The Austin boys hockey team picked up too many penalties in an 8-1 loss to Mankato West in the Packers’ last regular season home game in Riverside Arena Thursday.

The Scarlets (8-12-1 overall, 4-7 Big Nine) scored five power plays out of nine attempts on the night and they scored four times in the third period to put it away.

“If you take away those penalties we’re right in it at the end,” Austin head coach Tim Peterson said. “We’re coming down to the wire here, but if we play like we did tonight, we’ll be on the road for the playoffs, and I’d rather be at home.”

Austin (8-13 overall, 1-9 Big Nine) can lock up a home playoff game by beating La Crescent and Albert Lea and they have a possibility of a home playoff game if they win one of those two contests.

The Packers tied the game at one at the end of the first period when Isaac Gorman knocked a breakaway shot into the corner of the net on a power play with 1:56 left in the period.

However, the Scarlets scored twice in the last minute of the period on a put-back by Aaron Umhoefer and a breakaway by Landon Brown.

“That was unfortunate but we were still right in after that,” Peterson said.

West, which out-shot Austin 52-24, scored once in the second period to make it 4-1.

Mankato West 3 1 4 — 8

Austin 1 0 0 — 1

First period

(M) 4:22 Nate Olsen (Jace Leiferman)

(A) 15:04 Isaac Gorman (Marcus Stoulil) (PP)

(M) 16:11 Aaron Umhoefer (Leiferman, Nate Jose) (PP)

(M) 16:36 Landon Brown (Olsen, Tyler Nelson)

Second period

(M) 11:04 Olsen (Tyler Resner, Matt Campbell) (PP)

Third period

(M) 3:52 Resner (Olsen)

(M) 5:28 Jose (Umhoefer, Josh Christenson)

(M) 10:55 Jose (Campbell, Leiferman) (PP)

(M) 13:11 Landon Brown (Resner, Sieberg) (PP)

Shots on goal: Austin — 24; Mankato West — 52

Power plays: Austin — 1-for-3; Mankato West — 5-for-9