The Spokane Chiefs dropped their second consecutive 4-0 game to the Seattle Thunderbirds on Friday night. That makes Spokane 0-5-2-0 against Seattle this year (or 7-0 from the Thunderbirds' point of view, counting two overtime wins). Spokane hasn't defeated Seattle or Portland in seven tries against both, so here's a plan that may work for the Chiefs with postseason in mind. If Seattle could pass Victoria into third place in the Western Conference (the Thunderbirds are currently one point back), and all other places remain the same, Spokane as the fifth seed would open playoffs against No. 4 Victoria. The Chiefs finished 3-1 against Victoria in their regular-season series. That series winner would presumably play top-seeded Kelowna in the second round, but Spokane is 2-0 against the Rockets heading in to Wednesday's home game. The Chiefs could potentially avoid Seattle or Portland until the conference finals. At least, that's one way of looking at the future. There are still five-plus weeks left in the regular season. Read story

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