In the South Eastern Manitoba Hockey League tonight, Portage Islanders are on the road, taking on Warren Mercs.

The Isles are 6-and-5 on the season, and hold down fourth spot in the standings.

They're facing a team that was beaten 9-2 by Carman last Tuesday night, and player-coach Anders Strome expects that'll be a factor tonight.

"That's a tough loss, but this time of year, especially around the holidays, teams can be short-handed, and it can really make a big impact on the outcome of the game. We've seen Warren twice now. The first game they beat us pretty good, and we beat them, so we can't take them lightly. We've got to be ready to play, and assume they'll have a strong line-up tonight."

The Islanders are on a five-game winning streak, and Strome hopes to keep that going.

"The team's feeling positive. We're starting to come together, doing a lot more things right than we were at the start of the year. And a lot of that is just chemistry, guys getting used to playing with each other. So we're excited about this game, and looking to keep that streak going."

Game time's 8 o'clock in Warren.