The Colorado Mammoth's stellar season has come to a screeching halt.

But an opponent is not responsible for this development. The National Lacrosse League schedule-maker is.

The Mammoth improved to 9-1 on Feb. 24 with a 13-7 home win against the Portland LumberJax and has been idle ever since. Colorado's 20-day inactive streak concludes tonight when it takes on the Toronto Rock at the Air Canada Centre (5:30 MST).

The Mammoth has been sitting on a five-game winning streak through the hiatus, which included the NLL All- Star Game on March 10, and is hoping to have maintained some momentum entering its game tonight.

"I'm not too concerned, because I have faith in my teammates that they kept in shape and are prepared for the game," said forward Gavin Prout, one of five Mammoth players who played in the All-Star Game. "I think the break was good for some of us who had to catch back up with our jobs and families, but three weeks is a bit long."

One thing that did not change during the layoff was Colorado's position in the standings. The Mammoth holds a 2 1/2-game lead on the second-place Arizona Sting (6-3) in the West Division.

"It is tough taking a break any time while we, as a team, are playing well," goaltender Gee Nash said. "But most teams have these types of layoffs during the season. We are in a bit of a rhythm right now, and we were able to get there by playing together so much at the beginning of the season."

The schedule-makers might have done Colorado a favor on one front. Toronto, 4-5 entering Friday, played at Edmonton on Friday night and returned home early this morning. So while Colorado might be rusty, Toronto will be weary. Nash surmised a break now is better than one late in the season, because the Mammoth now has an abundance of time to sharpen for the postseason.

For now, the Colorado players will try to reacquaint with one another without having to use name tags.

"Only time will tell if the break helped or hurt us, but I hope to remain rolling as well as when we left off," Prout said.