FORT WAYNE, Ind. — The unpredictable nature of playoff hockey showed up Friday night at Memorial Coliseum, where the Toledo Walleye played their best game of the Central Division final series only to see Fort Wayne tie the series at 2.
The Walleye outshot the Komets 42-25, but Fort Wayne hung on for a 3-1 victory in Game 4 before a crowd of 7,449.
Fort Wayne goaltender Michael Houser had his best game of the series, finishing with 41 saves.
For the fourth consecutive game, Toledo took the initial lead. Former Fort Wayne forward Mike Embach scored 2 minutes, 48 seconds into the second period.
However, the Komets tied it up 17 seconds later as Dan Maggio lifted a backhander from in the slot past goaltender Pat Nagle.
VIDEO: Komets 3, Walleye 1
In a quick turn of events late in the second, Walleye defenseman Simon Denis was cross-checked from behind by Maggio as the Walleye were on a 3-on-1 breakaway. Denis crumpled to the ice and lay motionless for a couple of minutes.
Toledo was awarded a power play as Maggio was called for interference. But Fort Wayne struck for a shorthanded goal. Nagle stopped Gabriel Desjardins initially on a solo breakaway, but the puck then deflected off of Desjardins and trickled in for a 2-1 Komets lead with 1:24 remaining in the second.
The Komets then put it away, when Maggio scored a power-play goal to add insult to injury with 7:13 left in regulation.
Nagle finished with 22 saves.
The series shifts back to Toledo for Game 5 at 7:35 p.m. Saturday at the Huntington Center. Game 6 is scheduled for 7:35 p.m. Tuesday at Memorial Coliseum. A decisive Game 7 would be played in Toledo at 7:35 p.m. Wednesday.
“If we play like that most nights, we're going to win,” Walleye coach Dan Watson said. “We took it to them. This is playoff hockey. You can't be disappointed. It's one of those things. Tonight we didn't put pucks in the net. I thought Houser was good. Our chances were there and our players played a really good game. We see what works now. We have to feel positive.”
But the Walleye players and coaches were bitter about the hit on Denis, who missed the third period. Embach said there was anger and frustration on the bench when it wasn't ruled a major penalty.
“He just stopped and held up and got ran over,” Embach said. “Obviously we don't like that.”
Watson said Denis will be evaluated by team doctors.
“Obviously, he was not good enough to come back and play,” Watson said. “I haven't seen [the replay]. We have to take a look at it. If it warrants to be sent in [for review to ECHL officials], we'll do our due diligence to do that. It's a call that should have been made. There is no reason why he should have been hit in the back of the head.”
Fort Wayne coach Gary Graham said he does not expect a suspension forthcoming.
“There was no malice or intent there,” Graham said. “The thing about that is you have a big guy that is back-checking. Denis threw the brakes as he is tracking him and it was more just a collision. So there was no cross-check to it. Dan Maggio is a veteran guy. He's a heavyweight tough guy. He's never had a history of doing anything like that. Maggio doesn't play that way.”
Graham coached Denis when he played in three games for the Komets in 2015-16.
“It's very unfortunate, because Simon is a guy I coached. I love him to death. You hate seeing that,” Graham said.
Denis, who had a team-high three shots for the Walleye in the first, had his head hit into the ice on the hit from behind. The incident marred an otherwise solid effort at both ends for Toledo.
Houser made two good saves on A.J. Jenks and Dylan Sadowy in the first seven minutes of the game to keep it scoreless.
“Michael Houser was the star of the game,” Graham said. “He had a great response from the other night [4-3 loss]. When he's playing like that it gives the team confidence in front of him. They threw a lot of pucks at the net. They got a couple of good looks on the power play. I give them credit, they did a lot more offensively.”
Toledo then cashed in on a 2-on-1 breakaway by Embach and Zach Nastasiuk, who returned to the team from the AHL on Friday, early in the second. Embach held on to the puck made a nice move to beat Houser on his far side.
“I thought Houser played really well,” Embach said. “You have to credit. He had a night where he kept them it. You have to battle through and keep putting pucks on net and eventually they'll go in.”
The Walleye repeatedly showed a willingness to get in front of pucks, blocking shot after shot in the second.
Toledo's Connor Crisp got into a fight with Fort Wayne's Cody Sol with 17 seconds left in regulation.
The teams now are 1-1 on the road and 1-1 at home.
“It's a best-of-3 now, and they have to come to our barn twice,” Embach said. “So we just have to take care of business home.”
The Walleye limited Fort Wayne to a series-low eight shots in the first and six in the third.
“Defensively, we were excellent and we will continue to stick with that,” Watson said. “It just a matter of getting those timely goals.”
Watson said with the back-to-back games and overnight travel it come down to will in Game 5.
“We love playing at home. We're excited to get back playing in front of our fans. I know our players will be hungry,” he said.
FISH TALES: Walleye forward Tyler Barnes, who leads Toledo in the postseason with eight points on a goal and seven assists, was a healthy scratch. Barnes does not have a point in the series. Coach Dan Watson said Barnes is the odd-man out with the addition of Nastasiuk to lineup.
“It’s been a tough series for him,” Watson said before the game. “We still trust him.”
Barnes might be back in the lineup for Game 5.
■ Minnesota Wild coach Bruce Boudreau was in attendance for the second consecutive game. Boudreau’s son, Ben, is an assistant for the Komets. Bruce also is a former Komets coach.
Contact Mark Monroe at: mmonroe@theblade.com, 419-724-6354, or on Twitter @MonroeBlade.
First Published May 5, 2018, 2:36 a.m.