Komets Yield to Lumberjacks 4-3

In a tense match-up between the IHL's top two teams with playoff time approaching, The Fort Wayne Komets (40-19-1-2) knew their game against the Muskegon Lumberjacks (43-18-0-3) on Saturday night in Fort Wayne, IN wasn't going to be a walk in the park. Yet despite a valiant effort for the most part, the Komets didn't have quite enough in the tank to overcome their foes, and specifically Lumberjacks star forward Robin Bouchard. In fact, it was Bouchard that got the game's scoring underway at 10:30 of the opening frame. With Fort Wayne defenseman Danko Mironovic off for hooking as of 9:48, Bouchard put his team up 1-0 when his shot on the power play from just in front of the goal line to the left of the net made it past Komets goalie Tim Haun. Assists went to forward Todd Robinson and defenseman Matt Krug. Fort Wayne didn't wait long to tie things up. At 13:13, forward Leo Thomas rifled an unassisted shot from the left circle that hit the twine just under the crossbar, sending the water bottle of Lumberjacks goalie Sebastien Centomo flying. The play elapsed so quickly, that it was not immediately certain that puck had gone in, but after briefly conferring with the goal judge, referee Jim Hawthorne made the tally official. The duel continued just 31 seconds later. At 13:34, Bouchard struck again. This time, he picked up the rebound of a shot by defenseman Mario Larocque to put Muskegon back on top 2-1. Forward John DiPace picked up the other assist. But at 18:05, the Komets knotted the game at 2-2 with another unassisted goal. From a sharp angle 15 feet to the right of the net, forward Lincoln Kaleigh Schrock put the puck just under the crossbar on the far side of the net to send both teams to their respective locker rooms on even footing. Fort Wayne claimed their only lead of the game at 6:12 of the middle frame on the power play. Lumberjacks Billy Collins was whistled for interference at 5:40 to set the stage for the 5-on-4 situation. After scoring attempts by Komets forwards Konstantin Shafranov and Colin Chaulk came up short, forward Matt Syroczynski jammed the puck home amidst a scrum in front of the Muskegon net for the 3-2 advantage. But at 10:14, Mironovic was sent to the box for tripping, giving Muskegon another key break in the game. Once again it was Bouchard who rose to the occasion, simultaneously pulling his team even at 3-3, netting the hat trick, and tying Don Parson's minor league goal scoring record of 682 career goals. The play began when a Komets clearing attempt was knocked down at the blue line and passed back to Bouchard about 45 feet out. Bouchard's shot seemed to catch Haun off guard, as the goalie did not react until the puck had already flown past him. Robinson and Krug were awarded the assists. Late in the middle frame, the Komets had a golden opportunity to take the lead again after Larocque was called for hooking at 16:32 and Krug was handed a 4 minute penalty for high sticking Chaulk at 17:49. Yet Fort Wayne was unable to capitalize on the 43 second 5-on-3, and the subsequent 5-on-4 situation, which extended into the third period, similarly came and went. At 6:32 of the final frame, the Lumberjacks reclaimed the lead after the Komets tried to get a line change. Forward Bobby Bolt came off the right wing, sending a shot from the right circle between Haun's legs for the 4-3 lead. Forward Damian Surma and defenseman Adam Welch assisted. But Fort Wayne had one final gift-wrapped opportunity to even things up at 7:22 when DiPace was whistled for holding before being issued a 10 minute misconduct for protesting the call. But when they failed to cash in on the chance, the weary Komets players began to lose steam. Even with Haun pulled as the clock ticked down, Fort Wayne was unable to close the narrow gap, and the Lumberjacks went on to claim the game's 2 points, extending their lead over the Komets in the IHL standings to 6 points. Haun stopped 19 of 23 points in the loss, which snapped Fort Wayne's 5 game winning streak. Centomo made 31 saves on 34 shots for the victory.

Notes: Announced attendance was 8102. The Komets went 1-7 on the power play. The Lumberjacks were 2-4. Fort Wayne outshot Muskegon 15-9 in the first, 12-6 in the third, and 34-23 overall. The Lumberjacks have won 3 of their last 4 games after losing 4 in a row. Despite the loss, the Komets still clinched a playoff berth thanks to a 6-5 loss by the Flint Generals to the Port Huron Icehawks. Fort Wayne now trails Muskegon in the season series 5-4 with 2 games remaining. Komets Forward Brad MacMillan missed his third game with a separated shoulder. After the game, Fort Wayne radio announcer Bob Chase noted an apparent case of minor vandalism in one of the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum's restrooms.