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

OK, so I stole the concept from The Hockey News, but it's fun all the same.

Here they are, the first annual People of Power and Influence in the International Hockey League.

Criteria? What criteria?

These people just all seem to have some profound affect on our little six-team league.

1) Paul Pickard: In his second season as commissioner, he has helped keep the league afloat - so far - and done a better job than his predecessor in that league we are not allowed to mention. Everything goes through Pickard, most notably any expansion plans. (We can hope, can't we?) 2) Michael Franke: The Komets' president wields much power in the IHL, whether he'll admit it or not. Like E.F. Hutton, when he talks, people listen. Plus, he runs the most successful team in the league, on and off the ice, so keeping him happy is integral to keeping this league afloat.

3) Brad Jones: The IHL's vice-president of hockey operations is in charge of disciplining players, helping enact rules changes and, most importantly, running the officiating corps. It's his job to find new officials, and there have been some of those this season.

4A) Larry Kinney: The owner of the Port Huron Icehawks could decide the future of this league. Should he give up on his plan to take control of McMorran Arena or give up on the Icehawks, the IHL would fall below its mandatory six teams and fold. Under Kinney's reign, there have been great improvements in Port Huron, though.

4B) Bob Perani: Like Kinney, Perani's decisions regarding his own team could decide the future of the IHL. The Flint Generals have had payroll problems in recent weeks and if the owners, led by Perani, don't live up to their promise to keep the team there, the league could be doomed.

6) Lori Bigwood: As the vice president of hockey administration, she oversees all contracts and transactions. Without her say so, you don't play.

7) Al Sims: As the most accomplished coach in the IHL - he played and coached in the NHL - Sims draws players to his team and to the league. His voice is, typically, a respected one behind the scenes, though not all the referees love him.

8) Todd Robinson: The IHL's leading scorer, he's admired in almost all of the six member cities and his statistics make the agate pages of newspapers all over the region.

9) Colin Chaulk: The IHL's most respected player because of how he impacts the game; there isn't a coach in the league who wouldn't want him on his team.

10) Craig Drecktrah: Someday, the league keeps telling us, the Chicago Hounds will return, under the guidance of owner Drecktrah. Having a seventh team would ease the tension of the league in the coming months.

11) Bob Chase: The voice of the Komets may not call games as well as he used to, but he's known throughout hockey circles and draws attention to the IHL because of his popularity.

12) Brendan Savage: Love him or hate him, the Flint Journal's beat writer is the second most read person in the league and he doesn't mind ruffling the feathers of the league brass if need be. His vendetta with Fort Wayne got old long ago, though. He also writes for The Hockey News, which brings needed exposure to the IHL.

13) David Grand: The IHL's counsel, he oversees legal issues, primarily as they pertain to insurance and contracts. With foreign players and goons in the IHL, those things can come in handy.

14) Brian McKenna: It's no secret that the ECHL's commissioner would love to have a couple of IHL markets, most of all Fort Wayne.

15) Dave Andrews: The same goes for the American Hockey League's commissioner. But his league would be more expensive for any team to join than the ECHL.

16) Scott Sproat: The Komets' vice president is the best in the league at marketing his team. Other teams have been, or should be, stealing all his ideas if they want to improve promotions.

17) Mr. Ricochet: We don't know his real name, but he runs finishyourcheck.com, the most popular internet discussion site for IHL fans. News is propagated there and blog readers unite.

18) Amy Stump: The IHL's director of media relations comes in handy when the league is dragging its feet on announcing a suspension, and she recently completed the record book, controversial with some as it may be because not everyone thinks the new IHL is the same as the old IHL.

19) Don Parsons: Would have been much higher on this list - say, sixth - until he was released by the Bloomington PrairieThunder this week. By becoming the all-time leading goal-scorer in minor-league hockey history, he was one of the few people bringing really positive attention to the IHL. Now he's unemployed.

20) Mike Modugno: The best media-relations man in the league, he is also the voice of the Kalamazoo Wings.

21) Wade Welsh: The general manager of the second most stable team in the IHL, the Kalamazoo Wings, he has a great voice in where this league may be heading.

22) Mike Emrick: He calls NHL games on Versus and likes to give a shout out to the IHL from time to time. He grew up in North Manchester and worked in Port Huron.

23) Terry Ficorelli: The Muskegon broadcaster is nothing short of zany. They even talk about his use of words in other leagues.

24) Blake Sebring: The News-Sentinel writer has two books on minor-league hockey and writes some colorful stories, read by many.

25) Jerry Pateman: A supervisor of officials, he is often Jones' only set of eyes when there are misdeeds on the ice, by players and officials.