As the ECHL regular season winds down to the final three weeks, it’s as good of a time as ever to examine the playoff races in each division and which games you’ll want to make sure to check out on FloHockey. 

The Kelly Cup Playoffs get underway April 19, and while some teams already clinched their spots, here’s a division-by-division look at the race to get into the postseason, with some of them surely set to go all the way down to the wire.

All information is accurate as of the start of play on Wednesday.

NORTH

Clinched: Newfoundland Growlers, 88 points
Likely In: Reading Royals (78), Maine Mariners (75)
Bubble: Worcester Railers (67), Adirondack Thunder (64)
Eliminated/Close To It: Trois-Rivieres Lions (51), Norfolk Admirals (41)

Analysis/Key Games This Week: The race is between the once-powerhouse Railers and the Thunder, with Adirondack having rattled off eight straight games without a regulation loss to cut the gap to just three points.

Furthermore, the Thunder have two games in hand on Worcester and would seem to have the momentum heading into this week.

However, five of their final nine games are against Worcester, including back-to-back games there this weekend.

Don’t miss Thunder visiting the Railers on Friday at 7:05 p.m. Eastern, and the rematch at the same time Saturday.

SOUTH

Clinched: None
Likely In: Greenville Swamp Rabbits (80), South Carolina Stingrays (79), Jacksonville Icemen (78)
Bubble: Florida Everblades (76), Atlanta Gladiators (71), Orlando Solar Bears (68)
Eliminated/Close To It: Savannah Ghost Pirates (56)

Analysis/Key Games This Week: From 1-6, it’s a tight race in the South, with the race for both the division title and the final berth both likely up for grabs until the final weekend of the season.

Though Greenville, South Carolina and Jacksonville all are listed as likely in, that certainly could change, if one of them should falter and one of the bubble teams should get hot.

As you might imagine, there are plenty of games to keep an eye on this week in a race that’s this tight at both the top and the bottom.

Most notable, however, are two matchups between the current fourth seed and the team chasing closely.

Atlanta hosts Florida for a three-games this week, with the first two taking place Wednesday and Saturday at 7 p.m. and the finale set for Sunday at 3 p.m.

CENTRAL

Clinched: Cincinnati Cyclones (95), Toledo Walleye (91), Indy Fuel (80)
Likely In: Fort Wayne Komets (71)
Bubble: None
Eliminated/Close To It: Wheeling Nailers (57), Kalamazoo Wings (54), Iowa Heartlanders (48)

Analysis/Key Games This Week: The postseason race in the top-heavy Central is pretty much set, with Cincinnati, Toledo, Indy and Fort Wayne all but surely in as the four teams to advance to this year’s Kelly Cup Playoffs.

Now 14 points back with only eight games left on their schedule, Wheeling essentially would need to win out to have even the slightest chance of somehow unseating the Komets.

With that said, the shift focuses to the division title and home ice in the first two rounds. 

By virtue of somehow rattling off 21 straight games without a regulation loss, the Cyclones hold a four-point lead over Toledo.

MOUNTAIN

Clinched: Idaho Steelheads (105)
Likely In: None
Bubble: Kansas City Mavericks (66), Wichita Thunder (66), Allen Americans (62), Utah Grizzlies (61), Rapid City Rush (61)
Eliminated/Close To It: Tulsa Oilers (48)

Analysis/Key Games This Week: It’s Idaho and everyone else in the Mountain, with the Steelheads already having clinched the division title long ago. A Brabham Cup as regular season champions is next in line.

Past that, however, the final three spots are up for grabs, with only the Oilers fully eliminated from playoff contention.

There are, of course, plenty of critical games for the five teams battling for the final three spots, but perhaps none more important than a three-game slate for Allen in Rapid City.  

A true three-in-three, those contests are all set for 9:05 p.m. local time, starting Thursday, and like all ECHL action, it can be seen exclusively on FloHockey.