Updates, we've got updates

I have some more updates on the Komets' front.

• The Komets are still hopeful they can sign goaltender Kevin Reiter, who couldn't be reached for comment, but general manager David Franke said he's also getting interest from Europe.
• Forward Mitch Woods has signed with Cincinnati of the ECHL, Franke said.
• Playoff MVP Justin Hodgman has been invited to a second rookie camp by the Minnesota Wild, Franke said, and the Wild now has his NHL rights. If he doesn't stick, he'll probably go back to juniors.
• Right wing Luciano Aquino is trying to get a two-way contract with an NHL team or an AHL contract; in other words, he's trying to play at a higher level than the International Hockey League. "We want him back," Franke said, "but on a scale of 1 to 10, it's probably only a 4 or 5 that it happens."
• The Komets would very much like to get center Mathieu Curadeau back but they haven't had much discussion with his agent. Curadeau, too, would like to play at a higher level.
• The Komets are hopeful to have forward Olivier Legault back, too, but that has stalled somewhat.
• Right wing Evgeny Saidachev has an offer from the Komets, but he's also receiving interest from the Central Hockey League.
• The team has a meeting set up with defenseman Brandon Warner, a Fort Wayne native, and the Komets hope they can sign him soon.
• Defenseman Kevin Hansen is has a meeting set up with the Komets, but I'm hearing he could be CHL bound.
• Defenseman Brent Henley is a question mark; he wants to get a tryout with an NHL team or could wind up in Europe.
• Forward Terry Marchant is unlikely to receive an offer from the Komets.
• Defenseman Ken Dufresne is expected to go to Canadian University.
• THIS ADDED LATE: The Komets are close with David Hukalo, so I expect him to be back.

-- By Justin A. Cohn, The Journal Gazette

Comments

[mightbite]

I want them to sign KING-KONG HENLEY!!!

[Bob]

Any word regarding David Huckalo?

[Hit Somebody!!!]

I saw some talking about wanting Hodgeman back as a Komet. Let me bring everyone to reality...Hodgeman is no way coming back here guys. We were lucky to have had him last season thanks to Peter Sidorkiwicz...former player here and juniors coach of Hodgeman. We just got lucky. He is destined for bigger and better things. His options are this, A) He lands an NHL deal that puts him in their farm system most likely AHL...or B) He goes back to juniors for more NHL scout exposure and then catches on with a NHL/AHL team-contract. He will not be seen in this level of hockey guys.

Henley...I like Henley, but I think it is time to move on. Injuries...and he wants to move up and needs to take that chance I guess. Someone has told him to tone down his temper and tough style and become a solid D-Man. You could see it last year. He is doing it to get a look in the higher leagues.

Curadeau..will move upward.

Woods..50/50 chance he moves upward, I would guess someone signs him to a 2-way contract and he winds up this season in ECHL. Which to me is a small move upward...hockey is the same there, just in an NHL teams system is all.

Acquino...will move upward.

Reiter would totally surprise me if he was back here. I don't think he likes sharing the pipes. He will be looking to be the Kevin St. Pierre of another team...

Legault...I would be shocked if he isn't a Komet this year...why wouldn't he be? He did all the right things here last season, he waited his turn...now we need to give this kid a shot.

Warner..komet.

Who did I leave out?

We need some young guns that can score and replace Acquino and Curadeau.

I am confident we will be loaded again this season. Just be patient. We had the best recruiting job ever last year.

Hukalo must be trying to get paid this off-season. He would have signed by now, but he must not be getting the offer from the Komets that he is looking for. It doesn't hurt to look around. I hope we don't play against him this season. He will lockdown whoever our goalscorer is and make us pay. People don't realize what a player Huk is. He is a guy you don't notice that much on the stat sheet, but he busts his tail all over the ice and is huge out there.

[Karla Stranger]

Well said HS.

[Hit Somebody!!!]

On a positive note....here is something to look forward to in Mr. Mac:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=22zadBzIIxE

If we have him and Legault on the same line....Look-out!!!!

[Cat Eyes]

Well, who the heck isn't getting interest from Europe, from what we've seen this off-season with minor league hockey in general? :) I just hope Reiter isn't getting TOO much interest...come on Kevin, surely you were taught how to share in Kindergarten just like the rest of us...you can do it for another year here...I've even given up on the idea of having you actually stay in the net just for my nerves, so what's the holdup?? LOL!

The Huk slowup is not yet making me nervous...I, too, want him back, but everyone keeps saying that lots of players wait to sign until October, even, so maybe he's just taking his time and seeing what he can get before jumping at the first offer they give him? Just a newbie's thought, take it for what it's worth...

We gotta get Warner's signature...Deuce, you work on that one, okay?? When you gonna see him next?

We MUST get Legault and Saidachev...if I can't have Woods back (and I cannot, obviously...), then those two are my two younger must-haves for the season...Saidachev...show some gratitude, honey...who kept ya at rookie status? Yeah, I thought so...LOL...I do hope he stays here another year...he was pretty talented for as young as he was, but the CHL can't have him!! :)

[Hit Somebody!!!]

Money will be the key with Saidachev. If you put Fort Wayne versus any of the CHL teams....pick one of them or all...Fort Wayne for Minor League hockey will always win out. MONEY is the determining factor.

We have the majority of our Vets now signed, right? Chaulk, Bert(Vet?), PC, Guyser, Boucher (VET?) and Shaf. That makes six. We can have 7. So who is #7?

Hukalo?
Reiter? is he a Vet now? Anyone know?

So now we look at rookies and tweeners. You need good ones at this point. They will be key for this year considering the average age of our team right now is like 65 or something. LOL

Warner-Rookie
Saidachev-Rookie
Legault-Rookie
MacMillan-Tweener....is he healthy? He played 6 games last year?

[Cat Eyes]

HitSomebody...thanks for the video...I was gonna look him up and you saved me the trouble! Looks like my kinda guy!! If I can't have My Man Mitch this season for the fights, well...someone's gotta pick up the slack...and if Henley may or may not be here...I was wondering who I'd be cheering on this season!! "The Goalie" was all for this guy, too...

Hey Komets PA...The Zambonis are an all-hockey band...they have a new song called "Fight on the Ice" that would make a great, uh, fight song, if you will...check out their MySpace page or they have their stuff and samples on Amazon too. Wendy on here introduced me to their music...I like the newer stuff better than the older...newer stuff is more rockin'!

[Cat Eyes]

Hit...so you're saying Saidachev will be here, then, right? Or is that just what I wanted to hear out of that statement...I got that Fort Wayne pays better than the CHL. Yes? Besides that we're just better fans and have a cooler blog. :) Because we have girls on here. LOL!! Just teasin' ya...

[Hit Somebody!!!]

No...just simply saying that it will come down to money at this level. We have the best Hockey Town outside of the NHL....well we are better than some of those too....but at this level of hockey $50 a week more to play makes a big difference. If a CHL team offers him $50 more a week to play, he most likely takes it. And we have signed some older veteran players who are getting paid very well and it will be hard to fit rookies and tweeners under the salary cap, especially if other teams in other leagues are willing to pay guys like Saidachev, Legault, and such more money than we can offer. It just makes it hard. The Komets will offer out 2 or 3 medium sized or maybe even 1 more large sized contract....and then the rest will be offering guys a chance to prove themselves in minor league hockey. Most guys that have played here all ready won't like to make the same as they did last year at a lower level contract to prove themselves once again, not to mention after a year of winning a cup....which is marketed to other leagues by players and agents.

I can't see how they can sign Hansen or Henley at this point. Their money and status must go to a scoring type of player I would think. We can find stay at home defenders and/or tough guys looking to make it in the Minors that are rookies or tweeners.

Just my opinion of course.

[Junior]

Good stuff Hit.

Sux that Woods won't be back, but it's hard for me to not see Legualt coming back. Same DEF. goes for Huk, he should be in a K's sweater next season.

Other then those 2 and Warner, I'm not sure at this point. GREAT to see Boucher come back, and I hope he does carry the majority of the minutes next season. He def. proved himself last year.

Good signings today, and here's to hopin that there is more to come!!

[FiveMinuteMajor]

Glad to see Dupuis and Boucher back, and I think I might like this MacMillan guy. Finally some good news this week! Did anyone else catch the new sports guy on channel 15 mispronouncing Guy's name? Almost choked on my burrito I was laughing so hard.

[Justin Cohn]

I will try to get something in there -- they're close on Hukalo, it sounds like.

[Mark]

I can't see Huk playing anywhere else but here in Fort Wayne. He married a local girl and lives here year around...Huk is either gonna retire or be a Komet, and I think its gonna be the later..

[johnny12572]

Boucher is not a vet, and niether is Reiter.......

[Hit Somebody!!!]

Thanks Johnny....wasn't sure on that.

[Wendy]

Just a few comments. First, I keep hearing how jealous Kevin is, yet Boucher always insisted that they got along great -- that he was his favorite partner. Okay, I know enough to realize that may just be "nice" talk on his part, but on the other hand, I've personally seen no evidence of Kevin's supposed jealously either.

So Mitch is signed to the Cyclones, eh? I see they won the championship last year. Can't argue with that. I'm sure he'll look great in red.

Hodgman goes back to camp. So... um... Is that good? I liked the guy as much as anybody, but I never wanted him back. It's like in the movie "Good Will Hunting" -- with all the talent he has, if he just came back here and never achieved anything more, it would be like an insult to all the players who ever dreamed about the NHL in vain.

Regarding Aquino -- "on a scale of 1 to 10, it's probably only a 4 or 5..."? Whoa. I had no idea the chances were THAT good.

What do you mean Marchant "is unlikely to receive an offer from the Komets". I can understand if he moves on or retires, but did they or did they not say they had sent out offers to EVERY player from last year's team? (This from the dark side: "Komets General Manager David Franke said today he has sent offers to every player from last year’s team.") Sorry to be a stickler for details, but both statements can't be true. So which is it, Mr. Franke?

[Charlie I]

Guy, PC, Chaulk, Bertram, Shafranov are the vets. If Hukalo signs that is another. That would make 6 vets and be able to sign 1 more.

[JungleMonkey]

-Woods overvalues himself and lacks discipline. After hearing some selfish comments that he made during the playoff run, I'm glad he's taking his shot at the bigtime. He lacks size. I don't see him ever playing in the AHL.

-I'd love to see Curadau and Legault back. Saidachev can stay or go, same to me..

-MacMillan isn't the toughest SOB on the planet, but he'll provide some entertainment. Lance Galbraith comes to mind. We need to find a real hellraiser to wear some Orange and Black.

-Boucher is back, that makes me very happy. I'd rather apply the cash we save on Reiter to a solid veteran defensman.

-The Frankes came through with toughness and awesome rookies last year. I'll trust in them to do the same this year.

[deuce]

I don't care, just glad to hear some good news around kometland this week. sad times my friends.

[Justin COhn]

I don't think it's lip service; Boucher and Reiter get along very well. Reiter, of course, would have loved to be the guy who got the Cup, but what competitive guy wouldn't have. Trust me, there isn't bad blood. I still have an inkling Reiter will be back.

By the way, those looking for the hockey fix, Cohn's blue team plays at 5:30 Wednesday at McMillen Arena. The person who was guessing on the number I'm wearing had it correct.

[Shawn]

Good to hear some good hockey news. That should hold us over for about a week.

[Wendy]

Speaking of McMillen... I give. What is "barrel hockey"? I tried looking it up, but oddly enough, I found no references to it outside of their website.

[Wendy]

And Cat... Hi! You know, I actually sent a suggestion to the Komets regarding the Zambonis last winter, though I guess I used the wrong link since I never heard anything back. I said I'd love to hear some of their music at the games. Later, I did notice "Drop that Puck" and (if I remember correctly) "Shot Score" used. So thanks for that, even if it was just sound clips.

I'd love to see them do a concert in conjuction with a game, but I'm not sure how easy it is to lure them out of New England. But I hear they write theme songs for jerseys. ;)

[Justin COhn]

It's pick-up hockey. The barrell reference is to how teams are drawn; everyone puts their stick in a barrell, the two captains pick and supposedly random. At McMillen, though, they hardly ever do it and it just goes by whatever color jersey you happened to have brought.

[gman]

I saw Huck on Monday. My son skakes with Guy's hockey class each week and Huck is usually there. It would really suprise me to see him somewhere else since he seems to have some roots here. I'll try to talk to him this week. My kid loves him, he really is good with the squirts and pee wees.

[johnny12572]

Huks is also not a vet. Playoff games do not count against the games played, thus he is at 274 according to hockeydb.

[FiveMinuteMajor]

I figured Huk was close on being a vet, I know he's missed some time from injuries. Thanks for the info!

[insider]

Hodgeman must be doing something right at the camp. Here is a quote from one of the coaches of the wild website.

"Eero Elo, I’ve seen him play one game," Thompson said of the time he traveled to Finland and caught what turned out to be the team's 2008 fifth round Draft choice. "I didn’t know what to expect from Elo, but he has hands that are as good as anyone in Camp. And [Camp invitee] Justin Hodgman. Those are a couple guys who have been pleasant surprises."

[IcyKometsFan84]

I can't wait for hockey I got to deliver scrip tickets today and the cup is right in the front office...that got me pumped. I can't to see some of the new talent coming this year

LET'S GO KOMETS!!!

[IcyKometsFan84]

Oh yeah and Wendy I remember hearing the same thing that you did about Marchant but either way I wouldn't want him back.

[scoops]

All the signing have been good and I am happy with the direction things are going. The vet leadership is there, the goaltending seems set, and Hukalo possibly returning will all be great for the team.
One thing I keep looking at (and it is still early) is the likely probability of losing Aquino, Curdy, and Marchant. Those are big numbers to shore up, not to mention Curdy and Aquino had a good set of wheels on them. The rookie production (and Hodgeman)were a blessing last year so hopefully we find a few more diamonds in the rough or get lucky again by getting another Aquino/Hodgie handed to us.
I would like to see another puck moving defenseman or two next season too. Guy and PC can't do it all.

[Woodsy]

i must change my blog name from woodsy to Chaulkie

[Andrew]

Chaulkie? How about Chaulker...

[Wingmnn]

I found Rob Guinn's obituary in the Ames, IA. It looks like there are 2 different ones. You can sign the guest books.

http://www.legacy.com/amestribune/Obituaries.asp?Page=Lifestory&PersonId=113451227

http://www.legacy.com/amestribune/Obituaries.asp?Page=Lifestory&PersonId=113511595

[ozzie guillen]

Henley an
NHL tryout? PSSSHT PLEASE!!!

[punched]

Let's hope some of the idiots who spent many a day making fun of Rob show a bit more class when signing his guestbooks.

[Canuck]

Are they still doing barrel hockey on Fridays?

[mightbite]

I agree with punch/ I had one meeting with Rob & had a stack of cards & he signed everyone of them,when I said if you don't have time please sign one.FIRST CLASS GUY.

[Cat Eyes]

Ozzie Guillen is on this blog???!! Wow...LOL!!

[Cat Eyes]

Anyone who would make a crappy comment in anyone's funeral guestbook is pretty low...let's hope that does not happen...they have all been very cool so far. I did not know him so I don't know what to say...I'll have to think on it!! But I'd love to offer something to his wife and let her know fans are thinking of her and that baby.

[Cat Eyes]

Hey Cohny, how'd the blue team do last night? My motocross event went well...my niece got 6th out of 16 riders in her class, and my guy got 1st, so I did okay! Well, he's not "my" guy, but the one "the goalie" and I were rooting for in three classes, so all was well!

Glad to hear I got your number right...at least I still have my eyesight...one down, the rest of the team to figure out!!

[Kometsjunkie]

The team sends a letter out to every guy on the team with an "offer" (normally what they made the previous year) just to retain their rights in the IHL. That way they can use them for trades later on in the summer, if necessary. The guys than "meet" (in person, phone call, through agents, etc.) individually with the Frankes to discuss offers, deals and such. If the Frankes aren't interested they simply say so.

[Kometsjunkie]

The team sends a letter out to every guy on the team with an "offer" (normally what they made the previous year) just to retain their rights in the IHL. That way they can use them for trades later on in the summer, if necessary. The guys than "meet" (in person, phone call, through agents, etc.) individually with the Frankes to discuss offers, deals and such. If the Frankes aren't interested they simply say so.

[Kometsjunkie]

The team sends a letter out to every guy on the team with an "offer" (normally what they made the previous year) just to retain their rights in the IHL. That way they can use them for trades later on in the summer, if necessary. The guys than "meet" (in person, phone call, through agents, etc.) individually with the Frankes to discuss offers, deals and such. If the Frankes aren't interested they simply say so.

[brando]

Conley? Is that you???

[JungleMonkey]

Conley the Triple Poster... thats funny stuff right there Brando...

[Cat Eyes]

Moving offices this weekend, and I just had to take down my Mitch Woods Turner Cup poster...bummer...better replace that one Monday with someone who's actually gonna be here in the fall...like Chaulk's! :) Although the move does give me the chance to re-decorate in all orange and black...might have to put 'em all up...who cares if they're here or not?? That's a pleasant thought...

[mightbite]

The new guy on ch.15 is a baseball guy/What happened to Randy?I also heard him butcher Guy's name.

[FiveMinuteMajor]

I think Randy retired. If you're gonna be a sports guy in this town you gotta learn how to pronounce the players names! I know, he's new, I should cut his some slack, it just bugs me... :) I just wonder if Larry the PA guy ever has nightmares about trying to pronounce some of those names out there?