Big series ahead: ’Hounds will host first-place ’Kings

The SteelHounds, currently in second place, can take first place by winning both games.

YOUNGSTOWN — The Youngstown SteelHounds find themselves in an odd predicament going into this weekend’s home series against the Mississippi RiverKings on Friday and Saturday nights starting at 7:05.

They are not atop the Northeast Division for the first time this season. The Hounds went 0-2-0 on their latest road trip falling to the Tulsa Oilers and the Bossier-Shreveport Mudbugs, giving the RiverKings the opportunity to slide into first place.

The Hounds (17-8-1, 35 points) are tied for second place with the Mudbugs in the division. The RiverKings have won six straight games and now sit alone in first at 18-6-1 (37 points).

The Hounds, who started the season 12-1-1, are 5-7-0 in their last 12 games including three straight losses on the road. One of the issues for Youngstown is their power play which has only registered one goal in its last 21 opportunities on the man advantage. It will be difficult to get the power play going against a Mississippi squad that boasts the best penalty kill in the Central Hockey League at 89.9 percent.

Another problem for the SteelHounds has been their lack of scoring. In their first 14 games they outscored opponents 51-32. In their last 12 games the opponents have outscored Youngstown 44-39. These two teams have already met four times this season with both teams winning a pair of games. All four tilts were played in Mississippi though. These two division rivals will meet a total of 11 times this season.

Youngstown will look for a couple of veterans to stay hot as forward Jason Baird is currently on a 10-game point streak while Joel Irving is on a six-game point streak of his own.

Baird, 27, was traded to Youngstown from the Corpus Christi Rayz on November 16th. He has seven goals and eight assists in 13 games as a Hound with 13 of his 15 points coming on his current streak that began on November 30th.

Irving, 31, is a 10th year pro who has had a goal and seven assists while on his streak. He has an assist in each of his last four contests. Irving is second on the team in assists with 18 and fourth in points with 27 for the year.

“It seems like every game is a playoff game,” said Coach Kevin Kaminski. “You can’t afford to take a shift off, never mind a period.”

Kaminski sees this weekend as must-win.

“This weekend is huge for us because we are back at home with our fans behind us,” he said. “We have to start being more consistent and hungry for 60 minutes. We have to start with a smarter work ethic and not take undisciplined or lazy penalties. We need to be hungrier to score goals.

“This is a big weekend to see what were made of.”

If the Hounds sweep the RiverKings in both games it will give them sole possession of first place in the Northeast Division.