Who: Minnesota Wilderness vs. Wisconsin Windigo
When: March 1-2, 7:15 p.m. CST both nights
Where: Northwoods Credit Union Arena, Cloquet, MN
The lead: Wilderness Hopes to Open March Like a Lion in Weekend Series vs. Windigo
Media: All of the action can be seen on nahltv.com.
Records: Wisconsin – 48 games, 31-11-6, 68 points; Minnesota – 48 games, 25-19-4, 54 points
Midwest Division Standings:
| Place | Team | Points | Games Played | This weekend’s opponent |
| 1 | Wisconsin | 68 | 48 | 2 games @ Wilderness |
| 2 | Janesville | 61 | 46 | Home/home vs. Chippewa |
| 3 | Anchorage | 60 | 45 | Home/home vs. Kenai River |
| 4 | Wilderness | 54 | 48 | 2 games vs. Wisconsin |
| 5 | Chippewa | 49 | 49 | Home/home vs. Janesville |
| 6 | Springfield | 38 | 45 | 2 games @ Fairbanks |
| 6 | Fairbanks | 38 | 46 | 2 games vs. Springfield |
| Kenai River | 30 | 47 | Home/home vs. Anchorage |
Last Weekend:
- Wisconsin visited Springfield where it split a 2-game series Feb. 23-24. The Windigo skated to a 4-0 win Friday before falling to the Jr. Blues Saturday, 5-4.
- The Wilderness was held without a point in a home series vs. Janesville. The Jets swept the 2-game set by scores of 3-1 and 7-5.
Season series: Minnesota and Wisconsin split the first six contests they played during 2023-24. The Wilderness swept a home series in November by scores of 4-1 and 2-1 (SO). Wisconsin countered with its own home sweep in December, winning 3-0 and 4-3 (SO). The last two meetings were Jan. 12-13 in Eagle River which ended in a split, with Wisconsin taking game 1, 7-1, and the Wilderness countering in game 2, 4-3 (SO). The rivals will complete the 10-game season series March 29-30 in Cloquet.
Tale of the tape:
| Team | GF | GA | PP | PK | PIMs |
| Wisconsin | 189 | 125 | 25.1% | 82.9% | 720 |
| Wilderness | 129 | 134 | 19.9% | 85.5% | 607 |
Source: nahl.com
Altergott Saturday: Saturday saw newly acquired forward Kole Altergott reaching two firsts since arriving with the Wilderness. One was his first point, when he assisted on Peyton Nelson’s 2nd period goal which tied the game vs. Janesville at 4. However, that was likely not as memorable for the fans attending as what he did in the first period. Altergott engaged in his first fight since joining the Wilderness when he battled Nick Messina. The Green Bay, WI, native gained a reputation for being an enforcer while with the Fairbanks Ice Dogs. His 206 penalty minutes is third highest in the NAHL.
.500 for February: The Wilderness completed the month of February with a 3-3 record, which snaps a string of two consecutive months where the squad finished below .500. Minnesota began February with a sweep of Kenai River, and followed with a split in Springfield and finished with last weekend’s two losses to Janesville. The Wilderness’ last winning month was November when it finished with a 5-4 record.
PP/PK Update: After refusing to allow a goal for six straight games, the Wilderness penalty kill hit a rough patch at the end of February. Opposing teams completed the month scoring single power play goals in each of February’s final three games. It’s the first time since the season’s first three games when the Wilderness PK allowed tallies in three straight.
Meanwhile, the power play has stepped up its performance over the last three games, scoring four goals in that span. The PP finished February with six goals—it’s best performance since scoring eight in November.
Leaning on Lipskis: Windigo netminder Linards Lipskis’ loss on Saturday snapped a 9-game streak where he had not lost in regulation. The native of Sigulda, LAT, went 9-0-1 in the span that began Dec. 16. Over that period, the veteran goaltender posted 4 shutouts, and now leads the NAHL in shutouts on the season with 6. For 2023-24, Lipskis has played 27 games, and holds a 17-5-6 record with a 2.43 GAA and .918 save percentage.