Komets catching fire

After a rough run through the opening round against a pesky Cincinnati Cyclones squad, the Fort Wayne Komets brushed aside the Utah Grizzlies in the East Coast Hockey League Western Conference semi-finals, finishing off a second round sweep in Utah.

After capturing wins in the first two games at Fort Wayne, the Komets grabbled a commanding lead with a 3-1 win at Maverik Arena at West Valley City and wrapped up the sweep with a 5-3 edge two nights later.

May 4 Komets 3 at Grizzlies 1 

The Grizzlies looked to take advantage of getting the three middle games on home ice and went to work quickly, Jon Puska, 26, from Canton, MI opening the scoring just 2:49 for the hosts.

However, that was the only shot on the evening to get by Pat Nagle, the Komets’ 27-year-old goaltender from Bloomfield, MI.

The Grizzlies countered with Mark Owuya, a 26-year-old from Sweden who kept a clean crease through the first two periods, including a second that saw the visiting Komets with a 14-8 edge in shots on goal.

Shawn Szydlowski, 25, from St. Clair Shores, MI finally got the Komets on the board with his sixth of the post season 1:50 into the final period and that opened the flood gates for the visitors. Mike Embach, 28, from Orland Park, IL put his team in front for the first and only time with a powerplay goal 5:21 into the period and Garrett Thompson, 26, from Traverse City, MI clinched the win with his sixth goal of the players with 70 seconds to play.

The Komets enjoyed a 31-21 edge in shots and grabbed a commanding lead in the series with the win.

May 6 Komets 5 at Grizzlies 3 

The Grizzlies battled back from a 3-1 deficit in this one, but Thompson’s second of the game 8:16 into the final period put the Komets in front to stay, Szydlowski making it official with an empty netter 15 seconds from the final buzzer, also his second of the night. Both Thompson and Szydlowski have put up eight goals in the 11 games played by the Komets so far in the post season.

The other Komets goal came from Trevor Cheek, 23, from Washington notched the other Fort Wayne marker –one of two powerplay goals in the contest, giving the team a 3-1 lead in the middle period.

Ryan Hayes, 26, from New York scored the first two goals for the Grizzlies, the first one sandwiched between a pair of Komets goals in the opening period and the other one getting the home side back to within a goal on a powerplay with 8:46 to go in the second. Marc Cantin, 26, from Peterborough scored the other Grizzlies goal, tying the game at the 6:36 mark of the third, only to have Thompson put the Komets in front again less than two minutes later.

The win, combined with a series loss by the Missouri Mavericks a few nights later leaves the Komets as the top remaining seed in the West Conference, giving it home ice advantage in the upcoming Western Conference championship series — scheduled to begin Friday (May 13) at Fort Wayne Memorial Coliseum against the defending Presidents Cup Champion Allen Americans.