All-star breaks can be devastating momentum stoppers for winning teams or godsends for ones on the ropes. As the league takes a week off for the ECHL All-Star Game, the Augusta Lynx welcome the time off with open arms.

"It probably did hit at a good time for us," Lynx head coach Bob Ferguson said. "The break came at a time where we needed a fresh start -- not from a physical standpoint, but mentally it came at a perfect time for us."

The Lynx (21-17-3) are at the midway point of a six-game road trip that has seen them lose three in a row. They've come close in two of those three games.

Friday's loss in Charlotte was by a single goal. In the 2-0 loss at South Carolina the next night, the Stingrays scored an empty-net goal in the final six seconds.

"A week ago, I was pleading for more offense, and we got it. We had a fairly good homestretch," Ferguson said. "We were playing solid defense, but we've kind of unraveled a little bit defensively, and now we've stopped scoring goals again. I saw signs Saturday night in South Carolina of a little bit more of a team game."

Ferguson said his team will take most of the week off before reconvening with a practice on Thursday. The Lynx will hit the road again for a Friday night game in Charlotte.

AUGUSTA ALL-STARS: Three skaters associated with the Lynx were selected to play in the ECHL All-Star game on Wednesday, but only one will represent Augusta.

- Aaron Slattengren was voted in, but his stellar play over the weekend will cause him to miss the contest. The AHL's Providence Bruins decided Slattengren was too valuable to let go after the former Lynx forward had two goals and three assists in three wins for the Bruins.

- Defenseman Brian Yandle earned a spot on the all-star roster -- as a member of the Phoenix Roadrunners. Yandle was selected to the all-star game in December, but he was traded to Augusta in January.

- Adrian Veideman will be the only skater representing the Lynx. Before moving up to the AHL's Portland Pirates on Jan. 11, Veideman led all defensemen with four goals and 19 assists for the Lynx.

STANDINGS: With three losses in a row, the Lynx have fallen to fifth place in the ECHL's South Division.

Texas (65 points) tops the standings, while South Carolina (52), Gwinnett (50) and Florida (49) follow. Seventeen of the Lynx's (45) next 22 games will be against those top four teams.

UPCOMING: The Lynx will play at Charlotte on Friday, at Gwinnett a week from today and at South Carolina on Thursday to wrap up a six-game road trip before returning to Augusta for a pair of home games Feb. 1 and 2.

Reach Billy Byler at (803) 648-1395 or billy.byler@augustachronicle.com.