February 21, 2011

The 2011 Russell Cup playoff picture has once again come down to play on the last weekend of the season, and if the reported scores are accurate, that picture has now almost become crystal clear!

Elliot Lake and South Muskoka have long been clear of the field, and the top two spots had already been clinched before now, with the Bobcats claiming the regular season crown shortly after beating the Shield late in the season.  Both will obviously take the top two spots in the North Division and both receive a bye in the opening round.

Going into this weekend's action, only 2 points separate 3 teams battling for 3rd, 4th and 5th place overall, as well as the first round byes awarded to the top two teams in the South Division. 

Bradford walloped the Shield 7-1, to reach 54 points, and combined with Shelburne's loss to the surging 77's from Oro-Medonte, neither team can now reach Jamestown, who secure their 55th point with their own convincing 6-0 shutout of the Storm in Deseronto.  The Jets take 3rd overall and 1st in the South, while Bradford secures 4th overall and 2nd in the South, and Shelburne will finish 5th overall and 3rd in the South as the best they can do with one game remaining is tie the Rattlers, who would win on tie-breakers.  In the event of the tie, the Wings and Rattlers finish with identical records, have split their season series 3-3, wiith no OT or SO points awarded, and the Rattlers would win on the overall GF/GA ratio.   Had Shelburne defeated Oro-Medonte, the game on Monday with the Jets would have been meaningful, as a single point would have sent the Wings past the Jets into 3rd, but as it stands, the game no longer carries any significance.  The Wings will await the winner of the Vaughan-Toronto elimination game on Wednesday afternoon in Thornhill.

With the Storm getting shutout at home, and Bobcaygeon's abbreviated victory over Deseronto themselves on Saturday night, the Bucks will lay claim to 6th overall and 4th in the South, while Deseronto will finish 7th overall and 5th in the South.  The Bucks - Storm game encountered technical problems with the electrical system in the third period and the game was called.  In the end, the result was insignificant, as the Bucks sit 8 points up on Deseronto, with only one game to play.  These same two teams will meet in the first round Best of Three, with the Bucks enjoying home-ice advantage.

With their victory over Vaughan on Wednesday, Toronto still had an outside chance to catch the Storm this weekend, but after a loss to the Wings in Shelburne on Friday night, last night's game against Jamestown meant nothing to the Moose, who went on to lose 8-3.   Oro-Medonte has been on qutie the tear lately, and have 9 wins in their last 13 games.  Having just beaten Bradford and Shelburne in back to back nights, the 77's could tie the Moose for 8th, but the Moose win the tiebreaker in overall wins.  Toronto will finish 8th overall and 6 in the South, meaning they will open the 2011 GMHL playoffs hosting the single game elimination qualifier against Vaughan in another Wednesday afternoon tilt.  Oro's win against the Wings assures them of 9th overall and more importantly, 3rd in the North, and home ice for the first round of the playoffs.  Oro will face Algoma, who have been settled into 13th overall, and 6th in the North Division.

The Dragons from Powassan is 2 points up on Vaughan and has completed their schedule, and even a win in their final game with Deseronto Monday afternoon, the best the Wild could do is a tie.  Despite their recent slide in the latter part of the season, the Dragons would still take the first tie-breaker - overall wins.  Powassan will finish 10th overall, 4th in the North, and  meet Sturgeon Falls Lumberjacks in thier first round action.  Vaughan will finish 11th overall and 7th in the South, meeting the Moose on Wednesday in the Sudden-Death elimination.  Sturgeon takes 12th overall and 5th in the North, and as mentioned will face the Dragons in their first round matchup.

Algoma has had it tough all season, and as a result, will finish dead last in the 13 team league, 6th in the North, and will those surging 77's in round one.

Best of luck to all teams this playoff season, and with the parity in the league this season, there's bound to be plenty of surprises.  Stay tuned for more action!

2011 RUSSELL CUP PLAYOFF BRACKETS

NORTH 

SOUTH PLAYOFF DIVISION

1. JAMESTOWN - BYE

 2. BRADFORD - BYE

3. SHELBURNE

4. BOBCAYGEON

5. DESERONTO

6. TORONTO

7. VAUGHAN

Single-Game Elimination

7 VAUGHAN @ TORONTO

Qualifying Round

1. JAMESTOWN - BYE

2. BRADFORD - BYE

 3. SHELBURNE vs  6  WINNER - VAUGHAN @ TORONTO

 4. BOBCAYGEON vs 5 DESERONTO

NORTH PLAYOFF DIVISION

1. ELLIOT LAKE

2. SOUTH MUSKOKA

3. ORO-MEDONTE

4. POWASSAN

5. STURGEON FALLS

6. ALGOMA

Qualifying Round

1. ELLIOT LAKE - BYE

2. SOUTH MUKOKA - BYE

3. ORO-MEDONTE vs 6 ALGOMA 

4. POWASSAN vs 5 STURGEON FALLS

To take it a step further and get a better picture of how the Quarter Finals would shape up,
let’s assume the higher placed teams win their series. Teams are seeded according to regular season standings:

Quarter Finals (Best of Five)

1. Elliot Lake VS 8 Powassan

2. South Muskoka VS 7 Oro-Medonte

3. Jamestown VS 6 Bobcaygeon

4. Bradford VS 5 Shelburne