The Rampage wrapped up the regular season on the weekend with a two game series against Smithers Steelheads, who used their twin wins of the doubleheader to secure their hold on the top spot in the CIHL West.
The Steelheads topped the Rampage 8-6 on Saturday, following it up with a 9-4 victory on Sunday afternoon to head into the playoffs at the top of the pack in the division and setting the stage for their opening round playoff series with the Kitimat Ice Demons.
And while two road losses may not be the best way to head towards the playoffs, the Rampage really had little to gain in the standings, so could make use of the high level of competition provided by the Steelheads to work on aspects of their game heading into the post season.
The Rampage offensive output has been picking up nicely as the final weeks of the season came on, so concentrating on some of their defensive play will most likely take up much of the practice time over the next eleven days leading to the playoff round puck drop.
Game One is set for 7 PM on January 30th at Jim Ciccone Civic Centre, with the Rampage looking to get the early jump on their Northwest rivals in the three game series.Game Two would be in Terrace on February 6th at 8:15 , while a Game Three, if required would take place on Sunday, February 7th at 4:30 PM also in Terrace.
Terrace is already focused on the first round, noting the boisterous nature of the Prince Rupert crowds and how they are heading into hostile territory on the 30th.
The Final standings of the regular season in the CIHL were as follows
East
Williams Lake Stampeders
Quesnel Kangaroos
Lac La Hache Tomahawks
West
Smithers Steelheads
Terrace River Kings
Prince Rupert Rampage
Kitiamt Ice Demons
You can follow more on the Rampage and their playoff travels from the team website, Facebook page and twitter feed.
For more background on the CIHL and past items from the 2016-17 season see our archive page here.
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