Taylor Crunk showed a lot of good things on the ice for the Komets last season when he was fresh out of junior hockey, tallying one goal and five points in nine games.

So the goal of the 21-year-old left wing in the offseason was to polish what he was already doing and get his strength, conditioning and diet better to prepare for the rigors of a full ECHL season.

“I’m just trying to be smarter, as far as taking care of the body,” he said. “You don’t have to pick the heaviest thing in the gym up all the time. Things like that, more stretching and learning how to take care of the body better, even when you’re away from the gym.”

Crunk, 6-foot and 215 pounds, is one of 25 players still on the Komets’ preseason roster, battling for about 21 spots.

The Komets, who are 1-1-0 heading into their final preseason game tonight at Memorial Coliseum against the Brampton Beast, released seven players Sunday morning: forwards Chase Nieuwendyk and Jake Hauswirth, defensemen Rob Simpson, Frank Schumacher and Luke Eibler and goaltenders John McLean and Garrett Bartus.

Dan Milan and Trevor Cheek remained in the higher-level American Hockey League on tryouts.

“There are still jobs on the line,” coach Gary Graham said. “We’ve still got to make some evaluations on Monday night. We have been getting guys back from the AHL, and we want to see some chemistry continue to be built between the guys.”

One of the best moments of the preseason thus far for the Komets was Crunk’s impressive fight with the Indy Fuel’s Raphael Corriveau on Friday night.

Crunk isn’t leery of mixing it up, so there could be more of the same this season.

“It’s part of my game,” Crunk said. “In order for me to keep moving forward, it’s going to have to keep being a part of my game. But I like playing, too, you know? I like to get in there in the corners and try to get to the net, create some chances for my linemates.”

Last season, Crunk totaled six goals, 10 points and 61 penalty minutes in 46 games with Vancouver of the Western Hockey League, and he had seven goals, 13 points and 22 penalty minutes in 16 games with Spruce Grove of the Alberta Junior Hockey League.

He played for the WHL’s Victoria Royals from 2011 to 2015.

Crunk is one of 14 players with the Komets who played for Fort Wayne last season when the Komets won a division championship in the regular season and lost to the eventual champion Allen Americans in the Western Conference finals.

The familiarity with his teammates and Graham’s systems should smooth Crunk’s transition to his first full season of professional hockey.

“Especially as a young guy, it helps out a lot that I got to experience that playoff run last year,” he said. “It helps me out a lot coming in this year and being more familiar with everything.”