25-26 Schedule Highlighted by a Steel Dozen, Blue Opener
June 19, 2025 - North American Hockey League (NAHL)
Minnesota Wilderness News Release
The Minnesota Wilderness will open the 2025-26 season seeing Blue and will be facing plenty of "steel" throughout the campaign.
The North American Hockey League released the docket for the new season Wednesday. The Wilderness will open at home on Friday, Sept. 12 vs. the team they ended the 2024-25 season with - the Springfield Jr. Blues. The two will follow with another game at Northwoods Credit Union Arena on Saturday, Sept. 13. Those contests feature a 4-game home stand the Wilderness will play before it departs for three games at the NAHL Showcase in Blaine, MN, scheduled for September 24-27 (Showcase opponents and game times will be announced at a later date).
The Wilderness will host Anchorage in its other pre-Showcase series on Sept. 19-20.
Minnesota's 56-game Midwest Division schedule released Wednesday features a heavy load of Steel - Chippewa Steel that is. The Wilderness will play Chippewa 12 times, more than any other opponent on its calendar. Their first encounter will be Oct. 17.
The Steel and Wilderness will also face off in a special New Year's Day game. The squads will kick off 2026 with a special 5:15 p.m. contest on Jan. 1 in Cloquet.
The Wilderness will play its six other divisional foes anywhere from 5 to 8 times throughout the season.
Minnesota has two trips to Alaska planned. The first will be Oct. 3-11 when the team will play Kenai River and Anchorage. The second is set for Jan. 22-31 with its opponents being Fairbanks and Kenai River.
The Fairbanks Ice Dogs will be the only divisional opponent to not appear in Cloquet during the upcoming regular season. The Wilderness will instead "host' the Ice Dogs in Marshall, MN, on Dec. 5-6. The Ice Dogs have a special relationship with the city of Marshall and annually plays two games in the southwest Minnesota city with its opponent being the "home" team. Minnesota and Fairbanks also played two games in Marshall during the 2021-22 campaign.
Overall, the Wilderness have 26 games scheduled to be played at its home arena in Cloquet.
The regular season is set to wrap up April 10-11 at the Janesville Jets. The final home series will be March 27-28 vs. Springfield.
The Wilderness is scheduled for two pre-season games. Minnesota will visit the Austin Bruins on Sept. 5, with a home game vs. the Bruins on Sept. 6.
Puck drop for all Wilderness home games, except its New Year's Day event, are set for 7:15 p.m.
North American Hockey League Stories from June 19, 2025
- 25-26 Schedule Highlighted by a Steel Dozen, Blue Opener - Minnesota Wilderness
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