his professional playing career. Laviolette played three seasons for the Nailers from 2022-25, and his father, Peter Jr., has the most head coaching wins by an American in NHL history. Goaltending Coach Bailey Seagraves begins his first season in Wheeling, but is very familiar with the team's new affiliate, as he served as the emergency backup goaltender for the Columbus Blue Jackets from 2017-22 and worked under goaltending coaches Manny Legace and Ian Clark. Seagraves has done the majority of his coaching in Central Ohio and has over a decade of goaltending development experience.

Equipment Manager Bill Higgins is the longest tenured member of the organization, as the Wheeling, West Virginia native begins his 24th season in his current role. Higgins has worked over 1,600 regular season games and over 100 playoff contests in his career. Athletic Trainer Cole Koontz is a local product, as he hails from Sherrard, West Virginia. This is Cole's second season as the team's head athletic trainer and fifth year with the team overall, after previously serving as an assistant athletic trainer and student athletic trainer. Strength & Conditioning Coach Alan Harper begins his second season with the Nailers. Prior to coming to Wheeling, Harper worked in professional soccer with the Las Vegas Lights and professional baseball in the Toronto Blue Jays organization.

Veteran forward Justin Taylor will be the team's captain. Four players will share alternate captain duties. Defenseman Alexander Kuqali and forward Craig Armstrong will wear the "A" during home games, while defenseman Tristan Thompson and forward Chris Dodero will wear the "A" during road games.

The Nailers will begin the 2026-27 season with a roster of 27 players - 16 forwards, eight defensemen, and three goaltenders. It will take some time for fans to learn the names, as only four of the 27 players are returners from last season's North Division Champions squad. However, this is one of the most experienced Wheeling clubs in recent memory, as there are three veterans (260 professional games or more) and only nine rookies.

Goaltenders
Nolan Lalonde- Kingston, Ontario native under NHL contract with Columbus; went 11-4-3 in 22 games as a rookie with Toledo last season, and appeared in one AHL game with Cleveland; won a Memorial Cup (CHL Champions) with Saginaw in 2023-24
Philip Svedebäck- Stockholm, Sweden native signed this summer; went 54-38-17 in four seasons at Providence College; was drafted by Boston in 2021
Kasimir Kaskisuo- Vantaa, Finland native signed this summer; entering his 11th full professional season; has a 72-55-20 career record in North America, which includes two NHL games and a selection to the 2019-20 AHL All-Star Classic

Defensemen
Jack Karlsson- Köping, Sweden native signed this summer; played the last four seasons at Stevenson University, where he earned three straight MAC First Team All-Conference selections and was named MAC Defensive Player of the Year twice
Hunter Sansbury- Lomita, California native acquired in a trade with Florida; has played in 11 ECHL games; played four seasons at Sacred Heart University and served as team captain during his junior and senior seasons; holds the school record for most career blocked shots with 320
Robby Drazner- Buffalo Grove, Illinois native under AHL contract with Cleveland (ECHL rights acquired in a trade with Kalamazoo); recorded 15 points in 52 games as a rookie with Kalamazoo last season, and also appeared in two AHL games with Abbotsford; won an NCAA National Championship at Western Michigan University in 2024-25
Alexander Kuqali- Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania native re-signed this summer - enters his second season with Wheeling; veteran playing in his 10th professional season and seventh in the ECHL - played in his 300th career ECHL game in April; is the second member of his family to play for the Nailers, following his older brother Nicholas (2013-15)
Scott Cremen- Annapolis, Maryland native signed this summer; played the last four seasons at SUNY-Canton and was the team's top scoring defenseman each of the last three years; played in six games for Birmingham (SPHL) after finishing his collegiate career
Mitchell Smith- Saginaw, Michigan native acquired in a trade with Rapid City; entering his third season in the ECHL after playing for Bloomington and Rapid City; recorded 12 points in 59 games last season with Rapid City, and appeared in his 100th career game in April
Tristan Thompson- Canmore, Alberta native re-signed this summer - enters his second season with Wheeling; veteran playing in his fifth professional season - has 143 points in 261 career ECHL games; recorded 14 points in 33 games last season after being acquired in a trade from Maine in January
Mitchell Haight- Pittsford, New York native signed this summer; played parts of the last two seasons with Quad City (SPHL), where he had 12 points in 60 games

Forwards
Kevin Gursoy- LaSalle, Ontario native signed this summer; recorded 20 points in 49 games as a rookie with Tulsa & Allen last season
Scott Kirton- Scarborough, Ontario native signed this summer; won back-to-back SPHL championships with Evansville in 2024-25 & 2025-26, and was the team's leading scorer during each of the last three seasons; has appeared in 35 career ECHL games; played parts of three seasons for Jason Payne in Cincinnati
Cam Cook- Halifax, Nova Scotia native signed this summer; spent the majority of the last two seasons with Reading, bringing his ECHL career totals to 26 points in 89 games; has also played parts of five SPHL seasons, where he has 130 points in 139 games
Mike Posma- Pomona, New York native re-signed this summer - enters his second season with Wheeling; finished second among Nailers rookies with 13 goals and third among Nailers rookies with 26 points last season; named a co-winner of the ECHL Plus Performer of the Month Award in November of 2025
Nick McCarry- Calgary, Alberta native acquired in a trade with Norfolk; began his ECHL career in the spring by recording three points in 21 games with Atlanta & Norfolk; led Carleton University in scoring last season and tied for the team lead in points the previous year
Kishaun Gervais- Keeseekoose First Nation, Saskatchewan native signed this summer; enters his fourth professional season - has 51 points and 223 penalty minutes in 122 career games; had Wheeling Hockey Hall of Famer Darren Schwartz as one of his youth hockey coaches
Craig Armstrong- Crossfield, Alberta native re-signed this summer - enters his second season with Wheeling; was the team's +/- leader last season with a +29 rating and finished sixth in scoring with 35 points; playing in his third ECHL season after playing his rookie year in Utah
Zach Krajnik- Eagle River, Alaska native signed this summer; has five points in 23 career ECHL games, all with Savannah; won three CCHA Conference Championships at Minnesota State University (Mankato)
Remy Parker- Montclair, New Jersey native signed this summer; has 27 points in 119 career ECHL games over parts of three seasons with Cincinnati & Greenville; has played for Jason Payne during each season of his pro career; has over 54,000 followers on TikTok
Tanner Hartman- Chicago, Illinois native signed this summer; played two seasons at Hobart University, then two seasons at Brown University; won back-to-back NCAA National Championships (Division III) at Hobart in 2022-23 and 2023-24; his older brother Ryan is playing in his 13th NHL season, currently with Minnesota
Matt Crasa- New York, New York native acquired in a trade with Wichita; recorded 17 points in 60 games during his first full season as a pro with Norfolk & Wichita last season; his ten goals ranked second among Wichita rookies
Ryan Pitoscia- Oakville, Ontario native signed this summer; recorded 13 points in 53 games as a rookie with Jacksonville last season; won an NCAA National Championship (Division III) at Adrian College in 2021-22 and scored in the National Championship Game
Chris Dodero- West Chicago, Illinois native signed this summer; entering his fifth professional season and third in the ECHL; recorded 27 points in 52 games with Idaho last season, bringing his ECHL career totals to 52 points in 106 games; played for Jason Payne in Cincinnati in 2024-25
Dante Sheriff- Brampton, Ontario native acquired in a trade with Wichita; entering his fifth professional season; recorded 26 points in 45 games with Greenville last season, bringing his ECHL career totals to 143 points in 217 games; playing for Jason Payne for the third straight year
Kolby Johnson- Rosetown, Saskatchewan native signed this summer; has seven points and 146 penalty minutes in 45 career ECHL games with Worcester & Jacksonville; has spent the last two summers playing in the Australian Ice Hockey League
Justin Taylor- Mindemoya, Ontario native signed this summer; team captain; is the ECHL's all-time leader with 935 career games played, as he enters his 17th season; coming off of his 11th season scoring at least 20 goals

Catch all of the action all season long on the Nailers Broadcast Network, presented by Main Street Bank. All of the games will air on radio on Mix 97.3 as well as via the iHeartRadio app. All home games will be televised locally on My Ohio Valley, thanks to WTRF. FloHockey remains the official streaming partner of the ECHL and AHL, so all games can be viewed there both live and on-demand. Vice President of Communications & Community Relations DJ Abisalih enters his 16th season of delivering all of the play-by-play, and will once again be joined in the Erb Electric Broadcast Booth by Wheeling Hockey Hall of Famer Brock Woods, with Hudson Davis on ice level.

The regular season begins on Friday, when the Nailers travel to Indy for a 7:15 p.m. match against the Fuel. Wheeling's home opener is Saturday, October 24th at 7:10 p.m. against the Toledo Walleye. There will be a magnetic schedule giveaway for all fans, plus Rachel Clement will perform an ice skating and fire act during intermissions. For information about season tickets, group tickets, ticket packages, and more, call (304) 234-GOAL or visit wheelingnailers.com. 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.

2026-27 Wheeling Nailers Season-Opening Roster
#2-D-Jack Karlsson
#5-D-Hunter Sansbury
#7-D-Robby Drazner
#8-F-Kevin Gursoy
#9-F-Scott Kirton
#10-F-Cam Cook
#12-F-Mike Posma
#13-F-Nick McCarry
#16-F-Kishaun Gervais
#17-D-Alexander Kuqali
#19-D-Scott Cremen
#21-F-Craig Armstrong
#22-D-Mitchell Smith
#23-F-Zach Krajnik
#24-D-Tristan Thompson
#25-D-Mitchell Haight
#27-F-Remy Parker
#28-F-Tanner Hartman
#29-F-Matt Crasa
#31-G-Nolan Lalonde
#35-G-Philip Svedebäck
#36-F-Ryan Pitoscia
#55-F-Chris Dodero
#73-G-Kasimir Kaskisuo
#80-F-Dante Sheriff
#81-F-Kolby Johnson
#93-F-Justin Taylor