Tips are in, still eyeing seventh

Everett clinched a playoff spot last night -- or should I say the Tips had a playoff spot clinched for them. Everett lost 4-1 at Victoria, but Prince George's 5-2 defeat at Kamloops assured Everett extended its streak of making the playoffs in every season of existence to 10.

The Tips still have something to play for. Everett trails Seattle by three points and still has a chance to sneak into seventh. The Tips have two games remaining, home games against Victoria tonight and Tri-City on Sunday. Seattle has one game remaining, at home tonight against Portland.

Seventh is a real possibility for Everett. Seattle will be a prohibitive underdog against Portland. Meanwhile, Everett has two winnable games remaining against teams with nothing left to play for.

The difference between finishing seventh and eighth is significant. The team that finishes eighth gets a date with Scotty Munro Trophy winner Portland in the first round. The team that finishes seventh faces B.C. Division champ Kelowna. Neither is an easy task, but you can bet teams would like to avoid the Winterhawks.