Wilderness End Season Strong, But Fall Just Short of Playoffs
April 15, 2025 - North American Hockey League (NAHL)
Minnesota Wilderness News Release
An end-of-season push that saw the Minnesota Wilderness go 6-1 over the final seven contests was not enough to advance to the NAHL Robertson Cup playoffs. Saturday night, the Wilderness closed out its 2024-25 regular season schedule with a 3-1 victory over the Springfield Jr. Blues. All hopes for a playoff spot due were dashed thanks to the Chippewa Steel finishing the season with two more points after their win over the Anchorage Wolverines.
Chippewa earned fourth place in the Midwest Division and clinched its entry to the post-season with 64 points, while the Wilderness registered 62 points.
In its final game, Minnesota (30-25-4) was led by Logan Nagle who posted two goals while goaltender Valdemar Andersen made 33 saves in front of a boisterous crowd at Northwoods Credit Union Arena in Cloquet.
Nagle's linemates Brady Zugec and Avery Anderson each earned two assists. Nagle notched his first tally on the power play 6:42 into the 2nd period to give the Wilderness a 2-1 lead. He then added an insurance marker by scoring 24 seconds after the 3rd period opening face-off. Those two red-lighters allowed Nagle to end the season with 11 goals on the season
Zach Homer also scored for the Wilderness. The forward from Birmingham, MI, fired in his 22nd of the campaign with assists from Jakeb Lynch and Noah Dziver 3:14 into the first period.
Jack Klevby popped in Springfield's lone goal with 12:53 left in the first period. Klevby stretched the twine to tie the game at 1-1 while his squad was on the power play.
Springfield (27-27-5) had eight power play chances, with the Wilderness penalty kill eliminating the Jr. Blues other seven opportunities. Minnesota finished one-for-six on the man-advantage.
Minnesota outshot Springfield, 39-34. Frank Murphy suffered the loss in the Jr. Blues net making 36 saves.
With the 2024-25 season ending, Minnesota will soon begin the process of building its team for 2025-26. That will start with three pre-draft camps followed by the NAHL Draft coming in June. The Wilderness will hold their main camp at Northwoods Credit Union Arena in Cloquet from July 20-24. A schedule for next season is expected to be released in either June or July.
North American Hockey League Stories from April 15, 2025
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- Wilderness End Season Strong, But Fall Just Short of Playoffs - Minnesota Wilderness
- Wilderness Enter Final Day with Playoffs Still Within Reach - Minnesota Wilderness
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