10/8/2026
For immediate release
Cloquet, MN
Minnesota Wilderness head coach Sam Graham will see familiar faces and places this
weekend as his team visits Anchorage, AK, for a 3-game series vs. the Anchorage
Wolverines.
Graham was an assistant coach with the Wolverines over the 2023-24 and 2024-25
seasons. This weekend marks his first trip to Anchorage since he was hired to lead the
Wilderness last summer.
Both squads enter the weekend in the upper half of the Midwest Division with the
season entering its second month. Minnesota sits in second place with victories in five
of seven contests. Anchorage is just behind in third place with four wins and points in
five of seven games.
Last weekend, the Wilderness began its first Alaska trip of the season at Kenai River
where it finished with a pair of victories. On Friday, Minnesota outlasted the Brown
Bears, 7-4, and then completed the sweep with a 5-1 win Saturday.
Meanwhile, Anchorage split a pair of matchups in Janesville vs. the Janesville Jets. The
Wolverines claimed the opener, 6-4, before falling in game 2, Saturday, 6-3.
For the second time this season, the Minnesota Wilderness will be the home-opening
opponent for a division rival that the Wilderness eliminated in the 2026 Robertson Cup
playoffs.In the Midwest Division Semi-Finals, Minnesota eliminated Anchorage 3-games-to-1,
with game 4 played in front of a capacity crowd at Anchorage’s Sullivan Arena. In
September, the Wilderness was the opponent for the Wisconsin Windigo in their home-
opening series, just four months after Minnesota knocked out the Windigo in the 2026
Midwest Division Finals.
This weekend series is set for Friday to Sunday. The Friday and Saturday matchups are
scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. AKDT. Sunday’s game will start at 4 p.m. AKDT.
Media: Watch all games on NAHLTV.com.
