The Journal Gazette, 600 W. Main St., Fort Wayne IN

There are two ways to become a legend at Memorial Coliseum: Deliver the kind of knockout punch Olivier Legault did Friday night for the Fort Wayne Komets; or display brilliant goaltending, as Kevin Reiter did with 15 saves in a 3-0 victory over the Muskegon Fury.

Goals from Colin Chaulk, Terry Marchant and Konstantin Shafranov were necessary for victory, too, but the exploits of Legault and Reiter should keep people talking for days.

Early in the third period, with the International Hockey League-leading Komets up by two goals, Legault and David Segal fought. In the midst of the fracas, Legault delivered a powerful punch that dropped Segal and he needed the help of teammates to get off of it.

Twenty eight seconds later, Shafranov steered his way through the defense and lifted a shot above the outstretched glove of goalie Clayton Pool for a 3-0 lead, sending the 7,745 fans into a frenzy that continued through the course of two more fights.

While Reiter had little action in the game, he was masterful when the Fury did challenge. His best save came on left wing Mike Watt’s breakaway during the second period.

“Our defense did a good job of blocking shots,” said Reiter, who is 13-8-3 with two shutouts this season.

“They did get some quality opportunities and I think I made some timely saves in different parts of the game. It felt good.”

Particularly because Reiter was pulled in Wednesday’s 5-4 loss at Bloomington, Ill., after he allowed four goals in a 6:20 span in the third period.

“It’s not easy (to put it behind you) with a four-hour bus rise home from Bloomington. You’re sitting there, thinking about getting pulled,” Reiter said.

“But you just try and go out there (during practice), work hard and get back to what you know you can do, just have confidence the next night. It’s a new day.”

Reiter has played in 10 straight games since Nick Boucher suffered a groin injury Dec. 27, and he said he’s enjoyed handling all the work.

“He was awesome tonight,” Komets coach Al Sims said. “For Kevin to bounce back after the type of game he had in Bloomington shows his character, his strength of fortitude. It’s tough to come back when you lose a bit of your confidence.”

The Komets (22-9-4), who maintained their four-point lead over second-place Flint, have won nine of their last 12 games. Muskegon dropped to 16-14-2.

Friday marked the Komets’ first game against Fury center Justin Rohr, since his check from behind drove Fort Wayne defenseman Kevin Hansen headfirst into the Coliseum dasher boards Jan. 2. Hansen had to be taken off the ice on a stretcher and hasn’t played since because of soreness in his head, neck and shoulders.

Rohr received a one-game suspension for the hit – he didn’t play against Fort Wayne on Jan. 4 – but the punishment didn’t satisfy the Komets.

There was no retaliation, however, as Rohr skated a regular shift unscathed Friday.

Fury goaltender Isaac Reichmuth allowed one goal on the first nine shots, before leaving with what appeared to be a groin injury. Pool stopped 19 of 21 shots.

jcohn@jg.net