The Nailers and Admirals shake hands after Game 5 on Saturday in Wheeling, W.Va.
The Nailers' 5-2 loss in Game 5 to the Norfolk Admirals marked the end of their season, and the end of any remaining hopes that any team in the Penguins' organization could make a real, deep run this year.
This was the Nailers' most successful regular-season team in the last 19 years, going 43-25-3-1 in the regular season. But they had a depleted roster by the the start of the playoffs and got their group back together too late to recover.
The first two games of the best-of-seven series were both 4-0 losses in Norfolk on April 16 and 17. A number of Wilkes-Barre/Scranton's players were in Pittsburgh at the time, and the trickle-down effect had the Nailers playing their first two games of the postseason without many of their key players.
"That's just the minor leagues," Nailers coach Derek Army told me. "You've got guys in different spots, you've got guys in Wilkes, you've got guys hurt. For us, it was tough to rebound. We limped into Norfolk."
The series moved to Wheeling for a third game, with some reinforcements rejoining the team. But a 5-1 loss had the Nailers on the brink of elimination.
"We were missing an identity," Army said.
That left Friday's game being a must-win Game 4 to avoid a sweep. And with Sergei Murashov joining Taylor Gauthier in the AHL, that left Jaxon Castor as the starting goaltender after spending much of the year as the team's third goaltender. The Nailers got a pair of goals from Matty De St. Phalle and two more from Cole Tymkin and Eli Lieffers, and Castor stopped 29 of 30 shots to win 4-1 and stave off elimination.
"We had that identity, and we were fantastic," Army said. "We had it planned to come back out with the same pace (for Game 5), but the wind was taken out."
The Nailers came out slow and were behind early. They found themselves on a three-on-five penalty kill minutes into the game. Gauthier faced 11 shots in the first four minutes alone, allowing two, with both coming seconds after huge saves. David Jankowski's first goal of the postseason cut the Admirals' lead in half and stopped the bleeding. The Admirals got an early third-period goal, but Jack Beck answered to make it a one-goal game again. Norfolk regained the two-goal lead two minutes later and added a late power-play goal to seal the win and the series.
"Not how we draw it up," Army said of the slow start. "But (Gauthier) made some big saves to keep us alive."
It was an emotional group postgame, and a lot of that stems from how close this team was. So many players have come through Wheeling and spoken about what Army has done for the culture of the group, and how tight-knit the team is.
That's what was one of the most disappointing parts of this early exit for Army -- not being able to go further with this group.
"What I love most about the guys is they're part of my family now," Army said. "My daughter and son call them their teammates. They play hockey in the hallway with my son and daughter -- not just one guy, every guy. I'm just thankful that they bought in. They were all in here. They believed in being Nailers to their core. All of us were a family. It's disappointing to lose this way. We all had ambitions for a championship, it's heartbreaking. It's tough."
Army's oldest, four-year-old Boone, wanted to go for a postgame skate. And despite the loss still being fresh, some of his "teammates" -- Phil Waugh and Beck -- kept their skates on to go out there and pass the puck around with him. One of the resident tough guys, Matthew Quercia, joined them for one more fight this season:
TAYLOR HAASE / DKPS
Phip Waugh, Jack Beck, Matthew Quercia with Derek Army and his son Boone.
"Some things are bigger than hockey," Army said.
It was a long time before players started to leave the building afterward. They just hung out together in the locker room one more time.
The Nailers are still chasing the franchise's first Kelly Cup. A raw deal to start this series, coupled with an inability to find their game once the team was back together, has them once again having an early summer. It's a tough one, especially given how much of the adversity they faced in the series wasn't anything they could control. It is what it is.
But that culture, how close the group was remain huge positives to take from this season. Following the Nailers over the years, it wasn't always like this. There were absolutely years when players looked more forward to getting out of there as soon as possible than a playoff run. Being sent down brought a feeling of misery that remained constant.
The last few years have been a lot more like this. There's been a culture change that has started to bring success. As the parent club continues to invest in rebuilding the prospect pool, it'll only be a matter of time before everything all comes together in Wheeling.
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THE ASYLUM
Taylor Haase
2:00 am - 04.27.2025Wheeling, W.Va.Nailers eliminated: 'It's heartbreaking'
ZACK RAWSON / WHEELING NAILERS
The Nailers and Admirals shake hands after Game 5 on Saturday in Wheeling, W.Va.
The Nailers' 5-2 loss in Game 5 to the Norfolk Admirals marked the end of their season, and the end of any remaining hopes that any team in the Penguins' organization could make a real, deep run this year.
This was the Nailers' most successful regular-season team in the last 19 years, going 43-25-3-1 in the regular season. But they had a depleted roster by the the start of the playoffs and got their group back together too late to recover.
The first two games of the best-of-seven series were both 4-0 losses in Norfolk on April 16 and 17. A number of Wilkes-Barre/Scranton's players were in Pittsburgh at the time, and the trickle-down effect had the Nailers playing their first two games of the postseason without many of their key players.
"That's just the minor leagues," Nailers coach Derek Army told me. "You've got guys in different spots, you've got guys in Wilkes, you've got guys hurt. For us, it was tough to rebound. We limped into Norfolk."
The series moved to Wheeling for a third game, with some reinforcements rejoining the team. But a 5-1 loss had the Nailers on the brink of elimination.
"We were missing an identity," Army said.
That left Friday's game being a must-win Game 4 to avoid a sweep. And with Sergei Murashov joining Taylor Gauthier in the AHL, that left Jaxon Castor as the starting goaltender after spending much of the year as the team's third goaltender. The Nailers got a pair of goals from Matty De St. Phalle and two more from Cole Tymkin and Eli Lieffers, and Castor stopped 29 of 30 shots to win 4-1 and stave off elimination.
"We had that identity, and we were fantastic," Army said. "We had it planned to come back out with the same pace (for Game 5), but the wind was taken out."
The Nailers came out slow and were behind early. They found themselves on a three-on-five penalty kill minutes into the game. Gauthier faced 11 shots in the first four minutes alone, allowing two, with both coming seconds after huge saves. David Jankowski's first goal of the postseason cut the Admirals' lead in half and stopped the bleeding. The Admirals got an early third-period goal, but Jack Beck answered to make it a one-goal game again. Norfolk regained the two-goal lead two minutes later and added a late power-play goal to seal the win and the series.
"Not how we draw it up," Army said of the slow start. "But (Gauthier) made some big saves to keep us alive."
It was an emotional group postgame, and a lot of that stems from how close this team was. So many players have come through Wheeling and spoken about what Army has done for the culture of the group, and how tight-knit the team is.
That's what was one of the most disappointing parts of this early exit for Army -- not being able to go further with this group.
"What I love most about the guys is they're part of my family now," Army said. "My daughter and son call them their teammates. They play hockey in the hallway with my son and daughter -- not just one guy, every guy. I'm just thankful that they bought in. They were all in here. They believed in being Nailers to their core. All of us were a family. It's disappointing to lose this way. We all had ambitions for a championship, it's heartbreaking. It's tough."
Army's oldest, four-year-old Boone, wanted to go for a postgame skate. And despite the loss still being fresh, some of his "teammates" -- Phil Waugh and Beck -- kept their skates on to go out there and pass the puck around with him. One of the resident tough guys, Matthew Quercia, joined them for one more fight this season:
TAYLOR HAASE / DKPS
Phip Waugh, Jack Beck, Matthew Quercia with Derek Army and his son Boone.
"Some things are bigger than hockey," Army said.
It was a long time before players started to leave the building afterward. They just hung out together in the locker room one more time.
The Nailers are still chasing the franchise's first Kelly Cup. A raw deal to start this series, coupled with an inability to find their game once the team was back together, has them once again having an early summer. It's a tough one, especially given how much of the adversity they faced in the series wasn't anything they could control. It is what it is.
But that culture, how close the group was remain huge positives to take from this season. Following the Nailers over the years, it wasn't always like this. There were absolutely years when players looked more forward to getting out of there as soon as possible than a playoff run. Being sent down brought a feeling of misery that remained constant.
The last few years have been a lot more like this. There's been a culture change that has started to bring success. As the parent club continues to invest in rebuilding the prospect pool, it'll only be a matter of time before everything all comes together in Wheeling.
Want to participate in our comments?
Want an ad-free experience?
Become a member, and enjoy premium benefits! Make your voice heard on the Steelers, Penguins and Pirates, and hear right back from tens of thousands of fellow Pittsburgh sports fans worldwide! Plus, access all our premium content, including Dejan Kovacevic columns, Friday Insider, daily Live Qs with the staff, more! And yeah, that's right, no ads at all!
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