D1 slots almost set for post-season
March 25, 2011
The AHA Winter Playoff dance cards will be finalized this weekend.
All D1 divisions except the East have finalized their seeds for the playoffs. With two games left on the contending East teams’ schedules, it’s too close to call.
In the North, all 20 regular season games are in the books, with congratulations in order to the perennial fourth-place finisher Lumberjacks taking the division title for their first time at D1 (they won the Beginner championship in 2006–07), by jumping ahead of the Ak Bars in the final week.
In the West, even though there’s still one game remaining, it’s between the top two teams and the outcome will have no bearing on the playoffs. (But one of those teams pulled an upset last week by forcing a tie with 26 seconds on the clock, and stealing a point from the then-as-yet undefeated first-place team.)
Last weekend determined who would earn the remaining two D1 West slots and get to see post-season daylight and who would get golf-season daylight.
At that time, the Maroons, Royals and Chaos were essentially in a three-way tie for the third and fourth slots. The Maroons and Royals faced off to determine both their and the Chaos’ fate. It was the Maroons who put the decision in their own hands, beating the Royals 4–1. And with a Chaos 3–2 win over the Ice Gators, it was the Royals on the short end of the Easton.
The Maroons get into the post-season in their second year at D1, after getting knocked out last season thanks in part to a 3–3 tie with the Spiders a year ago tonight.
And the Chaos continue their string of consecutive post-season appearances, having made it all the way to the D1 trophy last season, their first at D1.
The latest standings
| Place | Team | GP | W | L | T | OTL | P | GF | GA | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
||||||||||
| 1 | y–Spiders D1 | 19 | 18 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 37 | 113 | 44 | 104 |
| 2 | x–Puck Hounds | 19 | 14 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 30 | 84 | 47 | 142 |
| 3 | x–Maroons D1 | 20 | 10 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 22 | 62 | 60 | 118 |
| 4 | x–Chaos D1 | 20 | 8 | 7 | 3 | 2 | 21 | 66 | 74 | 138 |
| 5 | Royals D1 | 20 | 8 | 10 | 1 | 1 | 18 | 54 | 73 | 160 |
| 6 | Fighting Saints | 20 | 8 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 66 | 85 | 134 |
| 7 | Ice Gators | 20 | 5 | 13 | 2 | 0 | 12 | 55 | 73 | 78 |
| 8 | Gold Rush | 20 | 3 | 17 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 50 | 94 | 96 |
| Place | Team | GP | W | L | T | OTL | P | GF | GA | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
||||||||||
| 1 | x–Northern Horde D1 | 18 | 17 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 34 | 92 | 22 | 92 |
| 2 | x–Diablos D1 | 18 | 16 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 32 | 85 | 31 | 76 |
| 3 | Muskies D1 | 19 | 11 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 24 | 81 | 44 | 106 |
| 4 | Lakers D1 | 18 | 11 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 22 | 76 | 47 | 157 |
| 5 | Fighting Ice Fish | 18 | 9 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 21 | 60 | 44 | 86 |
| 6 | Arctic Wolves | 19 | 5 | 12 | 2 | 0 | 12 | 46 | 101 | 52 |
| 7 | Stars | 18 | 5 | 12 | 1 | 0 | 11 | 40 | 88 | 72 |
| 8 | Icedogs | 18 | 2 | 14 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 32 | 74 | 122 |
| 9 | Wolf Pack | 18 | 1 | 17 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 28 | 89 | 64 |
| Place | Team | GP | W | L | T | OTL | P | GF | GA | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
||||||||||
| 1 | y–Lumberjacks | 20 | 15 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 32 | 79 | 40 | 147 |
| 2 | x–Ak Bars | 20 | 14 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 30 | 82 | 39 | 134 |
| 3 | x–Wingmen | 20 | 14 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 29 | 81 | 44 | 131 |
| 4 | x–Sled Dogs D1 | 20 | 11 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 25 | 76 | 50 | 76 |
| 5 | Nighthawks | 20 | 10 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 22 | 59 | 35 | 114 |
| 6 | Blade Runners | 20 | 6 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 56 | 124 | 185 |
| 7 | Fighting Piranhas D1 | 20 | 5 | 14 | 0 | 1 | 11 | 69 | 77 | 76 |
| 8 | Buccaneers | 20 | 1 | 19 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 24 | 117 | 72 |
D1 playoff pools
Playoff seeding will be as follows:
- Pool A:
-
- East #1 (Northern Horde or Diablos)
- North #2 (Ak Bars)
- West #3 (Maroons)
- East #4 (Muskies, Lakers or Fighting Ice Fish)
- Pool B:
-
- North #1 (Lumberjacks)
- West #2 (Puck Hounds)
- East #3 (Muskies, Lakers or Fighting Ice Fish)
- North #4 (Sled Dogs)
- Pool C:
-
- West #1 (Spiders)
- East #2 (Northern Horde or Diablos)
- North #3 (Wingmen)
- West #4 (Chaos)
D1 playoff schedule
| Date | Day | Time | Arena | Pool | Home | Away |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4/4/2011 | Mon. | 8:30 p.m. | Braemar S | B | Lumberjacks | Sled Dogs D1 |
| 4/4/2011 | Mon. | 9:10 p.m. | Highland N | C | 2 | Wingmen |
| 4/5/2011 | Tue. | 6:15 p.m. | BIG 1 | A | Ak Bars | Maroons D1 |
| 4/5/2011 | Tue. | 7:15 p.m. | BIG 3 | C | Spiders D1 | Chaos D1 |
| 4/5/2011 | Tue. | 8:00 p.m. | BIG 1 | A | 1 | 4 |
| 4/5/2011 | Tue. | 9:00 p.m. | BIG 3 | B | Puck Hounds | 3 |
| 4/8/2011 | Fri. | 6:00 p.m. | BIG 3 | C | 2 | Chaos D1 |
| 4/8/2011 | Fri. | 6:00 p.m. | BIG 1 | A | 1 | Maroons D1 |
| 4/8/2011 | Fri. | 6:15 p.m. | BIG 2 | B | Puck Hounds | Sled Dogs D1 |
| 4/8/2011 | Fri. | 7:45 p.m. | BIG 3 | C | Spiders D1 | Wingmen |
| 4/8/2011 | Fri. | 7:45 p.m. | Richfield 2 | A | Ak Bars | 4 |
| 4/8/2011 | Fri. | 8:00 p.m. | BIG 2 | B | Lumberjacks | 3 |
| 4/9/2011 | Sat. | 9:00 a.m. | Braemar E | B | 3 | Sled Dogs D1 |
| 4/9/2011 | Sat. | 10:15 a.m. | Braemar W | B | Lumberjacks | Puck Hounds |
| 4/9/2011 | Sat. | 12:00 p.m. | Braemar W | A | 1 | Ak Bars |
| 4/9/2011 | Sat. | 12:00 p.m. | SLP W | C | Spiders D1 | 2 |
| 4/9/2011 | Sat. | 1:45 p.m. | Braemar W | A | Maroons D1 | 4 |
| 4/9/2011 | Sat. | 1:45 p.m. | SLP W | C | Wingmen | Chaos D1 |
| 4/9/2011 | Sat. | 7:30 p.m. | BIG 1 | – | D1 – Semi-Final #2 – 2 vs 3 | |
| 4/9/2011 | Sat. | 8:15 p.m. | BIG 3 | – | D1 – Semi-Final #1 – 1 vs 4 | |
| 4/10/2011 | Sun. | 2:00 p.m. | BIG 1 | – | D1 Tier Championship | |
Yes, you read that schedule correctly. The Chaos made a move on the Royals in the final week, and will face the Spiders in the first game of the round robin playoffs on Tuesday, April 5. Could it be a repeat of last season’s first round?
