The Nailers took care of business last weekend, winning both Friday and Saturday on the road in Iowa. What did the team do to come away with those very important points?
That weekend couldn’t have gone much better for the Nailers at this point in the season. Both games were tied going into the third period, with one of the games even going to overtime to find a winner, and Wheeling continued to dig deep and find ways to bring home four hard earned points that kept them in contention towards the top of the division.
It also helps when you have possibly the best goaltender in the entire league backstopping you, freeing up the skaters to make plays, and a penalty kill that has been getting better at an interesting time.
Despite the ultimate outcome, Friday’s game had some very exciting moments. Four penalties got called in the first period, with the last of them being a four-minute call against Justin Lee. Both penalty kill groups for Iowa and Wheeling stood tall, and the goaltenders had to make a number of tough saves to keep the game scoreless. Lee’s penalty carried over into the second period, which gave Iowa plenty of chances early, but the shorthanded group continued to play strong and kept the Heartlanders from getting too many good shots through on Taylor Gauthier, who continued building on one of the best seasons a Nailers goalie has had in a long time.
Despite both teams having 24 shots on goal through two, both teams failed to find the back of the net, leading to a 0-0 tie heading to the final frame of regulation.
In the third, Wheeling really put their foot on the gas and took control. Even with Evan Vierling getting called for a penalty just over five minutes into the period, Iowa just couldn’t do much when they did get the puck, whereas the Nailers started to find holes to get through the Heartlander defensive unit.
The problem is the goaltender for Iowa, Drew DeRidder, put on just as much of a clinic as Gauthier did, and even with Wheeling winning on the shot clock 10-3 in the period, the game remained tied at zero when the horn sounded to end regulation.
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The overtime period went much like the third period did. Iowa failed to even record a shot on goal in the four minutes they did get to play in the extra frame, and they never really posed much of a challenge for Wheeling over that period either. The Nailers earned the victory thanks to a strong play by Jordan Martel, who drew the attention of all three Heartlanders on the ice then dropped the puck back to Justin Lee, who finally solved the DeRidder puzzle and sent the Iowa fans home upset.
It was the first time the Nailers won a 1-0 game in overtime since March 2018, and they weren’t done for the weekend just yet.
Both goalies from Friday’s tilt were put back into the net on Saturday in the hopes of having a repeat of how closely contested the prior night’s game was. Unlike the night before though, the deadlock was broken relatively early, as Iowa was able to put one in behind Gauthier just five minutes into the game to give the Heartlanders their first lead during game action since four minutes to go in the second period of Wednesday’s game.
The Nailers earned their first (and only) power play of the game just past halfway of the period, but Iowa continued their strong play and killed it off to hold on to the 1-0 lead into the first intermission.
Coming back out for the second, both teams decided to open things up a little more and turned the offense up. Wheeling managed to outshoot Iowa 14-12 for the period, but the only score of the period was earned by Matt Koopman of the Nailers as he drove into the zone on a 2-on-1, with William Provost earning his first point as a Nailer since coming over from Maine.
Both goaltenders played very well the rest of the way, especially when Iowa earned their first (and only) power play of the game almost halfway through the period, and the teams left the ice tied at one with only 20 minutes scheduled to play in the last game they had scheduled against one another this year.
Both teams came out a little hesitant for the final frame, with neither team wanting to give up the unfortunate break that would cause the deadlock to break. However, on this night, that opportunity would come Wheeling’s way again just over three and a half minutes into the period, as Tanner Laderoute set up Jordan Martel for a one-time shot that found the net behind DeRidder and gave the Nailers the 2-1 lead.
From there, despite a push from the Heartlanders, the Wheeling defense stood tall, and Gauthier made it stand as Wheeling earned the victory and, more importantly, five out of a possible six standings points in the series.
The Nailers returned home on Tuesday, losing their education day game to Indy. What happened that allowed the Fuel to take advantage of Wheeling in that game?
Well, that’s not exactly how you want to return home for the first time in two weeks. Especially when that game is against the team you’re currently neck and neck with for home ice in the first round of the playoffs (but more on that in a little bit), and you have a building full of screaming schoolchildren, starting the game at a time when games should not be played.
Talk about a bit of a letdown after winning three of your last four and having your one loss in overtime.
Things didn’t start that rough for the Nailers, as Wheeling went on the offensive early, but just couldn’t find the back of the net despite several good scoring chances. Just over eight minutes into the period, former Nailer Cam Hausinger (in his first game back as a member of the visiting team) scored on the first shot on goal by the Fuel in the game to give Indy the 1-0 lead.
After that icebreaker, neither team was able to maintain much in the way of offensive pressure, and suddenly the horn sounded to end the period without a change in the score.
The second period started, and the ice quickly tilted in favor of Indy. The Fuel managed to score another goal just five minutes into the period, then once more with under nine minutes left in the period to make the score 3-0 Indy at that point.
Wheeling finally found the back of the net with just under seven minutes left in the frame, as William Provost (who got his first point as a Nailer in Iowa) earned his first goal with Wheeling to try to stop the bleeding, but two more goals by the Fuel, including one with just over 30 seconds left in the period, pushed the score to 5-1, and you had the feeling that the Nailers just didn’t have enough in them to come back from such a disadvantage with only 20 minutes of hockey to play.
In the third, Indy padded their lead even more only 38 seconds in, and you could feel the emotion start bubbling under the surface. Wheeling would manage to get one of the goals back just three minutes later, as Davis Bunz was able to get his ninth of the season, but the Fuel found a way to respond yet again just three minutes later, and with the score at 7-2 at that point, it was time to allow the frustration to boil over.
Eleven penalties were called in the final nine minutes of the game, including a fight and two players getting 10-minute misconduct penalties for continuing an altercation after it was broken up. In all, 44 minutes of penalties were called, and when the horn sounded, Indy was the one skating away sitting alone in second place in the division, as Wheeling was forced to lick their wounds and get ready for a huge set of three games this weekend.
The Nailers now have an extremely important home stand this weekend, with three games in three days against three different opponents. How can Wheeling ensure they find a way to maximize their point production from these games?
I generally hate to engage in hyperbole, but even I must admit that this could be the biggest weekend stretch for the 2023-24 Nailers in their hopes to make it to the playoffs.
Three games against the three teams directly behind them in the standings, with only four points separating Wheeling from being on the outside looking in. Losing all three games could render the final seven games moot, while winning all three games would make their playoff positioning quite strong. If you wanted to attend some meaningful hockey games this season, this weekend is the best chance to do that.
Their opponent on Friday, the Kalamazoo Wings, enter the game just outside of the playoff picture, sitting in fifth place with 67 points to the 71 points Wheeling currently has, but having played two less games than the Nailers have, meaning they could technically be tied in the standings if the K-Wings win their additional games. Kalamazoo has been a much stronger home team than on the road this year, sporting a record of 13-13-1 away from home.
So far this season, Wheeling has a 3-2 record against the Wings, so to keep Kalamazoo behind them in the standings through the weekend, the Nailers have to find a way to win it, hopefully in regulation. The K-Wings power play group on the road is the worst in the entire league, while their penalty kill group is the second best of the ECHL while away from home, so playing strong at five-on-five will go a long way to helping Wheeling earn the victory.
Then on Saturday, during Wizards and Wands Night, the Nailers will welcome the team directly behind them in the standings currently, as Fort Wayne sits two points back and has played the same number of games as Wheeling has.
The Komets (along with Indy) have been the Achilles’ heel for the Nailers this season so far, as Wheeling holds a combined 3-11-1 record against those teams (compared to 15-6-1 against the other four teams in the Central). One important thing with Fort Wayne is just how different of a team they are when they score first versus when they give up the first goal.
On the season, the Komets have scored first in exactly half of their 62 games and have a record of 21-9-1 when they do, but in the 31 games where they have failed to do so, their record is 11-16-1-3. Getting up on them quickly and not letting up will go pretty far to helping Wheeling get their second win of the season against them.
Finally, on Sunday, Cincinnati makes a trip to the Friendly City. Things haven’t gone that great for the Cyclones this year, as they sit 10 points out of a playoff spot with only 11 games remaining, so it’ll be quite difficult for them to get back into the mix.
The Nailers have a record of 5-2 against Cincy to this point on the year, with three games remaining between them, two of them at Wesbanco Arena. Where Wheeling can have a difference is when on the power play, as the Cyclones penalty kill unit is next to last in the ECHL with a 75.3% success rate overall, which drops to 72.6% success rate on the road.
If the Nailers man advantage group can get on the ice and take advantage of a weak Cincinnati penalty kill, they can hopefully come away with two big points from this game.
Taylor Gauthier has once again been named the ECHL goaltender of the week, the fourth time this season he has earned this honor. Just how special of a season is he having for the Nailers?
When looking at the stat book for goalies in the league this season, you will see the name Taylor Gauthier a number of times. First overall in the league in wins with 24. First overall in the league in shutouts with four.
First overall in the league in saves made with 1,104. First overall in the league in goals against average at 2.33. Third overall in the league in save percentage at 0.923. The young man known as Goat to his teammates has shown just how valuable it is in this league to have a goaltender that can play as well as he has.
Goat also becomes the first goaltender in Nailers team history to win the award four times in the same season and is now one of only five to do so in league history.
I believe he has been the biggest reason Wheeling is where they are, as his strong play between the pipes allows the skaters in front of him to play a little looser and try to create a little more offense, knowing they have someone behind them who is prepared to make the big save if needed. He’s also done a great job of staying out of his own head, limiting mistakes when he does give up a goal, and his rebound control has been phenomenal.
Hopefully, he’s ready to get out there and continue to play strong over this final stretch of the season and lead the Nailers back into the playoffs.
Of the Nailers final 10 games left in the regular season, seven of them will be played at Wesbanco Arena. How does that play into their odds of making it back into the playoffs at the end of the road?
Wheeling, through the 62 games they’ve played thus far this season, has had 29 contests on home ice and achieved a record of 17-11-0-1. On the other hand, in the 33 games played away from Wesbanco Arena, the Nailers have earned a record of 17-14-2-0.
This should show just how important being on home ice and having their fans screaming for them and pumping them full of energy has been to these boys this year.
Generally speaking, if a team is able to have a win percentage just over .500 on the road, with a win percentage somewhere around .650 or so, they should be able to get into the playoffs.
The Nailers have a chance at this point to assure themselves of home ice, at least in the first round of the postseason. One thing that can help them do that is having their fans there to cheer them on and keep them playing hard. I look forward to being there for some meaningful hockey games here down the stretch and beyond, and I really hope you join me there in pushing this team towards the promised land.
