ICEMEN (36-17-4, 76 points) at MAVERICKS (31-19-5, 67 points)
@ Independence Events Center, Face-off is 7:05 PM CT

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Season Series: Tonight marks the fifth of six meetings between the two Turner Conference clubs with the final match-up set for March 21 in Evansville.  So far this season, each team has won twice with the IceMen winning the first two meetings and the Mavs winning the most recent two contests.  Three of the four games have gone to OT/SO including each of the last two (Dec. 18, Jan. 24).  John-Scott Dickson and Josh Beaulieu have held the hot hands for their respective teams in the series with the Mavs Dickson scoring five times and Beaulieu scoring three times.  Missouri’s power play has clicked against the IceMen’s league-best penalty kill (86.1%) scoring five times in 16 chances (31%).  Evansville’s power play is just 1 for 11 against the Mavs PK.   

Last 10: Evansville 6-4-0; Missouri 5-4-1 

Need to Know: The IceMen’s current four-game slide is their longest losing streak this season and one area that has been noticeable in their losing stretch is their penalties taken.  The IceMen are third in the CHL averaging just under 21 minutes per game but over their last three contests, Evansville has taken 118 penalty minutes (39.3 minutes per game) including five misconducts or game misconducts (10 min).  

The Low Down: It is a huge game for both Turner Conference clubs but for different reasons as the IceMen’s nine point lead over Missouri for second place in the standings is seemingly safe enough.  Evansville is entangled in a battle with Fort Wayne for the #1 seed in the Turner with both teams tied at 76 points with nine games remaining for both clubs (Komets would win the tiebreaker).  The Mavs 67 points have them in third place but just one point ahead of the Rapid City Rush (66 points) and just three points from being out of the playoffs altogether as the fifth place Mallards have 64 points.  The last time out, the Mavs defeated Rapid City, 3-1, ending a four-game home losing streak.  Evansville is currently in the midst of a four-game losing streak.     

Players to Watch: Missouri rookie forward Kris Hogg has points in six straight games with four goals and three assists over that stretch.  Hogg has eight goals and seven assists on the season.  For the IceMen, rookie forward Malcolm Gwilliam has two goals and three helpers in his last five games.