Samuel Hoffman | The Journal Gazette
Komets goaltender Jeff Deslauriers has stopped 95.5 percent of the shots he has faced.

Fort Wayne, IN - The Fort Wayne Komets (28-28-2) looked like they would cruise to a victory after two periods, but the defense went soft and Jeff Deslauriers allowed the Toledo Walleye (30-19-8) to tie the game up late in the third. Jean-Michel Rizk notched the game winner with 1:55 left in the extra frame for his 18th of the season.

First Period:

The opening frame saw the K’s score within the first two minutes. Jamie Milam netted his second goal of the season. The Walleye answered with just under seven minutes left in te period, when Byron Froese netted his eighth of the season.

Second Period:

The middle frame Brandon Marino netted his 20th of the year on the power play. Kaleigh  Shrock notched his eighth of the year near the four minute mark. The Walleye were undeterred, and started their comeback. Willie Coetzee netted his 22nd of the season at the 7:22 mark. The Komets pushed it back to a two-goal lead off of Tomas Beauregard’s 21st of the season.

Third Period:

The third period saw the Walleye wake-up. They scored twice to even up the score. Trevor Parkes scored first at the 5:46 mark. Coetzee notched his second ten minutes later.

Overtime:

Rizk’s goal in the waning minutes gave the Komets the victory.

Team Statistics:

Score by Period:

Team	1	2	3	OT	Total
Toledo Walleye	1	1	2	0	4
Fort Wayne Komets	1	3	0	1	5

 SOG:

SHOTS	1	2	3	OT	Total
Toledo Walleye	15	11	9	0	35
Fort Wayne Komets	9	9	8	4	29

 Power Play Efficiency

Prd	Toledo Walleye	Fort Wayne Komets
1st	0-2	0-2
2nd	0-1	1-2
3rd	1-3	0-1
OT	0-0	0-0
Total	1-6	1-5

Three Stars:

Star	Team	Pos/Name	Stats
	Fort Wayne Komets	RW Brandon Marino	1 G, 1 A, -1, 8 Shots, 4 PIM
	Toledo Walleye	F Willie Coetzee	2 G, 1 A, +2, 2 Shots, 2 PIM
	Fort Wayne Komets	RW Jean-Michel Rizk	1 G, 1 A, +2, 1 Shot, 0 PIM

The Komets return to action Friday to take on the South Carolina Stingrays at 7:00 p.m. EST.

Michelle Davies – The Journal Gazette
Kenny Reiter, goaltender for the Komets, slaps the puck away after an attempted shot on goal by the Toledo Walleyes in the second period of Friday night’s game.

Fort Wayne, IN - The Komets had a chance to jump into the top spot in the North Division for the first time since Opening Day. The K’s had to mount a huge comeback, but fell short in the later stages of the game.

The first period was fairly uneventful. The two teams traded power plays that resulted in no goals.

The second period started out fast and furious. Toledo (20-16-4) got things kicked off with a goal by winger Nino Musitelli at the 1:45 mark. Walleye left winger Willie Coetzee made it 2-0 two minutes later. The Komets (22-18-2) got on the board at the 6:50 mark on Mike Hoban’s fourth of the year, and third is as many games.

The third period saw Toledo score twice within two minutes on goals by Tyler Brenner and Cody Lampl. Komet All-Star Daniel Maggio netted his fifth of the year from Brandon Marino at the 16:09 mark of the final frame to start a rally. Standout winger Luca Caputi got the K’s within one a minute and half later. Coach Al Sims tried to get the equalizer by pulling Kenny Reiter late for an extra attacker, but resulted in the Walleye icing the game on Coetzee’s second of the night.

The Komets will finish up the first half of the season tonight against the Kalamazoo Wings at 7:30 p.m. EST. Audio is available through the Komets website.

Three Stars:

1. TOL LW 15 Willie Coetzee

2. TOL RW 7 Nino Musitelli

3. FW RW 13 Brandon Marino

SOG: