When a person hears anything about the state of Maine, the first thought for many must involve lobster, right?
If properly prepared, the succulent meat pops when bitten, and if buttered just right, there’s no better treat for fans of shellfish.
But DJ Abisalih, born in Methuen, Massachusetts, and raised in Scarborough, wouldn’t know. If fact, the first time the “Voice of the Wheeling Nailers” ever tasted a Maine lobster was at Red Lobster in St. Clairsville. It was on a dare, and a trained EMT was present just in case he had inherited a crustacean allergy from his mother.
But see, Abisalih has long been a “gamer” when it’s come to challenges, and that is why he was the public address announcer for 10 different varsity sports teams during his high school career. Those experiences led him to the New England School of Communications in Bangor, Maine, and to a position with the Portland Sea Dogs, the Double-A affiliate of his beloved Boston Red Sox. In 2009, however, much of life became about hockey. His first job was as a color guy in Lewiston, but then play-by-play guy Alex Reed left Wheeling, and that opened an opportunity.
Abisalih then arrived at Wesbanco Arena in 2011, and he’s made the Upper Ohio Valley his home ever since. He, his fiancé Mindy, and her two daughters reside in Martins Ferry. DJ’s parents moved to Ohio County, too, a few years ago, so now, ironically enough, he calls home the place where he finally bit into that very first Maine lobster.
So, I understand you have become quite the Yahtzee player during this stay-at-home era.
The stay-at-home era has created opportunities for more activity time with my family. We do everything from outdoor activities such as volleyball, street hockey, and taking walks, to indoor games such as Yahtzee, Jumanji, and Pun Intended. One of our Yahtzee nights took a fun turn. We played two games. I won the first one running away because I rolled two Yahtzees, which is an automatic 100 points. The second game came down to the final turn. If I got a Yahtzee, I won. If not, I lost. I rolled three sixes on my first roll and one more on my second roll. So, it came down to the final die, which luckily came up a six. Everyone in the family is competitive, which makes the games a lot of fun.
The Nailers’ season ended before the end of the regular season and the team was struggling at the time to qualify for the postseason. How do you think it would have ended for Wheeling’s hockey team?
It was challenging to watch the way the team performed down the stretch, especially after experiencing some of the great successes they had (sweeping the Rapid City trip in December, 4-0-0 and 4-1-1 homestands). Because of the hole that was dug during the last three weeks, I believe playoffs would have been a long shot, as 13 games aren”t a lot of time to make up an 11-point deficit. If that were the case, I still would have been intrigued to see the new players that would have come in after finishing their college and junior seasons. Historically, Wheeling has had a lot of success in that department (Chris Kushneriuk, Derek Army, Jarrett Burton, Cody Wydo), and it starts to give you a look at some players who will make an impact for your team the following season.
The last Nailers’ coach to lead the Nailers to success was Clark Donatelli before he moved up in the organization. In your opinion, what did Clark do with that group of players that worked well?
Clark was very good at building a tight locker room, and he was able to do that by finding the right veterans around the league to lead while absolutely crushing the recruiting game with college players. People forget that Clark struggled in his first full year here (missed the playoffs by six points). However, in the summer of 2013, he landed a couple of big free agents in Chaz Johnson and Mike Ratchuk while getting help from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton to get Dustin Stevenson. That group, along with players like Zack Torquato and Christian Minella really helped to groom the players who were just starting in the ECHL – Shane Bakker, Paul Cianfrini, Derek Army. Fast forward to the finals year (2015-16), and those were some of the leaders helping to groom that year’s rookies – John McCarron, Brett Stern, Cody Wydo. Clark had teams that worked hard and were very invested in both each other and the city.
When a prospect is assigned to Wheeling, what usually is most important when it comes to his development so he can continue climbing the ladder within the Pittsburgh Penguins organization?
To me, there are two key parts to this. First, they can’t look at it as a demotion. It’s easy to sign an AHL contract and think you’re locked in there all season; then you get sent to the ECHL, and you realize where you are on the depth chart. However, I’ve always said that players need to play, and they’re going to grow more by playing 20 minutes a night here than they are sitting out 20 nights up there. The second part is without question the hardest to learn, and it really separates who makes it and who doesn’t. They must learn to become all around players. Scoring is great, but look at the organization. Pittsburgh has Crosby, Malkin, Guentzel, Rust, and Hornqvist, not to mention a prospect in Poulin. They are set. They need role players – players who are going to kill penalties, block shots, play the body. My favorite success story that I love to use as an example is Tom Kuhnhackl. Tom was a Pittsburgh draft pick under NHL contract, who had a 39-goal year in juniors. He scored here, but his breakthrough moment for me was during a playoff game in Greenville. We were killing off a 6-on-3 in the closing minutes, and he had two huge shot blocks to help us preserve a one-goal win. The ability to grow his all-around game is exactly what led him to the NHL and to two Stanley Cups.
What have been the best parts and worst parts for you during this pandemic?
This pandemic has been one of the most unique circumstances I’ve lived through, and it’s been a learning experience throughout it. Some of the best parts on a personal level have been more time with my family and more of a chance to connect with friends from around the continent, whether by call, text, or video chat. It’s also been nice to have an extended time to reset from the season. I’ve had more time to lay out what I’ve liked and haven’t liked, and I have been able to dive into more projects. On the other side of the coin, I miss the in-person social interaction with our fans. People see me out in public or at a community event, and they immediately want to talk shop – life, the team, the schedule. I love those conversations. You can feel their excitement and passion, and that puts a smile on my face. The other frustration, which I think everyone feels is the unknown. As the team’s PR guy, I know a lot of what goes on with the team, as I am the one who distributes the information. If I don’t know something, I can usually tell you who would know or when we can expect to know. However, in this situation, it’s the opposite. Like you, I’m not sure what the NHL does, if they finish this season or not, when they’ll play in front of fans. It’s a big mystery, but the good thing is, Wheeling and the hockey community are both filled with amazing people, so when we do get the go-ahead, we’re all going to share some fantastic times together!
