Who: Minnesota Wilderness vs. Anchorage Wolverines
When: April 26, and (if necessary) April 27, 7:15 p.m. CDT; + (if necessary) April 28 5:15 p.m. CDT
Where: Northwoods Credit Union Arena, Cloquet, MN
What: Midwest Division Semi-finals, games 3, and (if necessary) 4 and 5.
The Lead: After dropping the first two games in its best-of-five series vs. Anchorage, the Wilderness needs three straight wins this weekend to win its Midwest Division Semi-final and advance in the Robertson Cup Playoffs.
Media: All of the action can be seen on nahltv.com.
Last weekend—both games in Anchorage, AK:
- Game 1: Anchorage 4, Wilderness 0
- Game 2: Anchorage 2, Wilderness 1 (OT)
Playoff Tale of the Tape: Source: nahl.com
| Team | GF | GA | PP | PK | PIMs |
| Anchorage | 6 | 1 | 1 of 10 (10%) | 5 for 5 (100%) | 14 |
| Wilderness | 1 | 6 | 0 for 5 (0%) | 9 of 10 (90%) | 24 |
First Playoff Points: Joe Cesario and Joe Manning earned the points in Minnesota’s lone playoff goal last weekend. Cesario scored the goal at the 1:07 mark of the 3rd period on a short-handed breakaway, while Manning assisted. It was the first playoff points ever for the two veterans, who are in their second and final seasons of Jr. hockey. For Cesario, it was his first goal in Anchorage since he left the franchise in a trade last summer. Cesario played 14 games for the Wolverines in 2022-23 and skated in one game for the Wilderness in Anchorage during the 23-24 regular season, and in the opening game of this season’s playoff series. Manning also spent time with an Alaska franchise, having played the entire 2022-23 season with Kenai River and most of the 23-24 campaign with the Brown Bears before being acquired by the Wilderness in February.
Prokop’s Playoff Premier: Despite two losses, Goaltender Adam Prokop made a good impression in his first two Robertson Cup playoff starts. Prokop faced more than 30 shots in both games, making 63 saves on 68 shots. Those totals equate to a .927 save percentage and 2.44 GAA.
Rare Shutout: Game 1’s shutout loss marked only the fourth time in Wilderness history that the team was held scoreless in an entire playoff game. The 4-0 win for Anchorage was the first time the Wilderness did not score in a post-season contest since May 8, 2017, when it fell to the Aberdeen Wings 1-0 in overtime in the Central Division Finals. The two other games the Wilderness lost in a shutout were in the 2014 playoffs, when the Wenatchee Wild blanked Minnesota twice in the Midwest Division semi-finals—3-0 in game 1 and 1-0 (OT) in game 5.
Scoring Drought Snapped: Cesario’s goal Saturday night at 1:07 of the third period of game 2 put an end to a way too long scoring drought. From the beginning of the playoffs, the Wilderness waited 101 minutes and seven seconds before scoring a goal, which set a new franchise record of time spent without a goal in a single Robertson Cup playoff. The previous team mark was 96:32 and spanned a portion of an entire game. That scoreless timeframe began with 3:29 left in the 2nd period of game 1 of the Robertson Cup final in 2015 vs. the Austin Bruins
and ended at the 13:03 mark of the game’s 4th overtime – a contest which still stands as the longest in NAHL history. The team’s longest post-season goal drought that spans multiple playoff seasons still stands at 145:09, which started in game 4 of the 2017 Central Division finals and concluded in game 1 of the 2018 Central Division semi-finals.
Hallock’s Hennen Becomes a Hero: After recording super-human totals as a high school player last season, Hallock’s Tyler Hennen has fit right into Anchorage’s lineup. Hennen is tied for the Wolverines lead in playoff goals (2) and playoff points (3). Hennen also scored the overtime game-winner in game 2. During the regular season, he posted 15 goals and 18 assists for 33 points. In 2022-23, Hennen led all Minnesota high school players with 71 goals and 123 points in his senior season at Kittson County Central High School. Hennen is committed to play Division 1 collegiate hockey at Augustana University of the CCHA.
Other Midwest Division Playoff Series: The Wisconsin Windigo leads the Janesville Jets 2-games-to-none. In game 1, Wisconsin won 4-2 and followed with a 2-0 victory in game 2. Janesville will host game 3 on April 26 and, if necessary, game 4 on April 27. If there is a need for a game 5, it would be April 28 and hosted by the Windigo in Eagle River, WI.