For Nailers coach Derek Army, success means more than just wins
Derek Army knows what winning looks like in Wheeling.
As a player, he was a key component of the last Wheeling Nailers team to reach the ECHL’s Kelly Cup final in 2016.
So in his current capacity as the Nailers’ coach, seeing his team race out to first place in the ECHL’s North Division isn’t anything new.
But the pride in being part of the Nailers and the community nestled in West Virginia’s northern panhandle hasn’t waned.
“It’s a special place,” Army said by phone Wednesday. “You’ve got to take pride in that. As a team, we took a lot of pride in winning because it was organization-wide and every guy wanted to have success here in Wheeling because they loved the town. I take pride in that sense.”
Army, who boasts that each of his children were born in Wheeling, is in his fifth season as coach of the Nailers, the Pittsburgh Penguins’ ECHL affiliate. And he has enjoyed considerable success during that tenure, especially the past two seasons.
During the 2023-24 campaign, the Nailers tied a franchise record with a 12-game winning streak. (The 2003-04 squad initially set that mark).
On Saturday, Army and company established a new record with their 13th straight victory in a 4-1 road win against the Reading Royals.
They will go for their 14th win Friday with a home contest against the Toledo Walleye at WesBanco Arena.
“You don’t go through these stretches a lot,” said Army, who hasn’t seen his team lose since Nov. 8. “We’re cherishing it. Thankfully, we had a stretch like this at the end of last (season). …. Maybe I didn’t fully enjoy (last season’s winning streak), but this year, I think all of us are really just kind of riding the energy.
“It’s been a special time.”
The 13 wins have come in different ways. One-goal games, multi-score blowouts, shootouts, shutouts, etc.
That variance of success is appealing to Army in that it can help prepare his team for games of greater consequences in the spring.
“It started with a home game, down 2-0, and we got a power play with two minutes left,” Army said. “And we scored on the power play then right after on a faceoff. We have gotten some bounces to go our way, obviously. … You don’t want everything to be easy. Some of the games have been challenging. We had to go into Fort Wayne and win a tough one late with a minute left.
“So they have all been games that I think can help us build for the playoffs when it gets nitty gritty. We’ve had to win in all those scenarios. We’ve had to hold leads. We’ve had to come back. All of these things.”
Having two goaltenders with NHL contracts — Taylor Gauthier and Sergei Murashov — helps, too.
Murashov has been in net for the bulk of the streak while Gauthier — the ECHL’s top goaltender last season — is just getting back up to speed after being injured before training camp. Reserves Jaxon Castor and Luke Richardson have contributed wins as well.
“(Gauthier), he was awesome for us last year,” Army said. “This year, he has played three (games) since coming back from injury. Kind of has video game numbers. He’s been really good. He’s a guy who just makes a huge save in a critical moment and allows you to capitalize.
“Sergei has been fantastic in the net. You can see he learns fast. The league is challenging for a goalie in that it can be scrambly. When you blink, all of a sudden you’re getting (a quality scoring chance coming) your way. He’s really adapted and learned to stay focused in it. He’s made some challenging saves. He’s got a great character, great charisma. We’re extremely lucky to have the two.”
Life in the ECHL is very different from the NHL or even the American Hockey League. Turnover is quite common for a variety of reasons ranging from players being promoted or getting contracts overseas or simply moving on to “real world” 9-to-5 jobs.
In addition to being head coach, Army holds the title of director of hockey operations and has to craft the roster beyond the players who are assigned from Pittsburgh or Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.
That means he has to find players who want to be in Wheeling, a place that isn’t always an easy sell to outsiders.
“In my time as a player, we always had a love to be in Wheeling,” said Army, a native of North Kingstown, R.I. “It’s a special place because it’s not a glamorous place (like) Fort Myers, Fla. or Charleston, S.C. It’s a blue-collar town that you have to be all in on. In the community and on the ice and with each other. We have a great core group that returned from last year that fits that. (If) anyone is down or anything, they’re pushing to be in the gym, they’re pushing them to meet the standard of work ethic and meet the standard of what’s expected to get to the next level.
“The culture that I want and that I know is successful here in Wheeling goes through the leadership group.”
The leadership of the Penguins have noticed what Army has accomplished.
“He’s a very enthusiastic learner,” Penguins coach Mike Sullivan said. “He’s a good young coach. He builds great relationships with his players. He has a certain passion that he brings to the job every day that I think is contagious. Couldn’t be happier for him. He works extremely hard at it.
“I think he’s one of the brighter young coaches in the game right now. He’s only going to get better. The sky is the limit for him.”
Army doesn’t want wins or losses to be the limit of what is considered success for the Nailers.
Having been teammates in Wheeling with future NHLers who helped win Stanley Cup titles with the Penguins such as forwards Josh Archibald, Tom Kuhnhackl and Carter Rowney, Army wants to help the team again become a more prominent part of developing talent for the NHL club.
“I’ve seen this model, lived this model, where you win Wheeling, you work, you buy in and you see all the success all that these guys are able to have from it,” Army said. “I take pride in being a part of it. It started with the expectation that you win in Wheeling then you develop in hard games. As I have become a coach, that’s my same mindset.
“My main goal here is to have the next Stanley Cup champion or have the next fourth liner, next surprise player come from Wheeling and have a stint here. That’s the dream. Right now, we’re seeing it in a good direction. … Obviously, there’s a couple of guys that I think you could see as a Penguin. Being a part of the Pittsburgh Penguins for all these years, I take a lot of pride in being a Nailer and having my family from here.”
Seth Rorabaugh is a TribLive reporter covering the Pittsburgh Penguins. A North Huntingdon native, he joined the Trib in 2019 and has covered the Penguins since 2007. He can be reached at srorabaugh@triblive.com.
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