The Nailers’ winning streak came to an end as they lost in Utah on Friday and Saturday but turned it around to win the finale on Monday. What happened in this series to cause the results that came about?
Well, all good things must come to an end. And what a magnificent run it was before it ended, with this year’s Nailers team tying the franchise record for wins in a row at 12 before falling out in Utah. While it would have been nice to see them break that record, making a trip across multiple time zones (with or without time to adjust) is always difficult. Not just that, but Wheeling played three games against a Grizzlies team who are in a dogfight with Allen to try to get into a playoff spot, so you had to expect that they would come out flying to try to earn as many points as they could.
Friday’s game was rather even between the two teams on the ice except in one big area: the scoreboard. Almost halfway through the period, Peter Laviolette received a double minor for high sticking, which Utah was able to take advantage of on the second half of the penalty to get on the board first on the power play. Things evened out again for about six minutes after that, until the Grizzlies found the back of the net behind Taylor Gauthier again to earn a 2-0 lead shortly before the end of the period. Then, with less than 30 seconds left in the period, Utah took another penalty that gave Wheeling a power play that would carry over to the second.
The Nailers couldn’t take advantage of said power play in the carryover, but less than two minutes after it ended, they finally got on the board off the stick of Isaac Beliveau. Once Wheeling was able to break the shutout, it felt like they wanted to press and get it back to even, and once that happened, anything was possible. That needed tying goal came not quite seven minutes later as Louie Roehl took a loose puck and flipped it into the net for his first of the season, and you couldn’t help but believe at that point they would find a way to continue the streak. Both teams had some chances down the stretch of the period, but neither could bust through, and the period ended tied 2-2.
In the third, it just felt like Utah wanted it more. They came out and took possession of the puck and, essentially, of the whole game as they outshot the Nailers 20-9 for the period. Just under seven minutes into the final frame, Utah got on the board once more, giving them the lead back at 3-2. Wheeling needed that push to get back into the game once more, but they simply couldn’t kick it into the extra gear needed. Late in the period, Coach Army pulled the goaltender for the extra skater, and the Grizzlies took advantage of it with less than 30 seconds left in regulation to make the score 4-2, which was the final, and just like that, the 12-game streak was in the rear-view mirror.
Coming out for Saturday’s game, you could tell Wheeling had it in their minds that their streak was over and wanted to start a new one. They pushed hard early, but for the second game in a row, Utah found the back of the net first about nine minutes into the game. The Nailers wanted badly to get it back, and it happened just over two minutes later, as a Roehl shot bounced off the end board straight onto the stick of Tanner Laderoute, who shoveled it into the net to tie the game. Despite a few more chances coming later in the period, the score remained 1-1 heading to the middle frame.
In the second period, both teams got their fare share of scoring chances. But both goalies stood tall, and the game remained tied for most of the period. I say most because, with 2.3 seconds left in the period, Utah found a way to break the tie with a strong wrist shot that gave the Grizzlies the lead heading to the last period. In said third period, the Nailers controlled play almost from beginning to end, outshooting Utah 13-1 for the period, but simply couldn’t get the equalizer. The goaltender for the Grizzlies was playing his first ECHL game of his career after playing 68 games in the AHL, and the skillset he acquired by playing there showed as he turned away every shot and held on tight for the 2-1 win, meaning Wheeling had to win the game on Monday to avoid going on a losing streak now.
In that third and final game of the series, the Nailers came out hot early, deciding not to let Utah get the first lead of the game again. Just over a minute and a half into the contest, Laviolette was able to push it into the back of the net to give Wheeling their first lead of the series. The Nailers then extended the lead to 2-0 with just under seven minutes remaining in the period, as Justin Lee shelfed a shot to give Wheeling a little bit of breathing room before heading to the locker room for the intermission.
The second period was mostly controlled by Wheeling again, as they outshot Utah 15-4 in the period. Just under eight minutes into the frame, Laviolette found the back of the net once more to get his first two-goal game of the season and give the Nailers the 3-0 advantage on the scoreboard. Wheeling continued to push, not happy with just three goals in the game, but as time ticked down to less than a minute left, Utah was finally able to net one to make it 3-1 heading to the last period of the series.
Both teams played rather evenly in the final period, with both teams earning early power plays in the frame. Utah was unable to capitalize on theirs, but the Nailers (who only received five total power plays for the entire three-game set) scored one off the stick of Tanner Laderoute to restore their three-goal lead at 4-1. Things went back and forth a bit the rest of the way, but neither team was able to get much of an edge until late, when the Grizzlies scored one more time with less than a minute remaining to make the score 4-2, which would end up being the final. Not only did the Nailers score on their only power play of the game, but they also kept Utah off the board in their two chances, which was a big key I had going into the series and fed very well into Wheeling earning at least one win on their trip.
The Nailers are back home this weekend for three big divisional games, Friday against Fort Wayne followed by Saturday and Sunday against Kalamazoo. What can the Nailers do to come out of the weekend with six more standings points?
Every weekend series remaining on the schedule, especially against divisional opponents, must be considered crucial to helping Wheeling stick close to a playoff spot (but more on that shortly). Looking at the standings as of today, Kalamazoo sits in the fourth and final playoff spot in the Central Division, but they’re only five points behind both Wheeling and Indy (who are currently tied in points, but the Nailers currently own the tiebreaker) with a game in hand on both. Fort Wayne, the Friday visitor, sits in fifth, but only two points behind the K-Wings, although they’ve played three more games than Kalamazoo has to this point. If the Nailers aren’t careful this weekend, they could easily slide down the standings from second to fourth place and in a fight of their own.
Wheeling hasn’t faced Fort Wayne since November 19, a 3-1 loss on the road, and currently hold an 0-2 record against the Komets on the season. However, including this weekend’s game, the Nailers will see Fort Wayne another six times, so they must start playing well against these guys now. On the season, their road power play is middle of the road, sitting 13th in the league, but their penalty kill group is pretty horrendous away from home, sitting fifth from the bottom in the entire ECHL, giving up 21 power play goals on 89 tries. For the Nailers, their power play has to show up in this game if given the chance and help the team earn the two points.
Kalamazoo is a team Wheeling has seen more recently, having played them on January 14th at home in the final game of their worst weekend of the season, earning the 2-1 loss. The Nailers do hold a 2-1 record against them this year and will only play them once more this season after this weekend, so now is the time to jump on them and get it in their heads that they can’t beat the Nailers, should they eventually meet in the postseason. As opposed to Fort Wayne, Kalamazoo has the worst road power play in the entire league, with a 13.8% success rate. However, their road penalty kill is the second best overall, just behind Idaho. If the Nailers want to earn these two victories, they will have to find a way to make the K-Wings pay in the specialty team battle, even if they have to do it shorthanded.
As we approach the end of February, we get closer and closer to the end of the regular season. What does Wheeling need to do at this point to ensure they’ll be playing deeper into April?
I know that Coach Army has told me before that they don’t look at the standings. But when you’re playing a sport, any sport, and you’re getting closer to playoff time, you can’t help but have it in the back of your mind. I’m sure they’re aware that they are in a position now where they can control their own destiny, but that could easily change depending on their performance in the coming weeks. As of now, there is just as much space between them and first place (Toledo is leading the Nailers by five points) as there is between them and fourth place (Wheeling leads Kalamazoo there).
What will be really important is how they perform in games against divisional opponents. Last year, Wheeling had a terrible record against division foes, but so far this year, the Nailers have accumulated a 13-11-1 record against the other Central Division teams with all but one of their remaining games against teams in their division. Their only game remaining against a team from another division is against Reading next Wednesday. In addition to the games mentioned earlier, they have five against Cincinnati, three against Iowa (all on the road), three against Indy, and two against Toledo.
When you’re chasing a team like the Nailers are with the Walleye, having only two games against them the rest of the way hurts. That’s only four points you can gain on them head-to-head, so you have to find ways to make up points elsewhere. The Cyclones and the Heartlanders are towards the bottom of the division and have been pretty poor as of late (Cincinnati is 4-6 in their last 10, while Iowa is 4-5-0-1), so taking advantage of those opportunities is necessary. If Wheeling is able to keep playing as well as they have recently, there’s no question they can make a push to at least get into the postseason, if not earn a division title along the way.
How can the performance of their affiliate teams so far this season affect what the Nailers do the rest of the way and the likelihood of making that playoff appearance?
Looking at the teams above Wheeling in the organization, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins currently sit in third place in their division, with the top six in their division qualifying for the playoffs. So as of right now, they’re pretty solidly in, sitting 11 points ahead of the first team out. However, they’ve had a number of roster moves recently, and that has caused them to take some players from Wheeling, such as captain Justin Addamo, Dillon Hamaliuk, and most recently, Taylor Gauthier got the call on Wednesday. These moves obviously hurt the overall roster composition for the Nailers, but if you ask them, they’ll tell you it’s a “next man up” mentality and everyone has to be ready at any given time if their number is called.
In addition to that, I’m sure everyone is aware of what is happening in Pittsburgh with the big squad. Even though they earned a big win against Montreal on Thursday, they still sit on the outside looking in, and it doesn’t look like it will get better any time soon. Their trade deadline is quickly approaching on March 8th, and there’s a good chance they will be moving some players out by then. If that does come to pass, they will need to pull more players from WBS to supplement the roster through the rest of their season, which means the Baby Penguins will need to draw even more from Wheeling to cover themselves. I’m not saying something like this could sink the Nailers’ hopes of making the postseason, but that just makes the upcoming schedule against divisional opponents even more important to earn points and stay ahead of the teams behind them in case the roster has considerable movement in the next few weeks.
The ECHL announced they’re taking the Kelly Cup on tour to five different cities, but Wheeling did not make the cut. Why do you wish the league had brought the trophy to the Friendly City?
I was actually quite excited when I saw that the ECHL was planning to do this. The league is taking the trophy on a tour of five cities and visiting arenas for fans to see it, schools, and other community events planned for their trip. It all kicks off this Friday, February 23, in Toledo, then going to Cincinnati on March 1, Iowa on March 15, Reading on March 22, then finished up with Fort Wayne on March 29. This sounds like a really fun idea and gives fans in those places a chance to see what the guys on the ice are playing for.
However, I have to say I’m very disappointed that Wheeling was not chosen as a destination for the league to visit with the trophy. First off, I think it’s a shame that they’re attending four divisional rivals (and Reading, whom we have faced a number of times this year) and skipping all around the Friendly City without actually stopping. Secondly, the franchise dating back to their time in Winston-Salem was an inaugural member of the league, losing the first league championship to the then-Toledo Storm. The Thunderbirds/Nailers have proudly been in Wheeling since the 1992-93 season and have hosted a number of wonderful events here for the league, including Kelly Cup finals games in 1993 and 2016. I hope the league plans to do this again in future seasons, and if they do, they give Wheeling a real good look at as a good option for somewhere to go and interact with one of the best fan bases in the entire league.
