Weekend Preview: Quinnipiac On Brink Of Claiming Regular Season Title
Sacred Heart-Mercyhurst Series May Determine Final Home Ice Slot
Weekend Preview & Playoffs 2005 (PDF)

Only three days remain in the Atlantic Hockey regular season. The excitement that has been building over the past five weeks will take on a new form after Saturday night, as teams will finally know who will host and where they will be headed in the Atlantic Hockey playoffs. The race for the regular season title might turn anti-climatic Thursday evening; if first-place Quinnipiac pulls out a win in Storrs, they will head home the regular season champs in Atlantic Hockey.

It will be no small task for the Bobcats though. Not only is the regular season title on the line for Quinnipiac, but also the ‘Heroes Hat’ - an award presented to the team that wins the regular season series between the two squads. Quinnipiac has earned the award over the past three seasons, however Connecticut may be in the best position to take the honor since the competition for the hat was created.

The Huskies took the first meeting of the season by a 4-1 margin on Jan. 14, only to watch the next night as the Bobcats rebounded with a 4-1 win. The victory for Quinnipiac proved to be a springboard for the Bobcats, as they have gone on since that 4-1 win on Jan. 15 to win 11 out of their last 13 games. Whoever wins Thursday night can claim to be the best team in Connecticut from the conference - both teams have won the season series over Sacred Heart, 2-1.

The Pioneers have been on an uncharacteristic skid recently, having lost their last three outings. Once atop the Atlantic Hockey mountain, Sacred Heart got knocked from its perch last weekend against Quinnipiac, and now the Pioneers are in a three-way tie for second and battling to maintain home ice in the Quarterfinals. Standing in their way will be a Mercyhurst squad that appears to be peaking at the right time, having won its last three outings and 5-of-6, the lone loss coming in overtime. With this weekend series and all that is on the line, you can throw out the fact that the Pioneers are 4-0-1 in their last five meetings with the Lakers. A win for Sacred Heart will guarantee it home ice, while three points will be just what the Lakers need to host a Quarterfinal match in Erie. The two teams open up the weekend set Friday night at Mercyhurst.

Holy Cross will take on Bentley in a home-and-home series slated to begin Friday in Worcester. The Falcons surprised the Crusaders in the first meeting of the season, a 5-3 win at Holy Cross. After dropping to fifth place last weekend, the Crusaders are still in the hunt for home ice. A sweep by Holy Cross will give it hosting duties, while two points for Bentley assures the Falcons a seventh-place finish.

Canisius is the third member of the three-way tie for second atop the Atlantic Hockey standings. The Golden Griffins will host Army for a pair of games to close out the regular season for both teams. The Griffs may have the easiest road to home ice in the Quarterfinal round, needing only two points to achieve the feat. The Black Knights on the other hand will be looking to continue a climb out of the bottom of the Atlantic Hockey standings, as they are currently undefeated in their last four games. The series kicks off in Buffalo beginning Friday night.