Australian Ice Hockey League playoffs countdown The intriguing race to the AIHL playoffs features many clashes worthy of finals, and wildly varying schedules for the contenders. Team. Points. Maximum Possible Points. Most pessimistic minimum points. Sydney Ice Dogs 49, 61, 55 Road holds no fears The long-time league-leaders get a week off before a crucial road trip to Melbourne, where they play both playoff prospects. They play the bottom two sides in their last two games, so should be assured of a minimum of 55 points, which should be enough to ensure a playoff berth. But possessing the league's best goalie Anthony Kimlin, having maintained such consistent form all season, and coming off a win over the North Stars on the road, they will fear no club in the run home and could go unbeaten, despite playing only one game out of four at home. Newcastle North Stars 45 60 48 Melbourne, in all its guises, is the enemy in August There appears no need for panic in Newcastle despite a moderate 3-3-1-0 record in their last seven games. They have come up short against Thunder, Mustangs and Ice Dogs in tight contests, but usually head the shots count, and are rarely more than a goal from any opponent. Faces a very tough last month, with only one game against a bottom two team, and four against Ice and the Mustangs, but two of those are at home. Melbourne Ice 42 63 45 Can the triple champs keep calm and find the net? For so long, Ice have appeared to be the sleeping giant of 2013. With games in hand, and monstering lower-ranked teams, the triple champs looked poised to unleash their power against playoff rivals and storm to the top of the standings. However, since the start of May, Ice have won only three of eight games against the top six. Now they face three games in a week, two on the road. One is against Newcastle, who they are yet to beat this season, anywhere. Another is against the red-hot Mustangs. All this with key defenceman Todd Graham overseas, and the Hughes brothers permanently removed. They have often led in their losses, and have usually out-shot their opponents. All four goals in their landmark 2-4 loss to the Mustangs were on the powerplay, and twice they rattled the ironwork. The time for blaming bad luck, penalties, and absentees is gone. If Ice are going to contend this season, they have to find their championship qualities now. Ice captain Jason Baclig gets close attention from the Mustangs. Melbourne Mustangs 41 56 44 The hot streak must continue The Mustangs are growing at a rate that is off the chart. Modestly hopeful of a playoff berth at the outset, there must be a renewed focus on making sure the ground gained by the rapid rise is not lost after the euphoria of defeating rink-mates Ice for the first time. Five wins, a shootout win and a shootout loss from their past seven games is unmatched momentum. It must be carried through a tough final five games. First up, they get Ice off a road trip next Thursday, when they will be well-rested after a weekend off. Three of their final five are against the top two on home ice. They are likely to need at least three wins to head off Perth, but other opportunities may arise if they help contribute to the August downfall of other highly-ranked teams. Mustangs goalie Jon Olthius was man of the match against Ice. Perth Thunder 36 54 48 The ultimate 'season-defining' road trip this weekend Beat Adelaide twice. In Adelaide. It is the tough, and simple equation for the resurgent and well-rested Thunder. With four games left against the bottom two after those assignements in the city of churches, they should finish on at least 48 points. Push that to 51, or 54 points, and they are asking tough questions of their rivals higher up the standings. The previous two meetings between Perth and Adelaide offer few clues - the 7-6 and 8-6 Thunder wins came when they had three different imports, and a less secure goalie, and the Adrenaline had the free-scoring Ouelette brothers. Adelaide Adrenaline 34 46 34 Good enough to beat the best, they must now do it four times in a row Adrenaline remains a 'mathematical chance' to make the playoffs, if they win all four remaining games - all at home - but they are all tough affairs, against fellow title aspirants Perth and Melbourne. They would need to find a consistency that has eluded them so far during a frustrating season. Sydney Bears 19 Remain capable of an upset that could define the standings. Ice would be far from cocky about meeting them this Sunday after a tense battle at the Icehouse in July. Canberra Knights 7 The Knights have rebounded manfully from a horror patch mid-season, and all but won their first game in months at the weekend, conceding the final three goals to go down 2-3 to the Bears at home. Play their last four games at home and will be looking to reward their local fans with a win. If they pull off such an upset, it is likely to have major ramifications for the playoff battle. Betstar AIHL market Betstar's Alan Eskander is trusting the standings in framing his AIHL title market. But the Sydney Ice Dogs have had such a strong season so far and as a result we've seen them firm into $3 favourites, while the Ice have drifted slightly out to $4. The top four is by no means set but we really believe it's a three horse race between the Ice, Ice Dogs and North Stars. The final spot in the four is really up for grabs with the Mustangs, Thunder and even Adelaide a chance to make play-offs. Melbourne Ice certainly have their work cut out for them if they want to add to their silverware. They will have home advantage on the ice with the finals to be played at the Melbourne Icehouse but I think the Ice Dogs are going to be hard to beat. They are a tougher, grittier team this season.