Komets re-sign Embach, Crunk

Fort Wayne, Ind. - The Fort Wayne Komets announced that forwards Mike Embach and Taylor Crunk have re-signed and will join the team for the 2016-17 season.

The Komets are the ECHL affilaite of the National Hockey League's Colorado Avalanche and the American Hockey League's San Antonio Rampage.

Embach, 28, started last season skating nine games in Sweden with Leksands before joining the Komets' training camp. The Orland Park, Ill. native ranked second on the Komets with 23 goals, 30 assists and 53 points in 54 regular-season games and added 14 points (5g-9a) in 16 playoff games. Embach earned the ECHL Player of the Week award for the week of Dec. 21 and won Fort Wayne's True Komet Award for the third straight year.

Embach's Fort Wayne career started when he was traded to the Komets from Gwinnett shortly after the start of the 2013-14 season. In 2014-15, Embach led the Komets with a career high of 46 assists and finished with a season-best 70 points. He was presented with four team awards at the end of the regular season before leading in the playoffs with eight assists and 13 points in 12 games.

The veteran skater has totaled 164 points (69g-95a) in 175 Fort Wayne career games.

Last season, Crunk completed a five-year juniors career skating 16 games with Spruce Grove in the AJHL and 44 games with Vancouver of the WHL, amassing juniors career year highs of 13 goals and 23 points. Crunk was added to the Fort Wayne roster in March and scored five points (1g-4a) in eight games before appearing in one playoff game.