MARCH 11 MFMHL PLAYOFF UPDATE

MFMHL FINAL TEAMS SET

The MFMHL Playoffs are set to go to the next round:

Western Division #1 Pembina Valley Hawks vs. Eastern Division #1 Winnipeg Ice

The top 2 teams in the MFMHL regular season have made their way into the final. The Pembina Valley Hawks 18-1-1 during the regular season and 6-0 during the playoffs will look to defend their MFMHL title vs. the Winnipeg Avros 16-3-1 regular season and 5-1 in the playoffs. The Hawks have an over all record of 43-9-8 while the Avros sport a 35-12-2 record for the season. The 2 teams only hooked up twice during the season both being MFMHL games and split the series with Hawks winning 4-2 while the Avros countered with a 3-2 win.

Both teams have the ability to put the puck in the net as the Hawks scored 230 times during the season while the Avros have notched 227 goals. The two teams also have solid defense with the Hawks only allowing 107 goals while the Avros have kept their opponents to 104 goals against this season.

Key players to watch during the series will be:

Pembina Valley Hawks

Jessica Kaminsky - Hawks' leading scorer and the MFMHL regular season scoring champion. Kaminsky, a 3rd year midget, has both the ability to score and be the play maker as she amassed 52 goals and 54 assists this season. Returning from injury after missing the 1st round of the playoffs this provides the Hawks with a huge boost.

Madison Hutchinson - Hutchinson leads the Hawks in assists with 56 and is one of the top defense in the MFMHL. Hutchinson is key to the Hawks success on the powerplay and will be expected to carry large minutes vs. the Avros top offensive players.

Cassidy Carels - Carels scored 49 goals this season and often this was playing against the other teams top lines. A solid 2-way player that the Hawks will need to continue to play at her best if they hope to repeat.

Brittni Mowat - One of the top goalies in the MFMHL the Hawks will need Mowat to be at her best against an offensively talented Avros team. Mowat has the ability to steal a game for her team and is carrying a .931 save % and goals againts average of 2.02 for the season.

The Hawks will also require Rookie Lauryn Keen (51 goals)and veteran Chelsea VanDeynze (51 points) to provide needed secondary offesnse.

Winnipeg Avros

Cassandra Jorgenson - Jorgenson a 3rd year midget is the Avros top offensive player and she will need to be at her best for the Avros to win the MFMHL Title. Jorgenson has 49 goals for the season however only notched one in the series Westman, the Avros will need more from her vs. the Hawks.

Vanessa Klimpke - Klimpke a 3rd year midget has scored 43 goals to date for the Avros and has 7 goals in 7 playoff games and a total of 15 points over those games. Klimpke is going to have to maintain this solid play to go along with her tenacious physical play for the Avros to earn the MFMHL Title.

Jocelyn Plouffe and Tori Spencer - Ploufe and Spencer 2 graduating defense will have to lead their team defensively in stopping the Hawks best players. Both Ploufe and Spencer will need to be at the top of their game and provide leadership from the backend for the Avros to be successful vs. the Hawks.

Amanda Schubert - Schubert a 3rd year goalie for the Avros will have to be at her best vs. the Hawks. For the season Schubert is sporting a save % of .913 and a goals against of 2.05. Schubert has the same ability as Mowat for the Hawks in her ability to steal a game for her team and may have to in this series.

The Avros will need secondary players such as Nicole Carswell (25 goals) and Katie Zacharias (31 goals- hat-trick vs. Westman in playoffs) to step up and provide depth in scoring.

Summary - The MFMHL Final is shaping up to possibly be the best in the history of the league. The 2 teams involved are both well coached and have abilities on both sides of the puck. This series could easily go 4 to 5 games and has the potential to be an exciting matchup with the talent on both squads leading to wide open hockey. The Hawks have the experience of knowing how to win the Province while the Avros have more 3rd year veterans looking to win a championship. This series is a toss up and well worth watching -