The Fort Wayne Komets announced Tuesday that the team will return to play the weekend of Feb.
12 for a fifty-game regular season.
Hey good evening everyone... komet hockey is back... those four words said by team president michael franke opened a press conference earlier this afternoon... putting an end to the months- long question of whether or not we would see the k's hit the coliseum ice or not this year... michael franke: "this is a red letter day for the komets, and komets fans, and the community."??nat pop horn sound??reporter: 11 months since the coronavirus pandemic benched the komets, the team is ready to lace up their skates and hit the ice once again.david franke: "to actually have professional sports back again at the coliseum, have hockey back at the coliseum, i think it's exciting."shawn szydlowski: "it's just an awesome feeling, obviously, because it's been a range of emotion this past year, and it's been a long road, we're finally here, so that anxiety in everyone's mind can finally disappear a little bit."reporter: yeah, while the anxiety of if the season will happen is gone, anxiety on fan safety is another thing.david franke: "the coliseum will do their job to keep it a safe building."reporter: things will look a bit different in the jungle this year... capacity is limited to 25%, which comes out to around 26- hundred fans.
Those in attendance must be socially distant, fans cannot eat or drink away from their seats, and masks are mandatory at all times.michael franke: "the protocols are perfect.
They're just in line with everything that the allen county health department is asking."
Reporter: day-to-day operations will look different for the team, as well.
But it's a sacrifice the players are willing to make in order to play the game they love.
Szydlowski: "we have to make sure we're doing everything by the book this year, and i have full faith that everyone will.
Because, i think it's been a komet mentality, a team mentality ever since i've been here, and it's about winning, and we know we're not gonna win if we jeopardize playing another game.
So, we all know what's at stake here, and we're ready to do it safely and have fun while we do."
Reporter: and while so much has changed off the ice, the expectations on the ice remain the same.david franke: "the number one objective is gonna be to win hockey games, win as many hockey games as we can.
But, the biggest thing is, we're playing.
We're playing.
Win or lose, we're playing, and i like our chances."
The k's will play a 50 game slate beginning the weekend of february 12th...they'll play 25 home games... 25 away games... the season will end in early june...they hope to have their schedule within
With the 69th season officially happening, the Fort Wayne Komets announced several safety protocols that will be in place to limit..