WEEK 23 (thru Thursday)

The Ice Cats put the pedal to the metal on Thursday, a Nikita Kucherov hat trick sparking a league-best 24.6 outburst, the No. 5 seed now walking a path that leads to the semifinals of the H2H playoffs.

Round One, H2H Playoffs

Ice Hogs: 31.2
Ice Cats: 41.0­
The Ice Hogs weren't bad on Thursday, pocketing 11.2 points, but they were no match for GM Cutshall's rabid felines, GM Henry now standing in a knee-deep hole with three days remaining in this opening round playoff match.

Wild Ducks: 28.0
Bluliners: 18.7­
The Bluliners have plenty of fuel but they are still searching for a spark to ignite their Week 23 fire. There was no spark to be found on Thursday, a disappointing 5.7 point effort dropping the No. 7 seed 9.3 points behind the Wild Ducks.

Central Red Army: 27.8
SC Cobras: 18.3­
The Central Red Army struggled on Thursday, potting just 4.2 points. The anemic output allowed the SC Cobras to slither closer to an upset win, GM Murphy's team now trailing by only 9.5 points.

The Battle for the FHL Cup
Lead by the play of new-hire Jordan Eberle (2g, 1a) the Wild Ducks stormed into 1st place on Thursday, their advantage over the Ice Hogs now 7.7 points. The Misconducts were the other mover and shaker, a solid 12.3 points placing GM Smalley's team back in the money, kicking the Central Red Army into 4th place - the Army now 45.8 points in back of 1st place; 6.7 points shy of a money finish.

The Skirmish for the Laughing Bag
The Silicon Valley Slashers found some of their game on Thursday, an 8.2 point evening providing GM Murphy with 10.2 points for the week; the team now 29.8 points clear of the basement. Between the Pipes - the current occupant of the cellar - netted 7.0 points, the number placing the Pipes 16.7 points behind the 11th place Boulder Flyers.

LINK: Standings