CEDAR RAPIDS - The Waterloo Black Hawks are sitting in the driver's seat.

With a 2-0 lead in their best-of-five, first-round Clark Cup playoff series with the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders, the Black Hawks should feel good.

But being in the driver's seat and arriving at the desired destination - the second round of the United States Hockey League postseason - is not as easy as it sounds.

The Black Hawks will look to eliminate the RoughRiders tonight at the Cedar Rapids Ice Arena, but Waterloo head coach P.K. O'Handley expects to see a motivated opponent, not one that is already defeated.

"They are playing to continue their season now, and they don't want to go home as much as we don't want to," O'Handley said. "They are going to play desperate. We have to match or exceed their desperation. Otherwise, we are going to find out what it feels like to go home."

Waterloo was 1-3-0 at the Cedar Rapids Ice Arena during the regular season, with its three losses by a combined score of 15-6.

The Black Hawks haven't handled the RoughRiders' smaller, NHL-sized ice sheet, where there is less space to manuever and the action at times is faster and in tighter quarters than it is on Waterloo's Olympic-sized ice.

But the keys to winning the game don't change.

"In our games there this season, we turned the puck over way too much," said O'Handley. "That has been a key and will be a key Wednesday. Our players need to limit turnovers.

"Cedar Rapids is going to try to take the puck away, force turnovers, and the bottom line is they have players who can capitalize on those turnovers."

The Black Hawks will go with Matt DiGirolamo in net again Wednesday. He started the first two games and recorded a shutout in Game 2 with 20 saves.

"We're used to them coming back on us … they don't give in," DiGirolamo said. "We've got to be ready for that. They are going to come at us with everything they have."

Waterloo is expecting to get an additional boost from Finnish forward Siim Liivik, who is expected to return after missing the first two playoff games with an undisclosed injury.

The 6-foot-2, 185-pound Liivik is one of nine players for Waterloo to score more than 10 goals during the regular season. Liivik had 11 goals and six assists in 44 games.

"We haven't decided whether we will shake up the lineup or not," O'Handley said. "We're anticipating the return of some guys."

If Cedar Rapids wins, Game 4 will be Friday at Cedar Rapids.

Contact Jim Nelson at (319) 291-1521 or jim.nelson@wcfcourier.com