Ice Chips 06'-07'

Finally, Henley's in the mix

Sorry I'm a bit late posting this, but I was out of town for my birthday. Finally, the Komets announced their signing of Brent Henley. I don't know if this makes them the toughest team in the league, but it does make them pretty darn tough.

Wow, if coach Al Sims ever gets mad and sends out Henley, Olivier Legault, Mitch Woods, Kevin Bertram and Kevin Hansen, I wouldn't want to be the other team. Not that I ever think that would happen. I don't think.

But let's not assume Henley is just a brute. He happens to be a really solid defenseman, which is the most important thing.

As for the signing of goaltender Nick Boucher, as with all goalies, I'll reserve judgment until I see him in game action. I hope Adam Hanna finds greener pastures; it must have been horrible to hear all the talk about when, not if, he was going to be replaced.

Meanwhile, Brendan Savage of The Flint Journal decided to take some jabs at yours truly on his blog. I have a lot of respect for Savage. He's been doing this for a long time and typically knows his stuff. But I'm a little tired of his blathering that it's horrible for other writers to comment about his blog. It's in cyberspace. It's there for discussion. No one is supposed to disagree? Can't we foster some discussion without the insults?

Moving on, according to The Port Huron Times Herald, the Icehawks traded Mark Cadotte to Muskegon for Mark Nebus.

-- By Justin A. Cohn, The Journal Gazette

Saidachev honored

Fort Wayne's Evgeny Saidachev was selected as International Hockey League Rookie of the Week, after he tallied one goal, three points and plus-3 rating in two games. Click here to see the press release and the other award winners this week.

Brendan Savage of The Flint Journal completed his quest for the top three players in United Hockey League history and came up with Kevin Kerr, Jason Firth and Paul Polillo. He covered the league longer than I did, so I will defer to him but, just for arguments sake, don't the latter two seem a little one-dimensional? Personally, I would have put Sylvain Daigle, the former Muskegon goaltender, somewhere on this list, but I won't argue a lot about Savage's picks.

In Savage's blog, he also states that Nick Stajduhar was the most talented player to come through the league, if you count a full season. That stunned me. He was a decent player with the Komets, at a higher level, but I can name a bunch of other defensemen I would take over him at the AA tier, including Guy Dupuis and Kelly Perrault.

If one season is the criteria, I'll have to think about that one some more.

Well, wish me a happy birthday and tune in to 98.9 FM on Tuesday at 9 a.m. for my weekly chat with the boys on the TNT Morning Show.

-- By Justin A. Cohn, The Journal Gazette

You've gotta love this guy

It took all of one night for Mitch Woods to become a fan-favorite. He was given a standing ovation at the end of the game, a 3-1 Komets victory over the Bloomington Prairie Thunder.

And with comments like the following, he'll continue to be one: "If the fans like my style, then of course I'm going to take that," Woods said. "I'm public enemy in every single rink in the league except for my own."

Woods was in the middle of an 11-player fracas -- he's lucky he didn't get thrown out for being an aggressor -- and he got a three-minute power play for his team by dogging Jamison Orr into dropping his gloves, and Woods scored a goal.

Not bad for a rookie, who came to the Komets on the recommendation of former Fort Wayne coach Pat Bingham, who watched him in training camp with Bridgeport of the American Hockey League. The comparison was to Pascal Morency.

In regards to the fracas -- you can see video in the post previous to this one -- I don't know why Bloomington goalie Loic Lacasse didn't get a penalty for leaving the crease or for being the third man in a fight. He did throw a couple punches at Woods.

For the most part, the game was a good one for Fort Wayne -- it outshot Bloomington 42-26 -- but aside from the fights, the first period was a snoozer.

Are you a believer in Kevin Reiter yet? I am. He had 25 saves.

The Komets should be getting back Bobby Kukulka, Travis Granbois and Maxsim Shirokov from injuries next weekend. However, they are losing top-line right wing Jason Sessa, who is taking a leave of absence for about two weeks to tend to an illness in the family. He wanted to thank the Komets and the fans for being so understanding about him needing to leave for a while.

By the way, the International Hockey League's vice-president of hockey operations, Brad Jones, was at the game.

-- By Justin A. Cohn, The Journal Gazette

Woods could be a keeper

Well, the fans had been clambering for a tough guy. It looks like Mitch Woods is going to be a hit. Check out this early first-period melee, courtesy of Komets vice president Scott Sproat. Woods is No. 17 for the Komets, and this is his second fight in as many nights. Eleven players got involved, and referee Mike Mondalek was upended by Prairie Thunder goaltender Loic Lacasse.

To see the fights, download this: Download bloomington_melee.AVI

-- By Justin A. Cohn, The Journal Gazette

The best ever?

Brendan Savage of The Flint Journal is looking for ideas on picking the top three players in United Hockey League history. Click here.

I guess it depends on the criteria. How important is longevity? Or is it just best player to have played in the league, even for a couple games? I'm not sure any Komets enter the discussion. Only Colin Chaulk, Kevin St. Pierre or Kelly Perrault can even be brainstormed about.

OK, maybe Tommy Bolduc, too.

Meanwhile, it looks as if the Muskegon Fury are looking to deal players. Coach Bruce Ramsay mentions acquiring a center; I don't think the Komets would give up any of their four -- Chaulk, Travis Granbois, Terry Marchant or Mathieu Curadeau -- but check out the Muskegon Chronicle story.

Meanwhile, some people commenting on these posts continue to be a little too nasty. Please, let's have spirited discussion, but show some respect. As a reader wrote me today: "I would love to be able to read the blog and get others' views on the K's without having some know-it-all jumping down my throat for having a different view than his." Don't make me close the commenting section or ban people, please.

-- By Justin A. Cohn, The Journal Gazette

On 4-2 loss, Woods and sweater vests

The Fort Wayne Komets were bested by Jason Ralph 19 seconds into the third period, and that broke open what had been a tie game, and the Bloomington Prairie Thunder went on to defeat Fort Wayne 4-2 in the first game of a home-and-home series.

The goal came after one of Fort Wayne's players missed a defensive assignment, coach Al Sims said, allowing Ralph to just tip the puck in easily. Ralph added an empty-net goal later.

Fort Wayne had recovered from an early two-goal deficit, with Jason Sessa and Evgeny Saidachev scoring late in the second period to tie it at 2.

Sims was pleased with the effort, just not the result.

"We need more of the same (Saturday), but with a better finish," Sims said.

He said Bloomington goaltender Derek Dolsen, a former Komets player, was impressive in stopping 31 shots.

"It was just a game of missed opportunities for us," Sims said.

Before the game, the Komets signed right wing Mitch Woods, who played in juniors for Battlefords. He fought Sam Ftorek -- who looks like his father, former NHL coach Robbie, just without the sweater vest -- early in the game and Sims was pleased with his effort.

"He mixed it up, like he's supposed to," Sims said of Woods.

Meanwhile, defenseman Kevin Bertram, who had missed practice with a groin injury, was in the lineup.

The attendance at U.S. Cellular Coliseum was announced at 4,531, but it was unreal how many empty seats I could see over the B2 Networks pay-per-view feed. That was anything but a packed house.

During a second-period interview with Bob Chase on WOWO, 1190 AM, Komets general manager David Franke said there should be news soon on the impending signing of Brent Henley, a defenseman on last season's Fort Wayne team. I don't think there's anything new or newsworthy there, but I thought I'd mention it.

Watching tonight's game, it sure seems Fort Wayne and Bloomington don't like each other much already. It should be fun to see them go at it Saturday.

-- By Justin A. Cohn, The Journal Gazette

The story on Reiter

In case you missed it, here's today's story on goaltender Kevin Reiter. Click here.

Injury update

According to Komets general manager David Franke, defenseman Kevin Bertram has missed practice this week because of a groin injury. It's unclear whether he will play this weekend.

Defenseman Maxsim Shirokov, who suffered a concussion during a collision with goaltender Kevin Reiter in practice on Monday, is unlikely to play in the home-and-home series versus Bloomington on Friday and Saturday.

Franke said there's nothing to report on the Komets' efforts to bring in another goaltender to challenge Adam Hanna for the job as backup to Reiter.

-- By Justin A. Cohn, The Journal Gazette

Anderson could move up

Former Komets player John Anderson is a candidate for the Atlanta Thrashers' head-coaching job. It's long overdue that Anderson get a look from an NHL team; check out these playing and coaching stats.

Charting Chwedoruk, officials and others

It looks as if the Komets didn't land the services of forward Justin Chwedoruk. According to the Bakersfield Californian, he will play for the ECHL's Bakersfield Condors.

He had 24 goals and 68 points in 71 games last season for Quad City of the United Hockey League.

• I got an interesting e-mail about this, and I thought it was something to consider. The Komets recently cut forward Michael George, a potent scorer in juniors with Battlefords. Now they bring in Mitch Woods for a tryout; and he was also on Battlefords, but not as accomplished a scorer. Is this just a matter of right-handedness or toughness? Or was Woods the setup guy? Still, if the Komets sign Woods, one has to wonder if they got the best of Battlefords or not.
• Port Huron coach Stan Drulia is going to start charting the tendencies of the International Hockey League's officials, according to The Port Huron Times-Herald. Great idea. And good luck. That'll be like trying to look at Don Cherry's wardrobe without getting dizzy. Seriously, if Drulia can figure these guys out, he should get a job at NASA.
• Muskegon's Trevor Johnson is going to Italy to become a citizen and possibly play in the Olympics, The Muskegon Chronicle reported.
• Happy Anniversary to Flint Generals beat writer Brendan Savage, who's celebrating 25 years at The Flint Journal. Twenty-six if you count that season with Billy Thurlow at the helm twice.
• Those wishing to attend the Memorial Service for Len Wharton, one of the original Komets, who died recently at the age of 80, it will be 11 a.m. at Promise Lutheran Church, 7323 Schwartz Road. There will be a reception preceding the event, at 10 a.m.
• By the way, kudos to those who run the IHL's Web site. After my recent post about having trouble with it, I heard from them and they've made some improvements. A definite step in the right direction; now I can find the statistics.

-- By Justin A. Cohn, The Journal Gazette

Reiter OK, Shirokov is not

Komets goaltender Kevin Reiter, who aggravated a knee injury in Saturday's 4-0 victory over Port Huron, practiced Monday and should be available to play Friday at Bloomington, Ill. However, defenseman Maxsim Shirokov suffered a broken nose and concussion after a collision with Reiter in practice and will be out at least through the weekend, general manager David Franke said.

In other news, the team is giving a tryout to forward Mitch Woods, who had been in training camps with Bridgeport of the American Hockey League and Utah of the ECHL, but the team is not sure if it will sign him. Woods had 27 goals, 66 points and 215 penalty minutes in 58 games last season with his junior team, Battlefords.

And the Komets believe they may be coming close to an agreement with defenseman Brent Henley, who had three assists and 174 penalty minutes in 36 games last season with Fort Wayne, but the parties are still in the negotiation stage, Franke said. Henley is recovering from a knee injury and wouldn't be available to play until November.

-- By Justin A. Cohn, The Journal Gazette

No news yet on Reiter

Coach Al Sims said Sunday night he had no update to give on goaltender Kevin Reiter, who injured his knee in Saturday's season opener, a 4-0 victory over the Port Huron Flags. Reiter had 30 saves in the shutout and never left the game, but there was concern he may have aggravated a strained medial collateral ligament he suffered last season.

• I find the International Hockey League's Web site very difficult to decipher, especially if you're looking for comprehensive statistics. And the box scores in the game center portion aren't fully viewable on many computers, which is driving more than a few people batty. So, according to another Web site, pointstreak.com, Reiter was the only goalie with a shutout in the opening weekend and Guy Dupuis is tied for tops among all defensemen with three points.
• The fight between Fort Wayne's Kevin Bertram and Neil Clark found its way to youtube.com. Bertram's the one in white, in case you couldn't tell.
• You better have the page bookmarked already, but if not, The Journal Gazette has photos, audio, a poll and more from Saturday's game at Komets Korner: Click here.
• Former Komets center Bruce Richardson had a short-handed goal in his debut with Wichita, a 5-1 loss to Oklahoma City. Check out the story from The Wichita Eagle, including a photo of Richardson mixing it up.

-- By Justin A. Cohn, The Journal Gazette

Be happy, be nervous

It's just one game, but Kevin Reiter looked outstanding in his debut as the Komets' No. 1 goaltender. He stopped 30 shots, including 12 in the third period, as Fort Wayne won its seaosn opener 4-0 over the visiting Port Huron Icehawks on Saturday night.

But temper the enthusiasm, because there is some bad news. When Reiter was crashed into in the third period by Mike Olynyk -- no penalty was called -- he may have aggravated the injury to his left knee that cut short his last season. That injury was a strained medial-collateral ligament. Reiter stayed in the game, said he was scared more than anything because it was a familiar feeling, and after the game was walking and claiming to feel OK. But then it was off to the trainer's room, and coach Al Sims said they need to wait and see how Reiter feels and if further evaluation by a doctor is necessary.

Before all this went down, general manager David Franke said the team had no immediate plans to bring in another goalie, even though backup Adam Hanna looked less than stellar during the preseason. The Komets decided against bringing in Brad Smith, recently waived by Kalamazoo, and some discussion of trading for Port Huron's Marty Magers were yanked by the Icehawks because they decided they needed him, and Saturday they certainly did.

We'll have to keep an eye on Komets' goalie situation.

Speaking of the hit on Reiter, where was the so-called toughess of the Komets then? I know it was a one-goal game at the time, but that's when you send Olivier Legault out there to send a message. It didn't happen. Although, Kevin Bertram fought Neil Clark about seven minutes later. I'm telling you, it's been years of Fort Wayne goalies getting run with no worry of retribution; I'd love to see that stop.

Here are a few other observations:

• It was another quiet night for Konstantin Shafranov. I hardly noticed him on the ice. But he did set up the final goal with a savvy no-look pass to Legault during a 2-on-1.
• Again, Jason Sessa looked solid. He had nine shots.
• The Komets' power play should be sick this season, at least that first unit. Who does Sergei Durdin remind you of on the PP? Kelly Perrault anyone?
• For a guy who's hardly practiced because of a back injury, Kevin Hansen was solid.
• Nice to see such big cheers for Colin Chaulk, back after a year in Europe, and Brandon Warner, the hometown kid.
• My grades on the new IHL tonight: There was a lot of exciting play, so I'd give the overall product a B+; the officials missed some very obvious penalties, but at least they let 'em play, so I'll give them a C+; the toughness, well, there was some good hitting and one fight, so I'll go with a B.
• As for the 25-minute pregame ceremony, it needed to be shorter. Too much of Ice D. Eagle and his Thunderstix. Just give me 15 minutes, no more.
• The music was a step in the right direction tonight. I think Larry Schmitt took some of our suggestions and brought out some new stuff. And I heard that from others, too. But it can still get better.

-- By Justin A. Cohn, The Journal Gazette

Oh, captain, my captain

Mark this date down, David Hukalo leads the Komets in scoring. His goal, at the end of a 2-on-2 rush, put the Komets up 1-0 on the Port Huron IceHawks 12:27 into the first period of the season opener.

Coach Al Sims selected defenseman Guy Dupuis as his team captain, his second season with the job. Center Colin Chaulk and defenseman Kevin Hansen are the assistants. Just so you know, the International Hockey League has no rules against a player/assistant coach like Chaulk being a captain or assistant, general manager David Franke said.

-- By Justin A. Cohn, The Journal Gazette

In case you missed it ...

Most of the stories from our season preview section are available by clicking here. For the full package, buy a newspaper. In case you missed it, I picked Flint to win the championship, over Fort Wayne in the finals, and columnist Ben Smith picked Fort Wayne.

Meanwhile, I got a bit of chuckle out of this press release announcing the greatness of the new International Hockey League's new game. Too bad they didn't tell anyone who won the game. (Flint defeated Port Huron 4-1.)

And in the battle of former Fort Wayne goalies last night, Kevin St. Pierre's Tulsa Oilers defeated Dan McWhinney's Amarillo Gorillas 3-2. Other former Komets in the game: Arthur Kiyaga, Andrew Lackner, Rob Guinn and David-Alexandre Beauregard.

-- By Justin A. Cohn, The Journal Gazette

No on Tremblay

The Komets had hoped to land former player Erick Tremblay, who had been in training camp with the Elmira Jackals of the ECHL, but according to Fort Wayne general manager David Franke, he'll be signing with Wichita of the Central Hockey League.

Make sure you check out our special section, previewing the Komets' season, in Saturday's editions of The Journal Gazette

-- By Justin A. Cohn

Jaworski and George waived

The Fort Wayne Komets waived defenseman Jason Jaworski and center Michael George on Thursday, dropping their roster size to 21, the number they will likely have when they play their regular-season opener Saturday against the Port Huron Icehawks at Memorial Coliseum.

The departure of Jaworski means the Komets will move Brandon Warner and Jake Pence from their nature forward positions to defense. With them, the Komets have seven defensemen.

Franky, I'm surprised with both cuts. Jaworski has been nomadic, but I thought his experience would be a good stabilizing force on what is a very young defense. And while I know coach Al Sims was concerned with George's defensive play, he clearly had offensive skills. I bet he's picked up somewhere and puts up good numbers.

-- By Justin A. Cohn, The Journal Gazette

On Aquino

Click here to read today's story on Luciano Aquino; he's going to be a good one here.

No on Syro, maybe yes on others

The Komets have yet to cut any more players -- probably two will be let go as early as Thursday -- general manager David Franke said.

The team did have interest in bringing back Matt Syroczynski, who was waived by Elmira of the ECHL recently, but he has caught on with Cincinnati of the ECHL. As for Justin Chwedoruk, who was also waived by Elmira, the Komets have made him a contract offer and he is mulling it over.

Former Komets forward Erick Tremblay, also cut loose by Elmira this week, has already heard from the Komets and I've heard, if he clears waivers, he may end up back here.

Still no word on another goalie coming to Fort Wayne.

On another note, I'd like to make a comment about the negativity. Let me be clear here, I appreciate everyone who reads here and comments here, and I value all of your opinions.

All I ask is for those of you who comment to consider this: Sometimes when you leave a comment, it comes off as hostile to your fellow readers, and I don't want that. We should want as many people as possible discussing, even those who aren't season-ticket holders or are more fair-weather fans. But if they know by writing something, even if it's positive, that they're going to get some rant about how insane they are in return, then they'll stop contributing and I don't think anyone wants that.

I'm not saying you have to be positive all the time, and no I'm not telling you what to think or write, but a few of you -- and you know who you are -- need to keep in mind you're all here for basically the same reasons and it'd be better to have more than just three or four voices drowning out the rest.

Rant over.

-- By Justin A. Cohn, The Journal Gazette

About the blue line

Let's get off the music discussion for a bit here -- it'll probably fall on deaf  ears anyway (pun intended) -- and talk about the defense.

It doesn't take a genius to figure out, that's the big question mark with the Komets. I was at practice today and, for much of it, Kevin Hansen was off the ice with his back injury, while Kevin Bertram and Guy Dupuis were also absent for unknown reasons. (General manager David Franke said there was nothing significant to report with Bertram or Dupuis.)

So I was looking at a relatively inexperienced corps of five players, with two players, Brandon Warner and Jake Pence, who are natural forwards. And there doesn't seem to be much physicality out there, aside from Bertram and Hansen.

There's potential, but how the Komets' blue-liners play may directly, and particularly, influence whether this team has success. The good news is I've been told, and it sure looks like, coach Al Sims is very good at working with young defensemen. He should be, having played 10 seasons in the NHL as a defenseman.

I must say, though, Sergei Durdin has a wicked shot.

Before you ask, the goaltenders are still Kevin Reiter and Adam Hanna.

• Pictures from Monday's practice can be seen here.
• Check out WANE-TV's web site. They dug up some old interviews, dating back even to the 1993 Turner Cup championship team. Check out the young Al Sims and Dupuis. And the Frankes sure look boyish.
• Randy Upshall, a defenseman cut by the Komets on Saturday, has been claimed by the Kalamazoo Wings.
• A fan wrote to the Port Huron Times-Herald to voice his displeasure after getting booted from his usual seats by the owner. Click here to see the letter. Different owners, but this is the same town that booted media from the press box so the owner could treat his friends to a buffet of stale dip and chips a few years back. One of the other Fort Wayne writers was told to cover the game from an obstructed-view seat. Classy.
• Brendan Savage of The Flint Journal has declared the Generals are the team to beat. Click here to read it.
• According to the Kalamazoo Gazette, the Wings will stick with the line of Mike Bickley, Matt Elich and Mark Versteeg-Lytwyn, which tore the Komets apart in a preseason game Saturday.

Meanwhile, Komets trainer Shawn Dundon continues to auction off the jerseys of recently deceased fan Stacy Musice. I will post them under the comments section of this post, as it's lengthy. They are available on eBay.

-- By Justin A. Cohn, The Journal Gazette

Calling all former Jackals

Former Komets forward Matt Syroczynski and former Quad City Mallards forward Justin Chwedoruk, whose rights in the International Hockey League are possessed by the Komets, were released by the ECHL's Elmira Jackals.

Fort Wayne general manager David Franke said he is interested in brining in both players, and has already called their agents, but they are evaluating other options before they decide on whether to pursue anything with Fort Wayne.

Also, the Komets continue to monitor goaltenders waived in other leagues, but for now they're sticking with their current combination of Kevin Reiter and Adam Hanna.

As for speculation the Komets would bring in enforcer Jason Bone, waived by Port Huron last weekend -- Franke said, no way.

• Don't forget, I'll be doing my weekly spot on the TNT Morning Show, 98.9 FM, Tuesday at about 9 a.m.

-- By Justin A. Cohn, The Journal Gazette

We need music suggestions

OK, it seems as if my harping about being sick of the music at Komets game has struck a chord with public address announcer Larry Schmitt. He said he's open to suggestions, so let's give them to him.

By the way, since I've started writing about it, I've been hearing from a lot of people with similar comments; even got an e-mail from someone who watched a game tape from 1993, which predated Schmitt, and they said the music was eerily similar.

Schmitt's reminders on suggestions were they have to start strong and, remember, they're only played for about 15 seconds each. My caveats are as follows: They should be recognizable to a large portion of the fans, unless they're an exceptionally good mood-setter, they should be family friendly and they shouldn't  all sound alike.

I'm not a huge fan of the sound bytes from TV shows because I think most people can't understand them or recognize them. But from time to time, they can be funny if not used too much. And let's not go down the "Rock and Roll, Part II" path here again, please.

Chime in with suggestions in the comments section. Off the top of my head, here's what I have:

• "Harder to Breathe," by Maroon 5.
• "Best Damn Thing," by Avril Lavigne.
• "Black Horse and the Cherry Tree," by KT Tunstall.
• "Manifest Destiny," by Guster.
• "Lady," by Lenny Kravitz.
• "All That I'm Living For," by Evanescence.
• "It's Only Me," by Barenaked Ladies.
• "Mr. Brightside," by The Killers.
• "Do You Right," by 311.
• "Heat of the Moment," by Asia -- Oh, yeah!
• "Hands Up," by Black Eyes Peas.
• "Heart of the Sunrise," by Yes.
• "Them Bones," by Alice in Chains.
• "Barracuda," by Heart.
• "Family Affair," by Mary J. Blige.
• "Umbrella," by Rihanna.

-- By Justin A. Cohn, The Journal Gazette

We've got cuts -- 4 of them

Fort Wayne Komets coach Al Sims informed four players they had been cut, just minutes after his team's 7-4 loss to the Kalamazoo Wings on Saturday night. The players were defensemen Clay Lewis and Randy Upshall, goaltender Shawn Monette and center Dustin Hughes.

There will probably be about two more players cut before the regular-season opener Saturday against the visiting Port Huron Icehawks.

None of the cuts were surprising. Lewis had seven penalty minutes in two preseason games. Upshall was minus-3 in two games. Monette allowed four goals on 14 shots in 29:30 of work. Hughes was minus-3 in one game. None of them scored a point.

-- By Justin A. Cohn, The Journal Gazette

Music to my ears

Greetings from Memorial Coliseum, where the players change but the music stays the same. (That's right, I'm sick of hearing the same songs over and over again and have made it my mission to have it changed.)

The Komets polished off their three-game preseason schedule with a 7-4 loss to the Kalamazoo Wings.

Fort Wayne got two goals from Jason Sessa, giving him four goals and five points in the two games he played. It's safe to say, he looked impressive.

Other standouts for me during the preseason: Bobby Kukulka, who could put up 40 goals on this team, Sergei Durdin, Kevin Bertram, who had three fights and looked pretty good for an old guy, and Luciano Aquino.

I'm not sure what to make of Konstantin Shafranov, who I didn't even notice out there. I also have mixed feelings about goaltender Adam Hanna, who has looked very good at times but also gave up a couple of bad goals during game action this week. He's most likely going to  be on the team, as general manager David Franke said the team has no immediate plans to bring in another goalie, though they'd certainly like to at some point.

Franke said the Komets are still after more toughness, and they have made a contract offer to defenseman Brent Henley, who suffered a knee injury while with the Komets last season. He should be able to play in late November, Franke said, but he's also considering offers from the ECHL and Central Hockey League.

It's hard to discern much from preseason hockey, especially with Metallica rattling around in my head here, but the Komets seem faster than last season and I believe they will score a ton of goals. I'm not even remotely sold on the defensive play, though.

Aside from the six fights the Komets had in the preseason, I'm also not seeing the toughness. Hardly any body checks out there. And by the way, Olivier Legault should have received a penalty for not having his jersey tied down, clearly evident during his fight at the end of the second period.

Courtesy of Scott Sproat, Komets vice-president, here's Terry Marchant's power-play goal in the third period, which trimmed the deficit to two goals at 6-4: Download IMG_0001.AVI

-- By Justin A. Cohn, The Journal Gazette

Komets win 5-4, as Jaworski and Warner shine

Komets coach Al Sims was pleased with his team's effort in its 5-4 victory over the Kalamazoo Wings in an overtime shootout Friday night.

"I thought for two periods we outchanced them but failed to capitalize," Sims said via phone. "We had several breakaways but just missed (some goals). Then we were down 4-2 in the third period and we got going."

The Komets got two goals from Jason Jaworski, one from Guy Dupuis and a fourth from Fort Wayne-native Brandon Warner, which forced overtime with 9 minutes, 58 seconds remaining in overtime.

Starting goaltender Kevin Reiter stopped 15 of 17 shots. Adam Hanna stopped 16 of 18 in relief. (Sims plans to use the same combination tonight, when the team meet again at Memorial Coliseum, which seems to suggest Shawn Monette isn't making the team.)

In the shootout, the only goal came from Bobby Kukulka.

"I've seen him score too many goals in this league to believe he didn't have one in him," Sims said, and we'll forgive him for mistaking the new International Hockey League as being the old United Hockey League.

Sims had high praise for Olivier Legault, who fought Nick Bootland, after Bootland had crashed into Reiter. That'd be a change after the Komets have let opposing teams run their goalies for years.

There has been speculation the Komets might have another goalie in camp before the regular season opens Oct. 20, but Sims said there's no word yet and Hanna could be playing himself into a job. Sims said it's important for the Komets to have a good showing for the fans tonight, in the final match of the preseason.

-- By Justin A. Cohn, The Journal Gazette

Ice scrapers, dated looks and on-ice ugliness

I have to applaud the Komets on this one. There will be a giveaway at every home game this regular season. For me, that reminds me of my days growing up at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit, and I still have the closet full of keychains, buttons and hats to show for it.

Click here to see the giveaways. However, dog food bowls? And I'm sorry, aren't Thunderstix out these days? Sort of like "Who wants to be a Millionaire?" and Britney Spears.

The ice scrapers could be asking for trouble; there was an incident in the 1990s -- (Or was it the 1980s? That predates even me.) -- during which the fans littered the ice with ice scrapers. Fort Wayne has also had incidents with flying discs, bags of marshmallows and pucks in the past.

But I'm sure everyone will be on their best behavior this year. After all, littering the ice can draw the home team penalties and fines. Besides, then the kids will get less free stuff in the future.

• Nice of the International Hockey League to make Pascal Morency the posterboy for the league's web site, especially since he never skated in it. Morency, who is pictured there from his time with the Komets last season in the United Hockey League, is playing for Bridgeport of the American Hockey League. C'mon, IHL, are you breaking from the UHL or not?
• By the way, have you seen the Jesse Boulerice hit? Click here to see it. The Philadelphia Flyers player got a 25-game suspension for the cheap shot on Ryan Kesler of Vancouver. Certainly a deserved punishment. And this is in a league cracking down on this stuff.

-- By Justin A. Cohn, The Journal Gazette

Komets Korner is up and running

The newly renovated Komets Korner page is up and running. We're still making improvements, but hope you'll enjoy it.

Click here. Or you can always go to www.journalgazette.net, then on the pulldown menu go to sports, professional, Komets.

K's lose 5-4, in review

Coach Al Sims was fairly pleased with his players in a 5-4 loss to Bloomington in a preseason game on Wednesday. Here's what he had to say about some things:

On relief goalie Shawn Monette, who allowed four goals on 14 shots as Bloomington recovered from a two-goal deficit: "I felt bad for Shawn Monette. You come into the game cold and the first shot you face is from 10 feet in front of you. It was ripped in the net and I think it affected his confidence a little bit. ... He did make two breakaway saves, but a couple got away from him."

Sims will platoon goalies Kevin Reiter and Adam Hanna, who stopped 8 of 9 shots, on Friday at Kalamazoo, Mich. Monette may get some playing time Saturday against Kalamazoo at Memorial Coliseum, if they don't bring anybody else into town.

Sims was impressed with Luciano Aquino, who had a goal, Jason Sessa, who had two, Terry Marchant, plus the line of Dustin Hughes, Matt Reynolds and Evgeny Saidachev.

He was particularly pleased to see the performance of defenseman Kevin Bertram, who fought Jeff Ewasko twice in his first game back from a two-season retirement.

"Bertram was better than I expected," Sims said. "After two years off, I thought he was really going to struggle to keep up skating-wise and would look very slow and lethargic. But he looked OK, didn't get beat by anybody one-on-one."

Sims had a little less praise for the defensive players overall.

"I don't think anybody stood out tremendously on defense, for me," Sims said.

Meanwhile, because Sims spent the game in the press box, there were plenty of jokes around the locker room about the coaching jobs of players Colin Chaulk and Kevin Hansen. One popular one noted that maybe Chaulk should be fired for making a goalie change with a 4-2 lead. They were kidding, of course.

-- By Justin A. Cohn, The Journal Gazette

This is rumor control

(Can anyone tell me what movie that phrase is from? Answer below)

You may have seen Brendan Tedstone, the former Flint and Richmond player, who is listed as 6-foot-5, 295 pounds, at Memorial Coliseum tonight. No, he's not about to become a Komets player.

Asked if they had any interest in bringing him in, both general manager David Franke and team president Michael Franke said absolutely not. Tedstone, who had 27 penalty minutes in three games for Richmond in 2005-06, said he had spoken with coach Al Sims about coming in but was later told no. He's on his way to a tryout with Knoxville of the Southern Professional Hockey League, or he could play up in Quebec.

The movie: Alien 3

-- By Justin A. Cohn, The Journal Gazette

Why wait for a fight?

This comes from Scott Sproat, Komets vice-president, the second-period fight between Kevin Bertram of Fort Wayne and Jeff Ewasko of Bloomington.

Click here to see it: Download IMG_0001.AVI

They fought again later, with Bertram crushing Ewasko with the first punch.

A change of spelling

Apparently, Komets defenseman Maxsim Shirokov has informed the Komets and the International Hockey League that he would like that to be the proper spelling of his name from now on in English. (It had been without the h until today.) In Latvia, it was Maksims Širokovs.

Meanwhile, the Komets are on the ice for their first exhibition game and lead the Bloomington Prairie Thunder 1-0 late in the first period, off a power-play goal from Jason Sessa. Coach Al Sims is watching the game from the press box and Colin Chaulk is running the show from the bench, with some help from Kevin Hansen.

The Komets are playing 12 rookies and only two veterans -- Sessa and Terry Marchant.

-- By Justin A. Cohn, The Journal Gazette

Pictures fixed

They've worked out the bugs with those pictures from the first day of training camp. Click here to see them. By the way, in answer to the questions, Maxsim Sirokov is not a rookie due to the number of games he played in Europe.

Funny commercials

Through the help of Komets vice-president Scott Sproat, I have received copies of the commercials running to advertise the team's upcoming season. They're some of the funniest I've see them do. I wanted to post them because they mostly run on Comcast and some other cable systems; those of us with satellite dishes cannot see them.

The spots were done by the Komets and Smartguys Advertising, filmed and edited by Cosmic Soup Digital. I promised the Komets I'd stress that these spots aren't the finalized versions that are airing on TV; when it says "Game Info Here," that's where up-to-date information is posted, with audio, about upcoming games.

So, click on the following three links to see the commercials. I especially like the third one. Thanks, Scott!

Download the_contract.mov

Download the_interview.mov

Download tshirt_gun.mov

-- By Justin A. Cohn, The Journal Gazette

A look at the lines

The Komets had a good-looking 2 hour, 10 minute practice during Day 2 of training camp today. Here are some things of note:

• Defenseman Kevin Hansen was the only one not on the ice. General manager David Franke said he was nursing a sore back.
• After he spent Day 1 playing forward, Fort Wayne-native Brandon Warner was on defense. Meanwhile, Jake Pence was moved from defense to forward.
• Coach Al Sims said he probably won't make any cuts until Sunday.
• Goaltender Kevin Reiter will not play in Wednesday's exhibition game against Bloomington, but will probably play both Friday and Saturday.
• Here were the line combinations I could discern: Konstantin Shafranov, Travis Granbois, Michael George; Olivier Legault, Mathieu Curadeau, Jason Sessa; Pence, Colin Chaulk, David Hukalo; Matt Reynolds, Dustin Hughes, Bobby Kukulka; Luciano Aquino, Terry Marchant, Evgeny Saidachev. I thought the Marchant line was a nice combination.
• I also thought defenseman Sergei Durdin looked impressive.

-- By Justin A. Cohn, The Journal Gazette

Sirokov story, plus pictures

Click here to read the aforementioned story on Maxsim Sirokov.

Pictures from practice can be viewed by clicking here.

McDonald gets a job

Sorry I'm a little late with this news, but Bill McDonald, who was one of two finalists for the Komets' head-coaching job over the summer, was hired to coach the Dayton Bombers of the ECHL.

So, after getting passed over for Al Sims, McDonald takes over a team that was in the finals of an NHL-affiliated league last season. This should give more ammunition to the people who thought Fort Wayne made the wrong hire, eh?

By the way, the Bombers lost their NHL affiliation with the nearby Columbus Blue Jackets, who have gone with the Elmira Jackals, a former United Hockey League team. Dayton will go it independently this season. Check out the story on this -- particularly the headline -- from the Dayton Daily News.

-- By Justin A. Cohn, The Journal Gazette

Giggles, newcomers and translations needed

I don't know yet if Al Sims can teach forechecking or break down a neutral-zone trap,  but I can tell you he has a better sense of humor than his two predecessors, Pat Bingham and Greg Puhalski.

The Komets opened training camp today and Sims had the room in stitches as he described some of his new players; a welcome change from the usual non-descriptive introductions.

On Kevin Bertram, who came out of retirement to rejoin the Komets, Sims said: "He played in the firemans' league last year and has made the big jump to AA hockey from there."

OK, it was funnier in person.

On Guy Dupuis, Sims told the room how he was a poor-skating "plodder" as a second-year player with the Komets and Sims thought "he'll be lucky to play 10 games at this level." Dupuis is in his 18th pro season now, and he's the Komets' captain.

Sims also slipped up and called the IHL the UHL, then quipped, "I'll have to put a dollar in the jar for that."

But there was actual news: The Komets have brought in defenseman Maksim Sirokov and defenseman Jason Jaworski, bringing their ranks to the 27 players they expected.

Sirokov's story is particularly interesting. He has wanted to come over from Latvia for a couple of years but could never get a visa, some believe because his coach there has such pull with the government. He quietly got his visa approved, though Sirokov was mum on some of the details, and he came over last week. He did so with the help of the Komets, defenseman Sergei Durdin and some other players in the minors, like Jan Jas.

Sirokov could be a whopper of a player. He had 10 goals and 37 points in 47 games last season. How good? Good enough that I've heard whispers he might not be at this level long.

I will have a story on Sirokov in Tuesday's paper. I had to get Durdin to serve as interpreter.

As for Jaworski, he's skated for Muskegon, Adirondack, Elmira, Quad City and Port Huron. He sat out last season after the birth of a child.

-- By Justin A. Cohn, The Journal Gazette

Ready to go

Training camp on the Komets' 56th season opens Monday. Boy, does it feel like it was a long offseason, what with all the turnover in players and coaches, hullabaloo about the new International Hockey League, rules changes, griping about the toughness.

Here's what I'll be most watchful of when the boys take to the ice:

1) The goaltending. Will Kevin Reiter be an adequate No. 1, and who will win the battle for No. 2?

2) The hitting. Somebody had better lay some checks. It's about time we had a rough and tumble squad around here. I'm not particularly optimistic, though.

3) Coach Al Sims and how the players respond. If he doesn't gain the players' respect from Day 1, it could be a long season for the coach everyone has a different opinion about.

4) So many rookies. There should about about 13; they better play above their ages.

5) Colin Chaulk. It feels funny to write this, but I feel like the beloved former captain has big shoes to fill with the departure of Bruce Richardson, maybe the best leader I've seen come through here. Chaulk has to be a positive force on the ice and in the locker room.

6) Guy Dupuis. When Chaulk was last here, he was captain. Now Dupuis, who is more reserved, is the captain. Feels strange.

7) Special teams. Even though the officiating is supposed to be looser this season, it will be mostly the same awful referees as last season. I'll believe there's improvement when I see it, and I'm not holding by breath. So that means the Komets will have to be awesome on special teams to succeed. I bet they will be.

8) Fighting. Sims said he's looking for players to stand out and he mentioned fighting as a possible way. There's not usually much of that around here in training camp, but it would be nice to see some guys set themselves apart by proving they're willing to police the ice.

9) Injuries. There's always someone early in the season.

10) Terry Marchant and Jason Sessa. I think they have to be pivotal players this season, especially to take the pressure off of Chaulk.

-- By Justin A. Cohn, The Journal Gazette

A new goaltender

The Fort Wayne Komets have signed goaltender Adam Hanna, coach Al Sims said, and he will join Kevin Reiter and Shawn Monette in net for the Komets when they open training camp Monday at Memorial Coliseum.

Hanna, 26, played 11 games last season for the Bossier-Shreveport Mudbugs of the Central Hockey League, going 5-2-1 with a 3.04 goals-against average and a .923 save percentage. He also played two games for Long Beach of the ECHL, but was not the goalie of record in either game.

His season was shortened because of hand and knee injuries.

The signing of Hanna comes less than a week after Shawn Degagne informed the Komets he would not be coming to Fort Wayne because he aggravated a shoulder injury. Reiter will be the Komets' No. 1 goaltender, while Hanna and Monette, a rookie, will battle for the No. 2 spot.

"(Hanna) is somebody we've heard good things about and he can be spectacular at times," Sims said, pointing out Hanna's time at St. John's University from 2003 to 2006, when in each of his seasons his GAA was 2.02 or better and his save percentage was .920 or better.

There's an outside chance the Komets will have a fourth goaltender in town for training camp, Sims said.

-- By Justin A. Cohn, The Journal Gazette

Komets get Islanders prospect

The New York Islanders have assigned Luciano Aquino, a 5-foot-10, 200 pound right wing, to the Fort Wayne Komets, who open training camp in the new International Hockey League on Monday.

Aquino, a seventh-round draft pick of the Islanders in 2005, played 13 games last season with the American Hockey League's Bridgeport Sound Tigers, scoring two goals and three points. Aquino, 22, also played 33 games in the ECHL with Pensacola and Utah, tallying eight goals and 29 points.

His arrival in Fort Wayne has long been anticipated and came in no small part because former Komets coach Pat Bingham is an assistant in Bridgeport, the Islanders' top minor-league affiliate, and suggested Fort Wayne would be a good spot for Aquino.

Additionally, the Komets signed center Mathiew Curadeau, 22, who had three goals and 11 points in 11 games last season with the University of Ottawa. He also played four games of senior hockey in Quebec, tallying one goal.

The Komets have 24 players on their roster.

• In perhaps more important news, my friends over at 98.9 The Bear have finally added yours truly to their comic strip. Quite a likeness. I am on the air with the TNT Morning Show on Tuesdays at 9 a.m, talking about Komets. Colts, American Gladiators and more. Check it out.

-- By Justin A. Cohn, The Journal Gazette

Morency makes it

Well how about this. Pascal Morency, who won the hearts of Komets fans last season for his hustle and his work ethic, appears to have gotten a roster spot with the American Hockey League's Bridgeport Sound Tigers. His coach in Fort Wayne, Pat Bingham, is an assistant coach with that team. Congrats to Pascal.

-- By Justin A. Cohn, The Journal Gazette

Former Komet dies

Len Wharton, who played with the Komets in the first incarnation of the International Hockey League from 1952 to 1954, died at the age of 80 in Arkansas on Sunday. He had five goals and 29 points in 59 games his first season with the team, one goal and 11 points in 52 games his second season. He also played one game with the NHL's New York Rangers in 1944-45.

-- By Justin A. Cohn, The Journal Gazette

Sad news

I'm sorry to report that longtime Komets fan James Fell, known to many of you blog readers as "Skate," died at the age of 53 after a battle with cancer. Skate was a frequent commenter on this site, very knowledgeable about the game. Click here to see the obituary.

No goaltender to introduce, so you get this

I guess I didn't know there was a question about it, but apparently mascot Icy D. Eagle will, in fact, be back for the Komets' first season in the new International Hockey League. I'm not sure this will help either the toughness or goaltending voids, but at least I can reasonably assume there will still be a Nutcracker dance with a tutu come the holidays.

This will be his 14th season with the team. It says Icy is 16; that's only 21 years younger than defenseman Guy Dupuis.

In case you're wondering, it is true that Icy began his career with the Salt Lake Golden Eagles for two years, before making his Fort Wayne appearance in a 1994 All-Star Game. He returned to Fort Wayne for the playoffs and became a permanent fixture after the Golden Eagles disbanded.

-- By Justin A. Cohn, The Journal Gazette