Komets Hall of Fame to expand

Fort Wayne, IN-- The Komets announced Wednesday that the Komet Hall of Fame will increase by two new members in a ceremony planned for the night of Saturday, March 7, 2020, when the Kalamazoo Wings visit for a 7:35pm faceoff.The Class of 2020 inductees include NBC National Hockey League broadcaster Mike "Doc" Emrick and former Komet winger Kaleigh Schrock.

Emrick, a native of La Fontaine, Indiana, began his professional broadcasting career in 1973 and is currently the lead announcer for NHL national telecasts on both NBC and NBCSN. Emrick continues to call play-by-play of select NHL games throughout the hockey season.  He has worked on telecasts for 31 consecutive Stanley Cup playoffs and is expected to be in the booth for his 22nd NHL Stanley Cup Finals this spring.Among the many awards he has received is the NHL's Lester Patrick Award in 2004, making him the first of only five to have received the award for media work, and the Foster Hewitt Memorial Award by the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2008. He has also won six national Emmy Awards for excellence in sports broadcasting, the only hockey broadcaster to be honored with even one. "Doc" also is the first member of the media to be inducted into the United States Hockey Hall of Fame. 

"That a Komets fan for 60 seasons (except for four when I was the Port Huron Flags announcer) could be nominated by his icon Bob Chase and that the nomination could be carried forth by the Franke family, who rescued and preserved the Komet franchise, and that I was informed in front of several Komet Hall of Famers I cheered for.....I have no words to finish this sentence,"  Emrick said.  "March 7 will be a wonderful lifetime memory."Emrick is being honored for his passion for the game of ice hockey and specifically his passion for the Fort Wayne Komets, the hockey team he grew up listening to on radio with Bob Chase calling the play-by-play radio rinkside. "Mike Emrick's career as a world class broadcaster started here in Indiana," noted Komets President Michael Franke.  "His relationship with his mentor Bob Chase lasted decades until Bob's passing. A Komet fan from the start, "Doc" has become the greatest ambassador of minor league hockey in North America with his national broadcasting of pro hockey on NBC."

Throughout his career on national television, "Doc" has made mention of the Komets while members of the IHL, UHL, CHL and ECHL, propping up minor league hockey during his storied National Hockey League broadcast career. He has become an icon of pro hockey, professionalism in broadcasting, and an all-around great guy from the Midwest. "We are honored to place Mike in the Fort Wayne Komet Hockey Hall of Fame," Franke said.

Schrock is a Fort Wayne native and was a member of the Komets for six consecutive seasons.  The right winger is a two-time Fort Wayne champion, winner of many team awards, and the Komets' captain his final two seasons. 

"Kaleigh Schrock symbolized what it meant to play the 'Komet way'," Komets General Manager David Franke said.  "His hustle, grit and physical play made him a special player on our teams and to our loyal fans.  Kaleigh brought it all every night. Schrocky will always have a place in Komet history as he now enters the Komet Hall of Fame."

Schrock skated 439 career games with the Komets scoring 81 goals, 71 assists, 152 points and 854 penalty minutes.  Schrock continues to reside in Fort Wayne.

The Hall of Fame was first introduced in 1988 and is divided into three sections including the Executive Builders section, the Team Personnel section and the Media section. With the addition of Mike "Doc" Emrick and Kaleigh Schrock, the Komet Hall of Fame totals 53 members.