WHEELING, WV- The Wheeling Nailers might be disappointed to see the calendar turn to April, as they dominated the month of March.
Wheeling closed out an 11-1-1 month with its fourth series sweep of March and ninth sweep of the season. This weekend’s victims were the Worcester Railers, who saw Matthew Quercia score twice in a 4-1 win for the Nailers. Maxim Pavlenko was the winning goaltender, but Taylor Gauthier was forced into action for the final two periods, and he shined once again.
The Nailers had the exact start to the game they were looking for, as they turned on the red light twice during the first period. The first marker came at the 6:47 mark. Tristan Thompson led Matthew Quercia ahead for a rush into the offensive zone. Quercia plowed his way down the middle, and proceeded to squeeze a shot under Thomas Gale’s right arm. Wheeling’s second goal came with 1:22 remaining.
Matty De St. Phalle forced a steal just inside of the blueline, then proceeded to send Brayden Edwards in toward the goal. Edwards patiently dragged the puck to the right and swung his shot around the outstretched Gale.
For the second day in a row, tempers began to boil over in the middle frame, and two fights took place during the same sequence. Brent Johnson and Cole Donhauser were the first to shed the mitts, then Ryan Mahshie and Adam Samuelsson joined them.
The Nailers added to their lead with 2:38 to go. Blake Bennett poked the puck to the right hash mark, where Quercia launched a wrist shot into the top-left corner of the twine.
Worcester spoiled the shutout bid with 8:17 remaining, when Michael Suda tossed in a wrist shot from the middle of the blueline. Wheeling iced its 4-1 victory with Brent Johnson’s backhander into an empty net from all the way down in his own corner of the ice.
Maxim Pavlenko left due to injury after the first period for the Nailers, but he received the win with five saves on five shots. Taylor Gauthier took over in relief and stopped 32 of 33 shots over the final two periods. Gauthier ended the weekend with 115 saves on 117 shots in eight periods of action. Thomas Gale surrendered three goals on 21 shots in the defeat for the Railers.
The Nailers will play of pair of road games in the week ahead, as they will visit the Fort Wayne Komets on Wednesday night at 7:35, then challenge the Toledo Walleye on Saturday night at 7:15. Wheeling has two home games remaining in the regular season.
The Nailers will host the Cincinnati Cyclones on Tuesday, April 7th at 7:10 p.m., which is the make-up game from December 28th. Then, on Saturday, April 18th, it will be 80’s Night with a post-game concert by Tongue ‘N Cheek and a pre-game tailgate, as Wheeling faces the Indy Fuel at 7:10 p.m.
Individual tickets, group tickets, and more are available now for both the regular season and the playoffs 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.
