Men's Hockey
Opponents – Friday vs. Brock Badgers, Saturday vs. York Lions

Breakdown
Fighting for their playoff lives, the Lakers will need a handful of wins, along with some help.

They did themselves a favour with a big effort Saturday and a 3-2 shootout win over UQTR.

Facing two teams from the West Division won't be easy, but in all fairness to the 10 teams in the West, the East is much stronger overall, so the Lakers will be ready, having faced USports top-10 teams consistently throughout the year.

Currently, Nipissing is five points out of a playoff position with four games left. The team they're chasing, Laurentian, have dropped six straight, but it looks like things will come down to the wire for the eighth and final spot in the East.

Nipissing needs at least three wins in their final four games, while Laurentian needs to lose all four.

Laurentian can only gain two points at the most, which would mean the Lakers would need to run the table and win all four games.

The math is important to Nipissing, but playing well and taking care of their business is the goal, the rest will have to fall into place fi they are to advance to the post-season for yet another year – the eighth straight season.

Keys to Victory
The Lakers have struggled to score all season, but defensively they have been pretty steady. Aside from a few of the top teams, the Lakers are mid-pack in the goals against department.

Both Brock and York have surpassed the 70-goal plateau, which isn't overly high, but does prove they can fill the net.

Brock has allowed a whopping 91 goals, so expect a track meet there, while York has only given up 51.

Basically, the key to winning a pair of games this weekend for the Lakers will be to play their game and avoid falling into Brock and York's style of game.

Players to Watch
Lakers goalies – Jeremy Pominville was great Saturday night and Nipissing has had times of brilliance in net, but has been a little inconsistent in goal. The key to wins this weekend will be between the pipes for Nipissing, no matter if it's Pominville,
Domenic Graham or Talor Joseph.

Erik Robichaud – The slick, speedy forward hasn't been bad this year, but hasn't filled the net like he has in past seasons. With just two goals on the board this year, if Robichaud plans to breakout, this weekend would be a good time to do it. And he's
capable, so it's just a matter of making it happen.