Komets Down Generals 3-2, Win 3rd Consecutive Turner Cup

And so the Fort Wayne Komets won the IHL's Turner Cup. Again. And they got to meet the Commissioner of the IHL and skate around with the Turner Cup. Again. Okay, so maybe it is starting to feel a bit like Forrest Gump getting invited to meet the President at this point. Or maybe Groundhog Day. The bottom line is that the silverware will be staying in Fort Wayne's trophy case for yet another season. The Komets defeated the Flint Generals in game 5 of the Turner Cup Finals on Saturday night in Fort Wayne, IN. It was a game that was dominated by the determined play of the Komets from the opening puck drop, yet somehow came down to the wire. At 3:36 of the first period, Fort Wayne already had 7 shots on goal to Flint's 1, plus a close call about a minute into the contest that didn't quite make it across the goal line. The Komets were pressing hard, and it seemed the General's only game plan was to hold on and wait for a major mistake. But major mistakes by the Komets were few and far between on this night. And while referee Jim Hawthorne was calling a few penalties here and there, he kept the chances more or less even, which wasn't a good thing for Flint. Komets defenseman Brandon Warner was whistled for interference at 11:41, but the Generals were unable to manage a single shot on goal with the man advantage. Upon seeing Fort Wayne return to full strength, Flint was saddled with back-to-back penalties of their own -- tripping on forward Rick Smith at 14:01 and slashing on forward Mike Olnyk at 16:40. They killed the first successfully, but at 17:52, the Komets cashed the second one in. Forward Matt Syroczynski took a shot from the edge of the left circle that went wide and wound up behind the net where forward Justin Hodgman had taken position. Hodgman passed it back out to Syroczynski, who skated in to the front of the crease and sent a wobbly shot over Generals goalie Rob Nolan's outstretched stick for the 1-0 lead. An assist also went to forward Colin Chaulk. At 18:33 of the period, forward P.C. Drouin was sent off for interference, but it was once again Fort Wayne that had the best chance to score as a result. Komets forward Lincoln Kaleigh Schrock was hauled down on a short-handed breakaway with about 30 seconds remaining in the frame, though no penalties were called on the play. Flint still had 33 seconds of power play time remaining to begin the second period, but their impotence with the puck continued. It was a pattern that would haunt them throughout the game. The Generals were able to kill an interference penalty on forward Chris Kovalcik at 1:12 of the second, but when Fort Wayne forward Brad MacMillan was sent to the box for holding at 3:24, they still couldn't find the back of the net with a map. Then at 5:52 Chaulk and Flint forward Ben Boudreau were sent off for roughing and holding, respectively. At 6:20, Generals defenseman Chris Bogas joined his teammate in the box for cross-checking. With the Komets on a 4-on-3 man advantage, their lead was soon 2-0. At 6:44, Hodgman sent a pass to Drouin, who faked a shot as he passed the puck to defenseman Guy Dupuis, who faked a shot as he passed it back to Drouin. Drouin then sent a slap shot from the right point that hit the twine low glove-side. At 8:32 of the middle frame, Flint had finally managed to accumulate a grand total of 10 shots on goal. The Komets, meanwhile, had 24. At 11:11, Drouin once again made the night that the Generals' were quietly going into seem even longer. On a break, Komets defenseman Kevin Bertram sent a pass from the right wing to Drouin skating up the left. Upon reaching the left circle, Drouin faked a slap shot, paused, and put a quick wrist shot just under the crossbar on the top right corner of the net to make the count 3-0. Forward Leo Thomas was also awarded an assist on the play. At 15:47, coincidental roughing penalties were handed out to MacMillan and Kovalcik, the same pair that had gotten into a full-fledged fight one night earlier in Flint, MI. It appeared that Kovalcik was merely desperate for something -- anything -- that might help spark his team. As in game 2 of the series, Fort Wayne was changing up their lines as quickly as possible, leaving Flint perpetually looking a step behind their opponents. As the final seconds of the second period ticked down, Olnyk took his frustrations out on Komets forward Justin Chwedoruk, jamming him into the boards from behind, though once again, Hawthorne kept his whistle in his pocket. Fort Wayne was now just 20 minutes from another championship, which seemed well in hand. Not so fast. At 4:29, the Generals finally broke the goose egg when Bogas' shot from the left point bounced back out to forward John Ronan in the right circle, and Ronan put the puck just under the crossbar to cut the deficit to 3-1. Flint had another power play opportunity at 7:41 when Fort Wayne defenseman Keith Rodger was called for cross-checking, but as usual, they did nothing with it. The Komets were tightening the screws again, eager to close the series out on home ice and all too aware that another goal would put Flint within striking distance. So perhaps it was fitting that it was Generals defenseman and former Komet Jake Pence who cut Fort Wayne's edge to 3-2 with an angle shot from the right point that made it past Komets goalie Nick Boucher into the bottom of the net at 13:00, giving the Generals new hope. Forwards Bryan Smolinski and Pascal Rheaume picked up the assists. When Drouin was sent to the box with a hooking call at 13:40, things were becoming tense indeed. But Flint being Flint, they messed it up yet again. After just 24 seconds, Ronan was whistled for cross-checking, and so ended what might have been the Generals' last, best hope for victory. Assuming, you know, that they could have figured out how to score with a man advantage. At 1:47, Flint pulled Nolan just as they had for all 4 of the previous games in the series, yet they couldn't muster a single shot on goal as the seconds ticked down. Then the horn sounded, mercifully ending the Generals misery for another year as the Komets celebrated. To Flint's credit, they waited patiently on the ice for Fort Wayne to organize a handshake line, bringing the contest and the IHL's 2010 Turner Cup Finals to its official end. Then, at least for the Komets, it was party time. Nolan made 39 saves on 42 shots. Boucher stopped 19 of 21 in claiming the victory.

Notes: A sell-out crowd of 10,480 was on hand to view the Komets winning their 3rd consecutive championship. In the last 3 years, Fort Wayne is 15-0-1 in games where at least 10,000 fans are in attendance. The only loss, 3-2 in overtime, was to the Flint Generals on Sunday, April 13, 2008 -- the last game of the regular season... The Komets were 2 for 6 on the power play; the Generals went 0 for 5. In the Playoff Finals overall, The Komets were 9 for 21... Fort Wayne outshot Flint 17-6 in the first, 12-5 in the second, and 13-10 in the third... This was the Komets 7th Turner Cup win in the team's 58 year history and their 8th championship in all... The last team to win 3 consecutive Turner Cups -- the Cincinnati Mohawks -- went on to win a total of 5 back-to-back titles (1953-1957)... Turner Cup Playoffs MVP was awarded to Syroczynski, who had 11 goals and 16 points in 12 games... Drouin took the hand-off from Komets Captain Guy Dupuis and made the first lap with the Turner Cup. Drouin had 5 goals in the playoffs and led the team in points with 18. He missed the 2009 Turner Cup Playoffs due to a broken hand/wrist... Forward Dan Lapointe was scratched for Flint due to injury as was goalie Sergei Zvyagin. Chad Alban was the emergency back-up for the second game in a row. For the Komets, forward Mitch Woods was scratched while defenseman Keith Rodger returned to the line-up after missing games 3 and 4 of the series in Flint... Washington Capitals Head Coach Bruce Boudreau attended the game to watch his son Ben play for the Generals... The Komets annual End-of-Season Party and Jersey Auction will be held on Tuesday, May 18 in the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum's main arena. Doors open at 6:30 PM. Admittance is free for season ticket holders, $5 for everyone else.