CORALVILLE, IA – Tye Felhaber scored with just over seven minutes left in the contest to spoil a spectacular outing by Iowa Heartlanders netminder Hunter Jones as the Fort Wayne Komets earned a 2-1 victory. Jones stopped 29 shots, but Ryan Fanti was a little bit better on the evening, stopping 42 shots to lead Fort Wayne to the victory. Yuki Miura had the lone goal for the Heartlanders.

Fort Wayne scored the only goal of the first. Samuel Dove-McFalls scored 13:44 in the contest. Darien Kielb entered the Iowa zone along the boards, leaving a drop pass for Felhaber. He passed the puck toward the slot where Dove-McFalls tipped it in for his third goal of the season.

In the second, the Heartlanders tied the score when Miura scored at the 4:37 mark. After Justin Wells blocked a shot in his own end, James Sanchez found Miura streaking toward the Komets blueline, hitting him on the tape to send his teammate in on a breakaway. Miura waited, sliding across the crease to get Fanti down before he lifted a wrist shot over the sprawling netminder to make it 1-1.

The score remained tied through the first 12 minutes of the third period, but Felhaber put Fort Wayne on top for good at 12:57. Graham McPhee entered the Iowa zone, leaving a drop pass for Felhaber, who fired a blistering wrist shot from just inside the left face-off circle that beat Jones to the blocker side for his 11th goal of the year.

There was still plenty of time left in this contest, and Iowa had their opportunities late in the game, but Fanti preserve the one goal victory, delivering the eighth straight loss for the Heartlanders.

Iowa will look to break the skin on Sunday when they take on Fort Wayne again. The puck drops at 2:05.

Gamesheet

by Robert Pannier