(WHG 3-0) The Nailers couldn’t complete the sweep, losing to Reading in Game Four 3-2 in overtime. What went wrong in this game for Wheeling?
While it would have been nice to see the Nailers complete the sweep, in the grand scheme of things, it worked out just fine for Wheeling in the long run. And, as Taylor Gauthier told a reporter after the game, it allowed the team to face a little bit of adversity and figure out how they would react, and I think that’s the right way of looking at it. This took a game that essentially didn’t mean anything and gave the team a chance to grow together even more.
Both teams came out of the gate a little tentative, with Reading hoping to avoid giving Wheeling early momentum, while the Nailers just wanted to get a good opportunity. That chance finally came with just under nine minutes left in the first and Wheeling capitalized, as Mike Posma put the visitors on the board first.
However, just over four minutes later, the Royals managed to get a puck through Gauthier, and the game was tied 1-1 heading into the middle frame.
The Nailers came out pushing hard in the second, hoping to get their lead back again, which is just what happened five minutes into the stanza when Nolan Renwick knocked home a one timer, and Wheeling managed to keep the score at 2-1 into the third. As the clock ticked down and it looked like the series would end, Reading pushed hard to keep their season alive. With less than 30 seconds remaining on the clock and their goalie pulled, the Royals got exactly what they wanted, scoring the game tying goal and forcing overtime.
The Nailers were crestfallen but refused to give up as they came out for extra time and pushed hard, firing five shots on the Reading net.
Unfortunately, a turnover at the blue line with just over 11 minutes remaining gave the Royals a breakaway, and Gauthier couldn’t make the save, giving Reading one more game to play the following night.
(WHG 3-1) The Nailers ended their series with the Royals in game five, winning 1-0 in 2OT. How did Wheeling advance in the Kelly Cup playoffs?
After the tough ending to the game the night prior, the Nailers came out wanting to make sure the series didn’t make it back to Wheeling the following week. They probably didn’t expect it to go quite this way, where neither team found the back of the net after more than 80 minutes of game action, but it did end up going the way they wanted, and the Nailers returned home with a chance to rest and relax while they waited to find out their next opponent.
Despite the way the score went, it wasn’t really a boring game, as both teams were able to get numerous chances throughout. Through the first two periods, shots were 22-20 in favor of Reading, but both goaltenders made several big-time saves to keep things deadlocked.
The Nailers began pushing harder and using their obvious skill advantage to force Reading’s hand, firing 17 shots on goal in the third to eight for the Royals, but the game obviously remained scoreless through regulation.
Wheeling once again pelted Reading’s Yaniv Perets in net in the first overtime period, with 13 shots making it through to the goalie as opposed to seven for the Royals, but those 20 minutes came and went with no winner being decided.
The second overtime was a little more balanced in shots, but just under eight minutes into the period, a rebound popped out to Nolan Renwick who, after looking like he would pass back to the point, turned and fired the puck on net and got it through Perets, ending the series in five games.
With his third shutout in the series, Taylor Gauthier became the first Nailers goalie to have three shutouts in the playoffs in his career, while also tying an ECHL record for fewest goals allowed in a five-game series.
The Nailers found out their opponent in the North Division finals on Wednesday night, as Maine finished off Adirondack in game seven. What will it take for Wheeling to advance to the Eastern Conference finals?
The Mariners had a real dogfight in the opening round, leading the Thunder three games to one, but falling in games five and six to need their victory on Wednesday in game seven for the chance to hop on a plane on Thursday to play in Wheeling on Friday and Saturday. Then, after those two contests, they will have to jump on a plane on Sunday to go back to Portland to welcome the Nailers there for games on Monday, Tuesday, and potentially on Wednesday if the series goes to game five.
That would be seven hockey games in nine days for Maine, with their only two days without games being travel days.
That, combined with their time off since last Saturday’s victory over the Royals, definitely gives the Nailers the advantage in terms of how fresh their legs will be. In addition to that, the Nailers have a record of 3-1-1 against Maine this season, although they have only played one game against one another since the calendar flipped to 2026, a 3-2 victory for the homestanding Mariners in a shootout back on January 28.
As for this series, Wheeling will most likely need their power play to get off the ground compared to how they performed against Reading, where they only netted one power play goal in 16 chances, good for a 6.3% success rate. The penalty kill group held up their end of the bargain, led by the Goat between the pipes, getting 17 kills on 18 chances for a 94.4% success rate.
The only team who did better in the first round was Florida, who successfully killed 100% of their shorthanded opportunities, but they only faced nine penalty kills, by far the least in the entire league.
Looking at the opponent, Maine really didn’t see much success early in games, as they had a even goal differential in the first period (six for to six against) and just a +1-goal differential in the second period (five for to four against).
Their big advantage in their series against Adirondack came in the third, where they were a +4 (eight goals for to four against). By comparison, Wheeling was a plus goal differential in every period, going +2 in the first (three for to one against), +5 in the second (six for to one against), and +3 in the third (four for to one against).
If the Nailers can find a way to come out hot early and get leads on the Mariners, it could help propel them deeper into the Kelly Cup playoffs.
Looking around the league, what other matchups will you be keeping an eye on as we get further into the playoffs?
Generally speaking, you have to expect at least one upset somewhere in the postseason. While it almost happened in the Maine-Adirondack series, with it going the full length before the higher ranked Mariners pulled it off, as well as a couple other series that went to six games, every division final is made up of the top two seeds from their division.
Of course, I’m going to keep a watchful eye on the other series in the Eastern Conference, where Florida, the second best team in the ECHL in the regular season and one of two teams that successfully pulled off sweeps in their opening round series, will face South Carolina, a team that Wheeling is very familiar with in the playoffs.
These two teams are 4-4 against one another all time in the playoffs, with Florida winning their last matchup in 2023. The Everblades were able to go 5-0-1 against the Stingrays in the regular season this year, with the only victory for South Carolina being a 2-1 overtime win back on January 24.
While it may appear to be a bit of an uphill climb for the Stingrays, if they can come out hot and take one of the early games at Hertz Arena, they might be able to make some noise in this series.
On the other side of the bracket, while Kansas City and Allen should be a good matchup, I’m most interested in hopefully seeing Toledo get sent packing by Fort Wayne. These two teams do not like each other, and I fully believe this will be a hard-hitting series that I would like to see go seven games.
Normally, it’s the Walleye opening their series at home, but with the Komets clinching home ice, the series will kick off in Fort Wayne, which I hope will give them an extra spark against Toledo. These two teams have met in the playoffs five times since 2015, with the Walleye coming away with series wins four of those times.
The only Fort Wayne series win in that time was in the 2018 Central Division Finals, so here’s to hoping they have similar luck eight years later.
The Nailers will host the Mariners at WesBanco Arena on Friday for game one and Saturday for game two. How important is it to the team that the fans pack the building for these games?
While every playoff game is important, when you get to the point where there are only eight teams left, every team left is very good, and every game should be a tough contest. Sometimes, when two teams are evenly matched, home ice advantage and having a loud building with a lot of energy can help sway the game on the ice in favor of the home team.
Which is why having home ice early in a series can be such an important thing. Being at home allows players to follow their regular gameday processes, with gameday skate, lunch, hopefully a nap, and then getting ready in a comfortable locker room, not a small room with benches for seats.
Between that and the fan support, this Nailers team has proven throughout the year just how important being at WesBanco Arena has been for them, earning a record of 24-8-4 in the regular season and 2-0 in the playoffs in the Friendly City.
I’m very much looking forward to getting down to the arena and cheering on the Nailers as they begin their push against Maine, and I hope to see you all at the rink this weekend.
