After enjoying a weekend of rest and relaxation, the Minnesota Wilderness return to game action this weekend with two contests at the Springfield Jr. Blues.
Minnesota arrives with a 2026 playoff spot secured after clinching a return to the post-season last weekend after the Anchorage Wolverines fell to the Fairbanks Ice Dogs on Friday night. The Wilderness (35-9-4) are now shooting to nail down first place in the Midwest Division, which they currently lead by 11 points over second place Fairbanks.
This weekend marks a rematch of a series from two weeks ago (Feb. 27-28), when Minnesota made its first trip to Springfield (25-19-5) for the 2025-26 season. That weekend, the Wilderness swept the Jr. Blues, winning by scores of 3-2 and 4-1.
Minnesota is 4-0 in the season series vs. Springfield. The pair opened the campaign with two games in Cloquet which the Wilderness triumphed 4-2 and 6-2.
Overall, the Wilderness have won three straight games.
Last weekend (March 6-7), the Jr. Blues split a weekend series at the Wisconsin Windigo. Springfield was victorious Friday in a shootout, 4-3. The Windigo countered with its own 4-3 win in regulation Saturday.
The contests this weekend will be at the Nelson Center in Springfield, IL. Friday night’s game is set for a 7:05 p.m. puck drop, while Saturday, the teams will start at 6:05 p.m.
Wilderness Birthday: March 14 – Valdemar Andersen (21)
Media: Watch all games on NAHLTV.com.
Tale of the Tape
| Team | GF | GA | PP | PK |
| Wilderness | 207 (4.31 GFPG) | 118 (2.46 GAPG) | 37 for 186 (19.9%) | 32 for 185 (82.7%) |
| Springfield | 152 (3.1 GFPG) | 146 (2.98 GAPG) | 43 for 210 (20.5%) | 27 for 167 (83.8%) |
Midwest Division standings
| Place | Team | Games Played | Points | This week’s opponent (all games Fri./Sat. unless otherwise noted) |
| 1 | x-Wilderness | 48 | 74 | 2 @ Springfield |
| 2 | Fairbanks | 51 | 63 | 2 @ Kenai River |
| 3 | Wisconsin | 49 | 60 | 2 @ Chippewa |
| 4 | Anchorage | 50 | 56 | 3 vs. Janesville (Fri., Sat., Sun.) |
| 5 | Springfield | 49 | 55 | 2 vs. Wilderness |
| 6 | Janesville | 47 | 45 | 3 @ Anchorage (Fri., Sat., Sun.) |
| 7 | Kenai River | 49 | 37 | 2 vs. Fairbanks |
| 8 | Chippewa | 49 | 21 | 2 vs. Wisconsin |
x=clinched playoff spot