Kalamazoo beat them 6-2, but Muskegon lost 6-4 at Bloomington.
A couple of interesting notes:
* Al Sims has 499 wins as a coach in his career, including 244 with the Komets.
* Heading into tonight, over most of the last three seasons the Komets were 19-1-3 against Kalamazoo, including 8-0-3 up there. The last time the Wings had beaten the Komets in regulation in Kalamazoo was Dec. 16, 2006.
Komets lost 5-4 after coming back from a 4-2 deficit in the third period to tie, but all five Muskegon goals were the result of defensive mistakes. Give the Lumberjacks credit. They have a very talented team, easily the best the Komets have faced so far. Still, the Komets held the Todd Robinson line scoreless but lost. They also have a two-man advantage in the final four minutes and couldn't get a shot on net.
What did you think?
Very fast-paced up and down game. Very entertaining.
There are representatives from Toledo here tonight checking out the game. They are affiliated with the Mud Hens. Bob is going to interview them in the second intermission. Supposedly they are just here checking out the Komets game-night operations. They are already affiliated with the ECHL for next year.
Did anyone ever think the Komets could be 7-2 so far with a combined one three games from Jake Pence and Brandon Warner? That's pretty amazing.
That also tells me the Komets are still a long way from their potential.
It'll be interesting to see if there's a confrontation
The Fort Wayne Komets have the highest-scoring team in the International Hockey League, but Thursday night they showcased their defense in a 3-1 win over Flint. Goaltender Sebastien Laplante made 31 saves as he improved his record to 4-1-0.
The Komets are now 7-2 and are two points up on Muskegon for first place. The teams meet at 8 p.m. today in Memorial Coliseum.
WIth some amazing footage from Chad Ryan. You can see it here.
Also, Jason Beckett has left the Komets to play in Germany. He told the team last night and was placed on waiver. The Komets will activate Jake Pence tomorrow and likely sign Sean O'Connor. That gives the Komets five vets, nine rookies, seven deffensemen, 12 forwards and two goaltenders. That means they have all kinds of flexibility if they choose to sign another veteran or two because should also have significant cap space.
On Saturday, November 15th, the K-Wings are hoping the force is with them, as they entertain the Fort Wayne Komets on Star Wars Night.
After being forced to sit out the first four weeks with a rib injury, defenseman Jake Pence can't wait to get back on the ice.
"It's really hard to do," Pence said. "You really want to be out there skating. You skate with them in practice every day and then to have them go play a game seems a little unfair. I'm really excited about getting back."
Right wing Sean O'Connor, 5-11, 180, right wing. Coach Al Sims saw him at Norfolk's training camp and then he got sent to Augusta where he played in one game with no stats. Last year with London of the OHL he had 17 goals and 43 points in 46 games.
"I think the thing I saw in Norfolk is that he's a really gifted player," Sims said.
O'Connor has not been signed.
Komets lead all minor-league attendance
Fort Wayne, IHL 9,115
Stockton, ECHL 8,829
Hershey, AHL 8,742
Tulsa, CHL 7,195
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, AHL 7,090
Mike Emrick is one of eight people who will be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame today in Toronto. Emrick grew up in Lafontaine, Indiana and got his start from working with Bob Chase whom he still keeps in frequent contact with. Mike also wrote the foreword to Bob's upcoming book which will likely be out after Christmas. Mike also graduated from Manchester
* David Franke said Brandon Warner has a deep bone bruise and a small fracture in his wrist. He said it might take 2-3 weeks to heal. The Komets are hoping to get Jake Pence back this week, and Olivier Legault. Dominic Osman is shooting for Thanksgiving.
* The Komets are waiting to hear what IHL VP Brad Jones has to say about a knee-on-knee hit from Muskegon's Kyle Kos on Brad MacMillan Friday night. Kos received a kneeing major which means it will automatically be reviewed by Jones.
* There's only one goaltender in the IHL with a GAA under 3.00.
Despite a horrible first period, the Komets still had plenty of offense to beat the Bloomington PrairieThunder 6-4 at Memorial Coliseum on Saturday before 9,464 fans.
Couple of things the Komets are sure to work on this week: Penalty kill and moving the puck from their own offensive zone. They gave up five power-play goals in two games this weekend and Bloomington and Muskegon both showed the Komets need work on turnovers in their own end.
I don't know what else to say other than to apologize again. They are still at the printing plant in Tennessee. This is supposedly a hugely busy time of year in the printing industry and if you are a small fry like this book is, you get pushed back to the end of the line. There's nothing more I can do about it, because believe me, I've tried everything.
Don't worry, Bob Chase's book is with a different publisher so it might even arrive first. Who knows? I certainly don't.
