The Fort Wayne Komets took the initial steps toward the 2020-21 ECHL season by announcing their list of protected players Monday.

The practice allows teams to retain the rights to certain players, as long as they meet the guidelines defined in a collective bargaining agreement between the league and the Professional Hockey Players’ Association.

The Ks protected their rights to the following players:

• Forwards Brady Shaw, Anthony Petruzzelli, Brett McKenzie, Shawn Szydlowski, Matt Boudens, A.J. Jenks, Shawn St-Amant, Alan Lyszczarczyk, Kyle Hope, Brad Ross.
• Defensemen Chase Stewart, Jason Binkley, Ryan Lowney, Adam Henry, Kyle Haas, Gabriel Verpaelst, Olivier Galipeau.
• Goaltender Stefanos Lekkas.

The ECHL has also announced that teams have to complete any “future consideration” trades by 3 pm on June 12th, with their Season-Ending Rosters finished by 3 pm on June 15th.

The 2019-20 season was canceled due to the worldwide coronavirus pandemic. The Komets’ 2020-21 season begins on Saturday, October 17th at home against the Indy Fuel, with a 7:35 pm scheduled start time.