Ridha Leads Series 1-0

Tawakul dropped their first game of the season last week in a crucial game one playoff game to Ridha, after spanning 10 games without a loss. After holding a 2-1 lead in the first period, Tawakul failed to muster any consistent attack against Ridha and instead played out the majority of the game in their own zone.

Ridha is looking to continue their successful run on the back of their completely revamped defense led by star Gehad Alhundi along with Azeem Muhammad, Farrukh Khan and Waseem Kalair.

Tawakul meanwhile will be counting on speedster and leading scorer Yousuf Sowdagar to find a way to put Ridha on their heels.

Player to Watch:
Abdul-Wahab Mohammad had a strong game for Ridha and will look to continue leading the offense into the next round of the playoffs

Burning Questions:
How will Tawakul respond to their first defeat of the year?

Who’s Hot?
Abudl-Wahab Mohammad had two points last game and has posted 4 points in his past 3 games.

Zuhd leads series 1-0

Both of the top ranked teams, Haya and Tawakul, find themselves trailing in the series going into game two. Haya carried the handicap of not having played consistently the past few weeks due to a scheduling snafu (altered due to a snow storm).

Still, Haya needs to find a way to score. They enjoyed a tremendous amount of zone time, and healthy shot totals in the game, but failed to convert on any of their scoring chances.

Meanwhile, Zuhd has exhibited tremendous speed and transition even while playing with a short bench. With Salman Khalid, Yousuf Soliman and Arif Bijabhai using their wheels, Haya's defense has been backtracking.

Player to Watch:
Sadegh Rasoul is one of the only pure snipers on the team (along with his brother), and he will need to get on the scoreboard to get his team going.

Burning Questions:
Can Haya convert ball possession into goals?

Who’s Hot?
Yousuf Soliman had an unspectacular season with 8 points in 7 games (more was expected) but he scored last week, and I expect he's made for the playoffs.