It was a crazy busy stretch to begin the Kelly Cup Playoffs for the Road Warriors. Four games in five days is tough during the regular season, but to do it in the amped up atmosphere of an opening-round series is downright brutal. I'm glad all I had to do was stand in the booth, watch, and talk about what was taking place on the ice. But now that there haven't been any games since last Saturday it feels like the wait has been forever for this second round series to start.
My first inclination when considering Wheeling and South Carolina as possible second-round opponents for the Road Warriors I naturally thought Wheeling was the more favorable matchup. I mean Greenville won all six against Wheeling in the regular season but just squeaked out nine wins in 17 tries against South Carolina. Should be an easy choice, right? But when you look deeper and see that Wheeling's roster has turned over so much since the teams last met I don't think you can put much stock in the regular season results. This Wheeling team is good, plays tough defense, and has a potent power play. This series will be an absolute test for the Road Warriors.
One factor worth keeping in mind, though: Wheeling might be a little weary coming into this series. On top of the travel to arrive here for Games One and Two, the Nailers have been taxed by the emotions of an arduous final two months of the season. After building up a 14-point lead in the North Division, the Nailers fell on hard times and lost all 10 games that it played in February. That streak put the Nailers in the middle of the Eastern Conference pack amidst a seven-team battle for the final four playoff spots. A strong turnaround allowed them to sew up the fourth seed, but I don't know how much might of their reserves were spent just trying to keep their heads above water in that crazy dogfight. Either way, the Nailers are here and ready to go so the Road Warriors have to rise up to meet the challenge. Here are my thoughts on the keys to a successful series for the Road Warriors:
Also, you saw the smashup car for the first time yesterday. This afternoon, a few of the Road Warriors players got their first shots at it:
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