Coach Kuqali Signs in the ECHL

Pittsburgh Predators 16U AAA coach, Alexander Kuqali, signed in the ECHL with the Wheeling Nailers on February 4th, 2026. The Nailers are 3-0-0-1 in their last 4 games with Coach Z in the line-up. Z notched his first point with an assist on Saturday in a victory vs Cincinnati Cyclones. His brother Nicholas, who is the current Predators 2012 AAA coach, also played 25 games for the Nailers during the 2013-14 and 2014-15 seasons. The Kuqalis are the 14th family to have two siblings appear in at least one game for Wheeling. They are the fifth pair of brothers who were not teammates during their tenures with the team and of those five, their 11-year gap between games is the longest in team history. After Z recorded an assist vs Cincinnati, he and Nicholas became the 9th pair of brothers to each have at least one point with the team.