Chris Auger was back and looked good... Brett Smith was not playing because he was out of town picking up his kids... Practice was a lot quieter, but there was a lot more hitting... Patrick Knowlton scored twice, Matt Firman, Matt Atsoff and Brayden Metz... The goalies dominated the shootout as only Cory Schenider, Stephon Thorne, Cory Park and J.P. Chabot scored... Again, nobody looks too out of place, but the Komets basically have only four spots open at the most... Larkin Saalfrank robbed Eric Giosa on one chance... Atsoff keeps proving he has consistent offense... Ricky Helmbrecht and Tim Buttery looked like the top defensive pairing today... The exhibition games are going to determine pretty much everything about who survives the first round of cuts... Coach Al Sims said he's basically looking for a top 6 forward, a 10th forward and a 5th or 6th defenseman right now. He'll re-evaluate once the three-to-five players from Norfolk get sent down which he expects by mid-week next week... Seth Ronsberg is growing on me. He's big and he's always around the puck... My best guess is that none of the vets are in danger of getting cut. They have basically been skating half-speed all week and are using camp to get ready for the real games... Francois Lacerte and Gerry Festa are about equal in goal so far. Festa might control the pace of the game a little better by covering up more, but Lacerte doesn't give up as many rebounds... Nobody in Komets management or coaches have heard anything from the guys who are competing in AHL camps yet... There's one more scrimmage tomorrow, and don't forget Friday's practices at Lutheran Health SportsCenter are open to the public at 10 a.m. to Noon.
More later.
