10/2/2026
For immediate release
Cloquet, MN
The first post-Showcase showdown of the 2026-27 campaign sends the Minnesota
Wilderness to Alaska to take on the Kenai River Brown Bears.
The 2-game weekend series this Friday and Saturday (Oct. 2-3) in Soldotna, AK, will
mark the first of eight meetings this season between the Midwest Division rivals.
Both squads played three games last week at the NAHL Showcase in Blaine, MN, and
both finished with a 1-2 record.
The Wilderness began with a 3-1 victory on Sept. 23 over the Johnstown Tomahawks.
That was followed by dropping a 5-3 outcome vs. the Shreveport Mudbugs on Sept. 24.
The St. Cloud Norsemen then defeated the Wilderness in the finale on Sept. 26, 3-0.
The Brown Bears opened the Showcase by defeating the Pueblo Peppers in overtime
on Sept. 23. Kenai then fell in their final two tournament games, beginning on Sept. 24
against the Northeast Generals, 7-3, and then on Sept. 26 vs. the Aberdeen Wings, 5-4.
In 2025-26, Minnesota defeated the Brown Bears in six of eight matchups and went 3-0-
1 in games played on the Kenai Peninsula.
Both contests will be held at the Soldotna Regional Sports Complex, with puck drop in
each game set for 7:30 p.m. AKDT.