There won’t be a blowout either way when the Kootenay Ice visit the Red Deer Rebels tonight.

That’s the prediction of Ice assistant coach Kris Knoblauch, who is expecting a close battle against Kootenay’s doppelganger.

“I’m expecting a one-goal game, because I think all of them have been against the Rebels this year,” he said. “Out of all the teams in the league, I think they resemble us the most. They work really hard, they use everybody. It’s going to be a tough-fought game.”

Both teams are .500 or above in the season series, with the Ice at 3-1-1 and Rebels at 2-2-0-1.

Red Deer won their first matchup 7-1 at home in September, while Kootenay took a 4-1 decision there in early November.

Since then, all three games in Cranbrook have been decided by just one goal.

Dustin Sylvester leads the season series with four goals and 11 points. Willie Coetzee is tops among Rebels with three goals and eight points.

The Ice clinched a playoff spot over the weekend, and sit in fourth place in the Eastern Conference with 83 points.

The Rebels are comfortably in sixth spot with 74 points, eight clear of seventh-place Swift Current.

With a win tonight, Red Deer would supplant the Medicine Hat Tigers in the standings.

NOTE — The Kootenay Ice magnetic schedules do not indicate where their March 5 and 6 games against Medicine Hat and Calgary will be played. In both instances, the games will be held at the Cranbrook Rec Plex.