STOCKTON, Calif. – As the ECHL season winds down, six of the eight teams in the Western Conference have secured a role in the post-season, with only one more seed left to fill, the official ranking is still unsettled. The Alaska Aces (41-21-2-1, 85 points) clinched the Mountain Division Saturday night, as they won their eighth of their last nine games. The Aces were the first team to clinch a division title, earning a bye in the first round of the post-season. The Aces are now in a hot race for the Brabham Cup (Most points overall), with the Reading Royals (85 points) and the Greenville Road Warriors (84 points) of the Eastern Conference. The Mountain Division’s second seed is a tight race pitting the Idaho Steelheads (34-29-0-3, 71 points) against the Utah Grizzlies (32-27-4-2, 70 points). Both teams clinched their role in the playoffs a week ago. The Victoria Salmon Kings (29-32-2-2, 62 points) have seven games remaining; one in Bakersfield, three in Stockton and ending with three at home against the Aces. The Salmon Kings are 4-5-1 in their last ten games. The Pacific division is a tight race between three of the four teams as of today. Over the weekend, the Stockton Thunder (34-22-5-5, 78 points) defeated the Steelheads in three successive games, boosting them into the first position. They are 6-3-1 in their last ten games, and have six games remaining, the final three versus inter-division Las Vegas. The Bakersfield Condors (37-25-2-1, 77 points) are currently in second place and are 9-1 in their last ten games, with seven games remaining. They will face inter-division teams Las Vegas in three matchups, and a single game against the Reign. The other three games are against Victoria and two in Utah. The Las Vegas Wranglers (35-24-3-2, 75 points) have been on a five game skid, sliding out of the first place position. They have eight games remaining, with six of the eight against inter-division rivals, Thunder and Condors. The Ontario Reign (23-37-2-4, 52 points) is the likely team to sit out for the post-season, currently sitting in last place in the league, trailing Trenton by four points. On the positive side, Ontario is leading the league in fan attendance, with an average of 6,433 per game. The format for the Western Conference post-season is slightly different from that of its Eastern counterpart, due to an uneven number of teams. The team with the highest number of points, between the Aces and the team that clinches the division title for the Pacific division, will earn a bye in the first round. The remaining team will be seeded against the seventh place team in the conference. Then the third seed will play against the sixth seed and the fourth seed will play against the fifth seeded team. The first round will be a best of five series. The semi-conference finals and the remaining rounds will be a best of seven series. Stay tuned to PHN for in depth reports during the playoffs. It is destined to be another exciting finish in the Western Conference, as many of the teams will likely go to the final buzzer to determine their playoff placements. Contact the writer at Shellie.Lima@prohockeynews.com
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