Playoff race shaping up

Michael Hawkins/Saint John Sea Dogs

MONCTON - Greetings from Moncton, where two of the top-ranked teams in the Canadian Hockey League – the Wildcats and Rimouski Oceanic – meet this evening in a highly anticipated matchup.

While those two squads sit comfortably in the top half of the QMJHL standings, it's the bottom where things are getting interesting.

With the Saint John Sea Dogs losing Thursday and Friday and the Halifax Mooseheads winning both nights, the two Maritimes Division foes are now tied with 36 points each. Saint John has played one less game.

The Sea Dogs and Mooseheads meet Sunday afternoon in Halifax. Including Sunday's game, the Sea Dogs and Mooseheads will meet four times before the regular season ends.

The top 16 teams in the overall standings qualify for the playoffs. Saint John and Halifax still sit five points up on the 17th-place Gatineau Olympiques – a decently sized lead but certainly not a comfortable one with 20ish games to go.

It's been quite a tumble for the Sea Dogs in the second half, who had a .500 record at the Christmas break and sat 11th overall – eight points up on the 17th-placed team.

Saint John is 2-9-0-0 in the second half. Both of their wins have come in overtime, including one against the Mooseheads on Jan. 11.

The Sea Dogs made the playoffs last season, finishing 16th with a 20-39-5-4 record. They were swept in the opening round by the eventual champion Drummondville Voltigeurs.