Mallards Slip by Komets 3-1

As if Komets fans weren't confused enough this season. Just one night after a commanding 9-1 victory over the second place Port Huron Icehawks, The Fort Wayne Komets (26-15-0-2) fell to the sixth place Quad City Mallards (16-20-4-4) in Moline, IL, scoring only 1 goal on 39 shots in the process. Quad City got the early jump on scoring when forward Chris Lipsett tallied off a rebound in front of the net during a goalmouth scramble for the 1-0 lead. Defenseman Ryan Palmer and forward Patrick Levesque picked up the assists. The Komets broke through to tie the game 1-1 at the 10:37 mark. Forward Justin Chwedoruk dug the puck out from behind the net and sent it to the stick of P.C. Drouin, who performed a beautifully executed twist around the net to backhand it in. Defenseman Kevin Bertram also assisted. The next 40 minutes of the game were a relatively uneventful, back-and-forth affair, though the second period did yield 2 of the game's 3 penalties -- a cross-checking call on Palmer at 11:34 and a roughing penalty on Fort Wayne forward Mitch Woods at 19:22. Quad City eventually got the go-ahead goal at 13:25 of the third period when Komets goalie Tim Haun got a piece of forward Justin White's shot, but couldn't keep the puck out. Forwards Brandon Marino and Obi Aduba were awarded the assists on the play. Trailing 2-1 and apparently unable to close the meager gap, the Komets opted to pull Haun in the final moments of the game. But the ploy backfired after a Komets giveaway led to an empty net goal by Mallards forward Mike Zbriger for a final score of 3-1. Forward Chris Lipsett was credited with an assist on the play. A brief skirmish on the ice broke out following the end of the end of the game. No penalties were issued, but a linesman reportedly had to encourage Woods to return to his team's locker room. Haun stopped 18 of the 20 shots he faced in absorbing the loss. Quad City goalie Kyle Jones made 38 saves on 39 shots for the victory.

Notes: Announced attendance was 4544. The Komets outshot the Mallards 16 to 5 in the third period and 39 to 21 overall. Fort Wayne went 0 for 2 on the power play while Quad City was 0 for 1. The Komets have lost 3 of their last 4 road games, but still lead the season series with the Mallards 7 games to 2. Quad City's only other victory over Fort Wayne was a 3-2 shootout victory in Fort Wayne, IN on December 4.