The Nipissing Lakers men's hockey team's playoff hopes took a hit Tuesday morning in Sudbury.

Trailing the Laurentian Voyageurs by one point for the final spot, the Lakers came up short, losing 4-2 to the Vees, placing them three points out of eighth with two games remaining.

The Lakers fell behind in the first period and couldn't recover, pushing late, but falling short after 60 minutes.

Laurentian got the ball rolling with a goal just before the midway point of the first period, sending the home team to the first intermission up by one.

Two more goals in the middle frame put Laurentian up 3-0 after 40 minutes and had the Lakers in a big hole.

Less than five minutes into the third period, a shorthanded goal put the Voyageurs up by four, all but sealing the game.

The Lakers got two back late in the game.

Lucas Brown scored shorthanded with just under two minutes to go and Colin Campbell scored with 10 seconds left.

Kylor Wall and Matt Paul picked up assists on Campbell's goal, while Brown's was unassisted.

The comeback bid came too late for Nipissing, as they now need two win and two Laurentian losses to earn a spot in the OUA Playoffs.

Brent Moran finished with 30 saves in net, while the Lakers pushed 31 shots at the Voyageurs net.

Nipissing remains on the road to face Ottawa Saturday and RMC Sunday to close out the regular season.