The Wheeling Nailers have gained tons of confidence, thanks to their fantastic play over the course of the last month, and they showed that on Friday night at WesBanco Arena.
Wheeling trailed the Kalamazoo Wings 2-1, before scoring three times in the final six minutes of the game to thrill the home crowd with a 4-2 victory. Jordan Martel scored the tying goal, then assisted on Sam Houde’s winning strike, while Sergei Murashov made 31 saves. The Nailers extended their winning streak to nine games, their point streak to 12 games (11-0-1), are 8-0-1 at home, and at 13-3-1, have the best 17-game start in the 33-year history of the team.
The Nailers got lots of great opportunities in the first period, as they outshot Kalamazoo, 17-8. However, the lone goal in the stanza was scored by the visitors. Ayden MacDonald curled out of the right corner to the bottom of the right circle. The forward waited for traffic to set up in front of the goal, then found himself a tiny hole to squeeze a shot through to give the Wings a 1-0 lead.
Wheeling kept the shots coming in the middle frame, and got rewarded with a tying goal at the 4:19 mark. Kalamazoo attempted a pass to exit the defensive zone, but that was denied by Jack Beck, who immediately looked to create offense. Beck spotted Kyle Jackson wide open on the right side of the crease, and Jackson slammed his shot into the undefended cage.
The Wings regained the lead at the 9:51 mark of the third. Travis Broughman battled his way down the slot, and ultimately muscled a shot through Sergei Murashov. At that point, the Nailers just needed one break to turn the game around. That came with 7:31 left, when Jay Keranen’s high stick drew blood on Jordan Martel to give Wheeling a four-minute power play.
Martel was more than ready to capitalize on the opportunity, as he set up in the left circle and wired a one-timer from Chris Ortiz into the top-left corner of the net. That was the exact jolt of energy the Nailers needed, and 2:58 later, Martel delivered a one-time pass to Sam Houde, who launched a one-timer from the right side of the slot into the top-right corner of the twine for the team’s first lead of the match. Jagger Joshua put the finishing touches on the 4-2 triumph with an empty netter, which was set up by Matt Koopman.
Both goaltenders were outstanding. Sergei Murashov earned his seventh straight win for Wheeling, as he denied 31 of the 33 shots he faced. Jonathan Lemieux received the loss for Kalamazoo, after making 37 saves on 40 shots.
The Nailers will make a quick trip out to Cincinnati on Saturday to face the Cyclones at 4:00. Wheeling will then return home on Sunday at 4:10 to face Reading for the first ever Sensory Day. The goal horn will not be utilized, music will be lowered, there will be no flashing lights, and there will be a quiet room.
That game will also feature the traditional Sunday post game skate, and all Nailers players will be skating. The next Big-6 Promotional Game is Star Wars Night on January 11th. 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.
