The long-awaited time has come for Wheeling, WV. Sunday, April 14, the Wheeling Nailers announced dates and times for the first round of the Kelly Cup Playoffs. Wheeling’s first-round opponent, as reported yesterday, will be the Indy Fuel. The Nailers will take a trip to Indiana Farms Coliseum in Indianapolis on Friday, April 19, and Saturday, April 20, as they open the series up on the road for games one and two. Puck drop for both games is scheduled for 7 p.m. Wheeling will return home to WesBanco Arena on April 22 and April 23 for games three and four. Those start times are scheduled for 7:10 p.m. If the series needs a game five, the Nailers and Fuel will travel to Cranberry Township, PA, for a 7:10 p.m. puck drop at UPMC Lemieux Sports Center. If games six and seven are needed, the Nailers will visit Indiana Farms Coliseum once again on April 29 and 30. Times for those games are 7 p.m.
Wheeling finished the season 38-28-4-1, which was good enough for 81 points and third place in the Central Division of the Western Conference. The last time the Nailers collected 80 or more points on the season was during the 2015-16 season. During that playoff run, they made it to the Kelly Cup Final but lost the Allen Americans four games to two. This time around, Wheeling is looking to not let history repeat itself, but it will be a tough task starting with round one.
The season series between the two teams did not fall the Nailers’ way. Wheeling went 3-6-2 in 11 games played during the regular season. In those 11 games, Indy won by a combined score 44-35. Out of the 11 games played between the two clubs, seven of the games were decided by two or fewer goals, and three of the last four were decided by one goal.
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