Gulls Top Performers: Max Comtois
Dec 7, 2020By Joe Spurrier/SanDiegoGulls.com
Max Comtois spent 2019-20 putting together one of the more impressive rookie seasons in San Diego Gulls history.
Comtois split time between Anaheim and San Diego during his second professional season. Scoring 5-6=11 points 29 NHL games, the rookie set new career NHL highs in goals, assists, points and games played with the Ducks. He also strung together an NHL career-high four-game point streak from Oct. 24-29 (2-2=4).
While in San Diego, Comtois tallied 9-15=24 points with a +7 rating and 53 PIM in 31 AHL games. There’s no question Comtois made San Diego a better team, as the club held a 15-0-2-0 record when he recorded a point.
The rookie showed a knack for finding the back of the net, especially in the most important moments of the game. If the Gulls needed a big goal in the final minutes of a contest, often Comtois would come up with a big play. The 6-2, 215-pound forward scored five game-winning goals to pace the Gulls and co-lead AHL rookies.
In February, Comtois recorded one of the best stretches of his young hockey career. From Feb. 15-22, he recorded 6-2=8 points and a +7 rating over five games with the Gulls, including three consecutive game-winning goals. Comtois set a Gulls rookie record with goals in five straight games, surpassing the prior mark of four set by Troy Terry (Nov. 9-21, 2018; 4-2=6).
His strong performance earned him league honors as CCM/AHL Player of the Week, spanning from Feb. 17-23 (5-2=7, +6). In his final game of the stint, on Feb. 22, Comtois set a career best with three points (2-1=3), including his first multi-goal game, against San Jose.
“I think it’s the power of confidence,” said Gulls head coach Kevin Dineen after the three-point performance by Comtois. “All of a sudden you break the seal and things start flowing pretty easily. He’s not only scoring goals, but he’s scoring nice goals. He’s going to the net and he’s scoring in a lot of different ways. He had a beautiful shot tonight and we need that as a team. It’s good to see him get that and let’s hope it’s the old theory that once it starts flowing, it keeps coming.”
As the month came to an end, the league tipped its cap to the rookie again. Comtois earned CCM/AHL Rookie of the Month honors for February, where he totalled 13 points in 13 games, co-led the AHL in goals and led with four game-winning goals.
The rookie finished off the abbreviated season as a true difference maker, scoring eight goals his final 12 AHL games (8-4=12) and recording 9-11=20 points his last 24 contests.
Comtois' development continues a wave of optimism that's followed the 21-year old since Anaheim selected him in the second round of the 2017 NHL Draft. The former 50th overall selection continues to make highlight-reel plays, showing off a mix of tantilizing skill exciting Ducks and Gulls fans alike.
He wasted no time making a name for himself in 2018-19, putting on a show as he debuted in Anaheim's first game of the season. The rookie forward scored just 49 seconds into his first career NHL game on Oct. 3, 2018 at San Jose, marking the fastest to start an NHL career since 1989, when Buffalo’s Alexander Mogilny scored 20 seconds into the first period Oct. 5, 1989 vs. Quebec.
"I wouldn't have believed it if you said it to me before the game," Comtois said after his NHL debut. "I found a way to put it into the back of the net. Really happy. I didn't want to shoot it off the pad or miss that chance. It was a great play overall. I'm really happy to get this one out of the way."
Strong debuts continued once he was assigned by Anaheim to San Diego. Comtois scored a goal 2:26 into his AHL debut with San Diego, Nov. 10, 2018 against Colorado, becoming the first player to score in both their Gulls and Ducks debuts.
However, one of Comtois’ finest moments as a Gull came in the 2019 Calder Cup Playoffs on May 3, 2019. In yet another debut, his first Calder Cup Playoff appearance, Comtois scored one of the most memorable goals in Gulls history. In what ended as fifth longest game in AHL history, Comtois came up with the game-winner after 124:20 of regulation and overtime in Game 1 of the Pacific Division Finals at Bakersfield.
In just two years, Comtois boasts a long series of memorable and promising moments and has quickly become a top performer for the Gulls.