1/30/88: The Comets won their 5th in a row at Kemper Arena, 6-4 over the Cleveland Force before 12,106. Jan Goossens had two goals and Dale Mitchell became the first player ever to score 100 career regular season goals in a Comets uniform. Goalkeeper Alan Mayer also thwarted a Cleveland penalty kick attempt in the 2nd quarter. Future Comet Carl Valentine scored twice for the Force.
2/5/88: Dale Mitchell scored the game-winner just :59 into OT to trip the L.A. Lazers 5-4 before 10,018 at Kemper Arena. Barry Wallace scored twice and Jan Goossens had a goal and two assists in the Comets' 6th-straight regular season win. It was also defender Cacho's final game as a Comet. Thompson Usiyan had two goals and an assist for Los Angeles.
2/7/88: In the 5th-longest regular season game in Comets history, the good guys won again, 4-3 over the St. Louis Steamers in double-overtime in front of 12,851 at Kemper. Kia scored the winning goal @ 6:25 of the 6th quarter, making K.C. 3-1 all-time in double-OT games, giving the Comets their 7th straight home win in the process. Rookie Tom Kain scored his first MISL career goal for K.C., while Poil Garcia scored twice for the Steamers, his 30th and 31st career goals ever against the Comets. Shots on goal: KC 48, STL 14.
2/12/88: Chris Chueden's hat trick led the Los Angeles Lazers to a 7-3 thumping of the Comets in front of the 4,822 usual suspects at the Forum. Small Child--er uh, Paul Child scored twice for the Lazers and Chico Borja had a goal and 2 assists. Damir Haramina accounted for all three Comet goals with his 5th career hat trick and Barry Wallace had 2 assists. Goalie Ed Gettemeier left the game with a nerve bruise in his left leg after colliding with Thompson "Tomo" Usiyan of the Lazers and was relieved by Alan Mayer.
ALL of the Lazers' players had two things in common: overpaid, and without shame. That team had NO following...4,822 announced was likely closer to 822 at the Fabulously Empty Forum.
2/14/88: In only their third win ever at San Diego Sports Arena, Kia's 2nd career OT goal knocked off the Sockers 5-4 in front of 7,516 Californians. Damir Haramina had two goals and Jan Goossens added three assists. Juli Veeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee could only manage 2 measly assists for the Suckers, er uh, the Sockers. [Sorry, I'm STILL having issues with that team a quarter century later...]
2/19/88: The good news: the Comets scored 5 goals in the 4th quarter on this night. The bad news: they already trailed the Wichita Wings 6-0, and went on to lose 9-5 in front of 9,674 at Kansas Coliseum. Kia had two of those goals, Jan Goossens had two assists, and "The Legend" David Doyle recorded his first MISL career point (an assist). Goalie Larry Tukis entered the game in relief of the unusually ineffective Alan Mayer and was charged with his first and only loss as a Comet. The Wings scored three power play goals and were led by "The Wizard" Erik Rasmussen's hat trick (his 4th against the Comets) and three assists.
2/20/88: In one of the more lifeless efforts in Comets history, the Los Angeles Lazers beat KC 7-3 in front of 14,117 at Kemper Arena. LA scored 4 unanswered goals after the game was tied 3-3 in the 3rd quarter. Thompson Usiyan and Michael Collins each had two goals for the Lazers, while Jan Goossens scored twice for the Comets, who didn't show a lot of urgency that night, for some reason. Yours truly passed on attending a Kiss concert (my favorite band) the same night over at Municipal Auditorium in favor of the Comets game. Given the result, I wish I'd done the concert...
2/24/88: The Comets lost for the final time ever to the St. Louis Steamers, 7-4, in front of a mere 3,298 at The Arena in St. Lou. KC led 4-3 in the 3rd quarter but allowed 4 unanswered Steamers goals. Team Steam scored 4 times on the power play, as well as on a penalty kick, and were led by Poli Garcia's 4 goals (his 3rd career hat trick ever vs. KC) and 2 goals by Boki Bandovic. Damir Haramina became just the third player ever to score 90 regular season goals as a Comet (preceded by Dale Mitchell and Tasso Koutsoukos).
2/26/88: In their final meeting ever vs. the Cleveland Force, the Comets won 3-1 in front of 10,787 at Kemper Arena. Cleveland's Glenn Lurie had the unmitigated gall to break up Alan Mayer's shutout bid on a 6th-attacker goal with 2:17 remaining in the game. It was the Force's 10th-straight loss at Kemper Arena and the Comets won the all-time series between the two teams 12-11.
2/28/88: The Comets pounced all over the Tacoma Stars 8-2 in front of 12,372 at Kemper Arena. KC scored 4 goals in the 3rd quarter and were led by Dale Mitchell, Damir Haramina and Kim Roentved, who each scored two goals, with one of Roentved's being shorthanded.
3/02/88: In their 150th regular season win (and 100th win ever at Kemper Arena), the Comets defeated the Minnesota Strikers 6-5 in OT in front of 8,206 fans. The Strikers led 4-0 until late in the 3rd quarter before KC's offense woke up, culminating in Damir Haramina's 3rd career OT game-winner @ 8:16 of the 5th quarter. Jan Goossens scored twice and David Doyle notched his first MISL career goal. Hector Marinaro had two goals for the Strikers, as did Alan Willey, including his 200th MISL career point.
3/04/88: The Comets lost to the San Diego Sockers 6-5 in front of 11,841 at Kemper Arena. SD was led by Branko Segota's hat trick. Gino Schiraldi scored his 60th regular season goal as a Comet.
3/06/88: The St. Louis Steamers paid their final visit to Kemper Arena and the Comets sent them packing, 7-3, in front of 13,780. Jan Goossens, David Doyle and Dale Mitchell had 2 goals each, and Mitchell narrowly missed a hat trick by not connecting on a penalty kick attempt in the 4th quarter. The Steamers finished 9-11 all-time at KC in the regular season and 0-3 in the playoffs. The game also marked the debut of the new Kemper Arena overhead scoreboard, which replaced the one that infamously malfunctioned on national TV during the 1986 NCAA Basketball Tournament, which ironically, I witnessed on TV in my hotel room in St. Louis after just returning from seeing the Comets beat the Steamers 10-5 at The Arena.
Does anyone (besides me) find it amazing that the Comets drew 10,787 12,372 8,206 11,841 13,780 over the course of 5 home games in 9 days?
Keeping in mind of course, this was when MISL attendance in general was on the decline, but people in KC were still into the Comets at that point. What else was there? The Chiefs stunk, the Royals were about to go into free-fall, and we didn't have hockey yet. The league took a huge hit after that season in losing four franchises, the Force, the Sting, the Steamers and the Strikers.
3/13/88: Young master Kia scored twice, leading the Comets to a 5-4 win over the Tacoma Stars in front of 8,614 in the great Northwest. Preki had 2 assists for the Stars.
3/15/88: The Comets tied a team record for most goals in a regular season road match in their 10-4 whooping of the L.A. Lazers at The Forum in front the usual 4,463 diehards. They also set a team mark for most goals in one quarter (6 in the 2nd) which they later equaled. Kia scored twice, Dale Mitchell had a goal and 3 assists and Charley Greene scored his final MISL career goal. Thompson Usiyan had two goals for LA, who lost goalie David Brcic in the 2nd quarter after KC's Tom Kain inadvertently kicked his thumb.
3/17/88: The Comets lost a wild one, 9-7 to the San Diego Sockers before a crowd of 7,148 in SD. The Sockers scored 4 times in both the 2nd and 3rd quarters. Juli Veeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee had 2 goals and 3 assists and received a yellow card for being his usual horse's arse self by kicking the Comets' David Doyle in the chest in the 2nd quarter. Keder and Paul Dougherty also scored two goals each for SD, as did Jan Goossens for the Comets.
3/19/88: In their 4th-straight overtime game vs. Dallas, the Comets lost to the Sidekicks 4-3 at Reunion Arena before 13,030. Kevin Smith knocked in the game-winner @ 7:26 of OT in a match that saw Godfrey Ingram score just :15 into the 1st quarter, which was then a Sidekicks record for fastest goal to begin a game. Kia had 2 goals for the Comets, Dale Mitchell had 2 assists and Tasso Koutsoukos scored his final MISL career regular season goal (his 97th as a Comet, good for 4th all-time behind Jan Goossens, Mitchell and Damir Haramina).
I will wager at least half of said diehards thought that they were holding LAKERS tickets... ahhh, the Forum, a Fabulous distant memory... luxury suites? Who needs luxury suites?
3/23/88: The Comets knocked off the Tacoma Stars for the 5th-straight time, 6-4 at Kemper Arena before 10,976. The Bobby Orr of indoor soccer, Kim Roentved, recorded his 200th MISL career regular season goal on this night.
3/25/88: The Comets set a team record for most 6th-attacker goals in one game (3), but it wasn't enough to beat the Wichita Wings, who won 7-4 in front of 12,103 at Kemper Arena. The Wings scored 5 times in the 3rd quarter, and Erik Rasmussen and Mark Kerlin had 2 goals each. Kia scored twice for KC, and Jan Goossens became the 4th Comet ever to score 90 regular season goals.
3/26/88: Turnabout was fair play as the Comets knocked off the Wings in the 2nd half of a 2-night home-and-home series, 6-5 at Kansas Coliseum before a packed house of 9,814. Ex-Wings Barry Wallace and Kim Roentved each scored for the first time at Wichita in KC uniforms (6 seconds apart in the 4th quarter, no less), while Dale Mitchell added a goal and 2 assists. Mark Kerlin scored twice and Terry Rowe assisted 3 times for the Wings.