Komets Take Down Icehawks 5-1, Move into 2nd Place in Standings

The Fort Wayne Komets (37-18-1-2) completed a sweep of three potential playoff opponents on Saturday night by topping the Port Huron Icehawks (37-19-0-4), snapping the Icehawks 4 game winning streak in the process, while extending their own to 3 games. The game was eerily reminiscent of the contest the previous night against the league-leading Muskegon Lumberjacks in more ways than one. An announced crowd of 8010 didn't have to wait long for the home team to notch the first goal. Just 22 seconds after the opening faceoff, forward Matt Syroczynski threw a puck in front of the net and forward Konstantin Shafranov reached around a Port Huron defenseman to tip it past Icehawks goalie Larry Sterling for the 1-0 lead. That was stretched to 2-0 at 6:24 when forward P.C. Drouin intercepted a wayward clearing attempt and skated in alone on Sterling before sliding the puck around him at an extreme angle for an unassisted tally. The goal was Drouin's 20th of the season, making him the second player on the Komets roster to reach that plateau this season. In response, the Icehawks tightened up defensively, allowing no further goals against in the first period or in the middle frame. But having already fallen into a hole, that wasn't going to be good enough. Tension was evident on both sides in the second period. At 4:45 referee Bob Langdon dished out unsportsman-like penalties to Port Huron defenseman Cody Hamilton and Fort Wayne forward Mitch Woods. Then at 13:59, Woods got into a full blown fight with Icehawks defenseman Rob Cowan. With the combatants tied up, the crowd laughed as Woods reached up and removed Cowan's helmet for him before ending the bout by pulling Cowan to the ice in a heap. The first half of the final frame was more back and forth defense-first hockey, but things were about to change. It all began when Langdon whistled Port Huron defenseman Ian Turner for a rare call -- playing with an illegal stick -- at 9:39. The Komets were attempting to cash in on the subsequent man advantage, when Drouin was sent to the box for hooking after a turnover led to a shorthanded breakaway for the Icehawks at 11:13. Though Drouin had prevented the tally, Port Huron went on the power play once Turner's infraction had expired, and at 12:28 they made it count. Forward Derek Patrosso whipped a ricochet from the slot into an open net, reducing the deficit to 2-1. Hamilton and defenseman Daniel Tetrault picked up the assists on the play. Drouin could be seen hanging his head in the penalty box, as it is every player's fear to watch their team give up a goal while they look on from the sin bin. Once back out on the ice, he wasted little time in making it up. Just 58 seconds later, Drouin put a shot past Sterling to make the count 3-1, restoring Fort Wayne's 2 goal advantage. Assists went to forward Sean O'Connor and defenseman Keith Rodger. But the Komets weren't through yet. At 14:54, Chaulk netted his 20th goal of the season, giving Fort Wayne 3 players thus far that have crossed that threshold. Defenseman Bobby Phillips was awarded the assist. Then in a supremely ironic moment, Patrosso was sent off with a hooking penalty of his own, and the Komets capitalized as O'Connor beat Sterling at 18:46 to cap the scoring at 5-1. Assists went to forward David Hukalo and defenseman Frankie DeAngelis. No doubt dismayed to see the game slip away from them so quickly, Icehawks players exchanged verbal barbs with Komets players as the clock ticked down. At 18:51, Port Huron forward Mickael Bedard and Chaulk were both sent off with unsportsman-like penalties while Icehawks forward Jason Kostadine and Woods received matching 10 minute misconducts for their verbal jousting. The win put Fort Wayne 1 point ahead of the Icehawks for 2nd place in the IHL standings. The teams next meet in Port Huron this Wednesday night. Komets goalie Tim Haun stopped 20 of 21 shots in the win. Sterling made 31 saves on 36 shots.

Notes: Fort Wayne outshot Port Huron in every period and 36-21 overall. Both the Komets and Icehawks went 1 for 5 on the power play. Adam Russo, Port Huron's #1 goalie, was called up by the AHL's Houston Aeros prior to the game. Fort Wayne forward and enforcer Brad MacMillan suffered a separated shoulder on his first shift of the game and was seen in the press box in street clothes with his arm in a sling by the first intermission. He will be evaluated by a team doctor on Monday. Despite the win, the Komets still trail the Icehawks in their season series 4 games to 5 with 2 meetings remaining.