The Komets, who have four games remaining in the regular season, clinched the Midwest Division title tonight with a 5-2 come-from-behind victory over the Indy Fuel in front of 7,193 fans at Memorial Coliseum.

The Komets are on a 8-2-3 run. They finished the season series 6-2-1 against the Fuel, which has lost four of its last seven games.

(Video highlights are above.)

It’s their first division championship in four ECHL seasons and their first since winning the Central Hockey League’s Turner Conference in 2012, when they went on to their last playoff championship.

The Missouri Mavericks have already clinched the overall regular-season championship, but the Komets (39-21-8), who play host to the Evansville IceMen on Sunday, are guaranteed to have the second or third seed in the Western Conference playoffs.

They Komets, who have 86 points, are battling with Idaho (82), Colorado (80) and Utah (80), all of whom came into the night with four games remaining, for that No. 2 seed. Fort Wayne’s first-round opponent could be any of those three teams or Cincinnati, Allen, Quad City or Tulsa, and that series will start with two games at the Coliseum.

Forward Mike Embach, who has 23 goals and 53 points in 51 games this season with Fort Wayne, was returned by Chicago of the higher-level American Hockey League but wasn't in the lineup. Embach, who had been called up Feb. 25, played in only four AHL games because of a knee injury. Defenseman Jordon Southorn, who was called up to Manitoba of the AHL on Thursday, was also returned. He has nine goals and 38 points in 60 games with Fort Wayne this season.

The Fuel (31-35-3) totaled 10 of the game’s first 14 shots, including one from point-blank range 3:06 into the game by Colin Murray, who was foiled by goaltender Spencer Martin. Martin was played his first game since being returned Monday by San Antonio, for which he is the reigning AHL Player of the Week.

Murray atoned with a goal at 11:32, after teammate Dylan Clarke sent a one-handed pass from behind the net. But Fort Wayne’s Garrett Meurs tied it at 1 with a breakaway goal at 15:35.

Fort Wayne captain Jamie Schaafsma, who came into the night with goals in 16 of the previous 23 games, had trouble solving Indy goalie Terry Shafer, who gloved his rocketing shot from 20 feet in the first period and stopped a backhand off a rebound 3:53 into the second.

Kyle Thomas, who may be the leading candidate for the team’s Rookie of the Year award with 14 goals and 38 points in 57 games, made it 2-1 with a shot from the right circle 13:15 into the second period.

Thanks to a Taylor Crunk pass from the right corner, Fort Wayne’s Leo Thomas scored on a one-timer at 17:19 for a 3-1 lead. Shawn Szydlowski and Paul Crowder netted 30-foot shots in the third period for a 5-1 lead.

Notes: Komets broadcaster Bob Chase, 90, missed the game because of an illness he had been battling for several days. Chase, who is in his 63rd season, has skipped many of the road games but done most of the games at the Coliseum this season.

jcohn@jg.net