GRANBY, Québec – With the playoffs beginning in less than two months, you can expect a lot of action in the never quiet Ligue nord-américaine de hockey in the next weeks. Especially with a standing that is so close, two points separating the first place Trois-Rivières Caron et Guay and the Saguenay Marquis and the Sherbrooke Saint-François, who are tied in third place.

Here are nine things to watch in the LNAH:

-       The Rivière-du-Loup CIMT has some good players but the team just can’t win two games in a row. Also, the building is empty. Coach Jean-François Béliveau is on the hot seat.

-       Playing in a brand new 3000 seats arena, the CIMT can’t draw 1000 fans. Will Rivière-du-Loup, with owners losing a lot of money, finish the season?

-   At 40, Saint-Georges’ Jesse Bélanger is the third best scorer of the LNAH with 47 points in 30 games. With 14 games to play, can the former NHLer challenge league leader, Trois-Rivières’ Simon Laliberté, who has eight more points?

-       Who will be the number one goaltender in Sherbrooke at the beginning of the playoffs?  Both Maxime Daigneault and Louis Ménard had tough times recently.

-       The Pont-Rouge Lois Jeans is playing a lot better recently. Last weekend, Pont-Rouge took three points out of four from number one team Trois-Rivières. Can this club save his season?

-       They say tough guy Joël Thériault has a very positive influence in the dressing room of Pont-Rouge. The guy can play good hockey at the blue line too. Let’s see if Thériault can stay out of trouble and continue to be a plus for his new team.   

-       Saint-Georges is in the race for first place, a surprise to many. People in the Beauce region are proud people and, suddenly, they dream about a championship. Will owner Jean-Paul Blais take money from his pocket to bring an ECHL player or a guy from Europe who can make the difference in Saint-Georges?

-       The LNAH offer probably his best hockey ever, but draw less fans than ever too. Will hockey fans “buy” the new LNAH, the one with more good hockey players than ever in each line up, the one which lets good skaters skate and the one that doesn’t permit enforcers to be the stars?

-       Will the LNAH team owners have the patience to let hockey fans “discover” the new LNAH? Because it would be too bad to turn back time…

Contact Michel.Tasse@prohockeynews.com