Although the Wolves finished fifth overall, they were first in the Western Conference and will have home-ice advantage against their opponents in the first round. The Eastern Conference looks like it will be dominated by the Grand Rapids Griffins, who were the best team in the IHL this year. The Turner Cup finals could very well end up being a rematch of last year another Chicago-Grand Rapids series. Also, the Wolves will not have home-ice advantage should they make it to the finals. Here are my predictions for the first round of the IHL playoffs.
All series are best of seven, and the first team listed in each pairing has home-ice advantage.
The Griffins are by far the best team in the IHL, finishing with 113 points, and scoring the most goals during the regular season. Griffins forward Derek King led the league with 83 points, and goalie Mike Fountain had the most wins with 34. While the Lumberjacks record wasn t as good, they still may have a chance. This series could go either way, but Grand Rapids is the better team, both offensively and defensively. The Lumberjacks will put up a fight, though.