Who: Minnesota Wilderness vs. Anchorage Wolverines
When: March 15-16, 7:00 p.m. AKDT both nights
Where: Ben Boeke Ice Arena, Anchorage, AK
The lead: Wilderness seeks to slow down red-hot Wolverines.
Media: All of the action can be seen on nahltv.com.
Records: Anchorage – 50 games, 33-13-4, 70 points; Minnesota – 50 games, 26-20-4, 56 points
Midwest Division Standings:
| Place | Team | Points | Games Played | This weekend’s opponent | Clinched playoffs |
| 1 | Wisconsin | 74 | 53 | 2 games @ Janesville | X |
| 2 | Anchorage | 70 | 50 | 2 games vs. Wilderness | X |
| 3 | Janesville | 64 | 50 | 2 games vs. Wisconsin | |
| 4 | Wilderness | 56 | 50 | 2 games @ Anchorage | |
| 5 | Chippewa | 53 | 52 | 2 games @ Springfield | |
| 6 | Springfield | 43 | 50 | 2 games vs. Chippewa | |
| 7 | Fairbanks | 41 | 50 | 2 games @ Kenai River | |
| 8 | Kenai River | 33 | 51 | 2 games vs. Fairbanks |
Last Weekend:
- Anchorage won all three in a weekend series hosting Springfield. The Wolverines earned victories by scores of 5-1, 3-2 (OT) and 4-0.
- The Wilderness had March 8-9 off. On March 1-2, it split a home series vs. Wisconsin, winning 2-1 Friday, and falling 4-1 Saturday.
Season series: After dropping the season-opener to the Wolverines 5-1 on Sept. 9, the Wilderness has won three straight vs. Anchorage. Minnesota defeated the Wolverines 4-1 in Alaska on Oct. 14, then swept a 2-game home series in Cloquet by scores of 3-2 and 4-3 on Jan. 5-6.
Tale of the tape:
| Team | GF | GA | PP | PK | PIMs |
| Anchorage | 190 | 137 | 18.8% | 82.4% | 958 |
| Wilderness | 132 | 139 | 19% | 85.1% | 680 |
Source: nahl.com
Birthdays: Daniel Astapovich – 3/13 (19), Joe Cesario – 3/17 (21)
Fireworks in Final Seconds: Peyton Nelson’s game-winner with less than 11 seconds left in the game Friday marked the third this season the Wilderness tied or took the lead in the final minute. Peteris Purmalis scored the season’s first late dramatic goal when he tied the game on Sept. 23 at Chippewa with less than one second on the clock. Then on Nov. 25, the Wilderness beat Janesville, 5-4 thanks to Ashton Dahms’ tiebreaking lamp-lighter with 13 seconds left.
Nelson 1st GWG: That goal from Nelson was his fifth with the Wilderness and first GWG since joining the squad in January. It was Nelson’s 2nd game-winner in his junior career. The 19-year-old from Centennial, CO, scored his first game-decider on Dec. 10, 2022, when he led the USHL’s Des Moines Buccaneers to a 4-0 win over the Dubuque Fighting Saints.
Astapovich Apples: After assisting on each of the Wilderness’ goals March 1-2, Daniel Astapovich now leads the team in assists. Over 46 games, Astapovich now has 24 assists, which moves him ahead of Peteris Purmalis with 23. Purmalis still leads the Wilderness in goals (16) and points (39).
Shirey Leads D-men: By scoring the first goal in the game on March 1, Aidan Shirey extended his lead in goal scoring for all Wilderness defensemen. The 19-year old from Barrington, IL, now has seven goals in 2023-24. Shirey has also added 12 assists for 19 points.
Beerman Starman: One major piece of Anchorage’s 11-game winning streak has been the play of goaltender Liam Beerman. Beerman earned the Midwest Division’s Bauer Hockey star of the week last week after posting back-to-back victories over the Springfield Jr. Blues. The 19-year-old from Marquette, MI, stopped 25 of 26 in a 5-1 win Friday, then shutout Springfield stopping 32 shots Sunday in a 4-0 victory. Over 36 games this season, Beerman has a 22-8-3 record with a 2.35 GAA and .925 save percentage, with four shutouts.