ORLANDO, FLA – Less than two weeks remain in the 2014-2015 ECHL regular season and the East division will be coming down to the final contests before the top four seeds and playoff pairings will be set.
While the top three spots – the Florida Everblades in first and the South Carolina Stingrays and Reading Royals battling for second – well set, the most intriguing race is the one for the last position. The Orlando Solar Bears, Greenville Road Warriors and Elmira are all still in the hunt for the right to most likely take on Florida in the first round of the Kelly Cup playoffs.
Presently, the Solar Bears (35-23-5-3, 78 points) are in the catbird’s seat in fourth place. The Road Warriors (35-28-1-3, 74 points) are right behind while the Jackals (31-28-0-7, 69 points) are beginning to fade from the picture. What is not clear is how things will end up when the season ends a week from Saturday.
By the numbers, Orlando needs to amass seven points in its last six contests in order to comfortably avoid having to use tiebreakers to earn the berth and an in-state playoff tussle with the Everblades. The problem for the Solar Bears may be their schedule which could create havoc if things do not go the way of the team from Central Florida.
The Solar Bears remaining games are against arguably the stiffest competition any squad could face. Orlando begins its final stretch on April 2nd and 3rd with a pair of home games against South Carolina. Yes, the same South Carolina team that is one upset loss to the Indy Fuel away from carrying a 25-game winning streak into the Amway Center. Thanks to the Fuel, the Stingrays are on a modest one-game run but are certainly not happy. Add to that the fact that they are fighting for home ice with Reading and Orlando could have its hands full (for the record the Solar Bears are 4-3-2-0 against South Carolina this season).
The night before Easter, Reading will pay a visit to the City Beautiful. The Royals and Solar Bears have not met this season but with a higher seed on the line, Reading certainly has something to play and fight for.
Orlando’s final three games – one at home and two away – are against the Everblades. Florida has bedeviled the Solar Bears this season, winning eight of the first twelve games played between the Sunshine State rivals. The Everblades are in a dogfight with Toledo and Fort Wayne for the overall number one seed in the Eastern conerence and have at their disposal a roster loaded with players who have tortured Orlando over the last three seasons.
Greenville has arguably the easiest path to follow. The Road Warriors have five games left
with four of them against division rival Gwinnett. The Gladiators, who sit in last place in the division, have been nothing more than toys for Greenville. The Road Warriors have won six of the previous meetings this year, that last a 5-2 victory last Saturday that was sandwiched by Gwinnett giving Orlando all it could handle in on Friday and Sunday.
The one other game on the Greenville schedule is on Saturday, April 10th when the Evansville IceMen visit the Palmetto State. Evansville has had an even worse year than Gwinnett but has played the Road Warriors tough, splitting four contests.
Elmira starts its final stretch of six games with a home contest against Wheeling tonight. The Jackals are hanging on by a thread and the Nailers have done a number on Elmira, winning seven of ten meetings. With two more games against Wheeling to end the season, the Jackals have an uphill climb ahead.
As if that was not enough of an issue, Elmira still has a three-game road trip to the Midwest ahead. The Jackals will be swinging through Fort Wayne (44 wins/94 points), Toledo (45 wins/97 points) and Indy this weekend before finishing up against the Nailers.
Unless the Jackals get South Carolina hot, the race for fourth should come down to Orlando and Greenville. If both teams win out (which is still possible but not probable), Orlando will have one more victory and claim the spot. Should the Solar Bears slip up, the Road Warriors could take of their soft schedule and sneak in.
Whatever happens, it should be an entertaining close before the second season begins.
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