First Round Set

The United States Hockey League announced the schedule for the first round of the 2011 Clark Cup Playoffs.

It came down to the final day of the 480-game regular season schedule to determine playoff positions, but at the end of Saturday night, four matchups had been set for the first round.

The Anderson Cup champion Cedar Rapids RoughRiders will be joined by the Green Bay Gamblers as teams that have earned a bye in the Eastern Conference for the first round. In the Western Conference, the Dubuque Fighting Saints also advance to the second round and the Omaha Lancers earned a win on the final game of the season over the Sioux Falls Stampede to move above the Stampede and earn a first-round bye.

The Waterloo Black Hawks officially secured their postseason berth with a victory in their final regular season contest. The Fargo Force and Lincoln Stars finished with the same amount of points in the standings, but the Force hold the tiebreaker of winning the season series against the Stars to claim the fourth seed.

In the USHL's new expanded playoff format, a best-of-three series will take place in the first round between the #3 and #6 seeds in addition to a matchup between the #4 and #5 seeds. The higher seed will be the host for the duration of the first round games. The winner of each series will advance to the second round which will be re-seeded, ensuring that the highest seed will always play against the lowest remaining seed.

USHL Clark Cup Playoffs – First Round

Eastern Conference

Indiana Ice (#3) vs. Waterloo Black Hawks (#6)

Game 1: Thursday, April 14th, 7:05 PM – Waterloo @ Indiana

Game 2: Friday, April 15th, 7:05 PM – Waterloo @ Indiana

Game 3: Sunday, April 17th, 3:05 PM – Waterloo @ Indiana**

All games played at the Pepsi Coliseum in Indianapolis, Indiana



Team USA (#4) vs. Muskegon Lumberjacks (#5)

Game 1: Friday, April 15th, 7:00 PM – Muskegon @ Team USA

Game 2: Saturday, April 16th, 7:00 PM – Muskegon @ Team USA

Game 3: Sunday, April 17th, 3:00 PM – Muskegon @ Team USA**

All games played at the Ann Arbor Ice Cube in Ann Arbor, Michigan



Western Conference

Sioux Falls Stampede (#3) vs. Sioux City Musketeers (#6)

Game 1: Wednesday, April 13th, 7:05 PM – Sioux City @ Sioux Falls

Game 2: Thursday, April 14th, 7:05 PM – Sioux City @ Sioux Falls

Game 3: Sunday, April 17th, 6:05 PM – Sioux City @ Sioux Falls**

All games played at the Sioux Falls Arena in Sioux Falls, South Dakota



Fargo Force (#4) vs. Lincoln Stars (#5)

Game 1: Friday, April 15th, 7:35 PM – Lincoln @ Fargo

Game 2: Saturday, April 16th, 7:05 PM – Lincoln @ Fargo

Game 3: Sunday, April 17th, 5:05 PM – Lincoln @ Fargo**

All games played at the Scheels Arena in Fargo, North Dakota


** if necessary

(all times reflect local start time)


Headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, the USHL celebrates its ninth season as the nation's only Tier I junior hockey league in 2010-11. With over 250 players this season already committed to NCAA Division I schools and 18 NHL Entry Draft picks currently on League rosters, the USHL is the nation's foremost producer of junior hockey talent. For more information, visit us on the web at http://www.ushl.com/.

It's not just hockey. It's the USHL.