Stayin' alive

Stayin’ alive… stayin’ alive. Ah, what a feeling. The Wolves squeezed a 2-1 victory out of the Iowa Stars tonight, tying them with the Ak-sar-ben Knights, who lost a game in Peoria at 81 points each. Iowa is in fourth place at 84 points. And, the last playoff spot in the AHL is still up in the air.

The game sheet shows the Wolves with 34 penalty minutes. But, 20 of those minutes were assessed after the game against the Wolves for an unknown infraction. So, during the game, the Wolves had 14 minutes in the sin bin against just eight for the Stars. Despite continued poor officiating by Gord Dwyer, the Wolves won.

Over in Peoria, however, it was a story of lack of discipline which led to another Peoria victory. Peoria dropping the Omaha Knights. Peoria continues, in my mind, to be the leading contender to win the Western Division and face the North Division post-season champ, probably Grand Rapids. Peoria is close on the heals of the Aeros still. The Houston team had a tough time finishing off the San Antonio Rampage, but did and remains three points ahead of Peoria.

So, tonight here are the magic numbers. The Iowa Stars eliminate the Wolves with four points in their last four games. They eliminate the Knights with six points. The Stars have a game in pocket against the Wolves. The Aeros retain second place by gaining four points in their last four games, they have a game in the pocket against the Rivermen.