NAHL Minnesota Wilderness

Wilderness Fly Past Jets to Move Within 1 Win of a Playoff Spot

Published on April 13, 2022 under North American Hockey League (NAHL)
Minnesota Wilderness News Release


Six different goal scorers lit the lamp Friday night in leading the Minnesota Wilderness to a 6-2 victory over the Janesville Jets. Ethan Wolthers led the way with a 3-point effort, as he added two assists in the win which puts the Wilderness just one triumph away from clinching a spot in this season's NAHL playoffs.

After Jonah Aegerter scored to put the Jets up 1-0 5:36 into period 1, the Wilderness (34-21-2) answered with 5 consecutive goals. Sam Antenucci factored in on the first two, scoring to tie the game after a taking a terrific pass from Ren Morque 10:21 into the first, and then forcing a turnover at neutral ice that led to Wolthers' goal 3:55 later.

The 2-1 lead was extended early in the 2nd when Alex Pineau deposited his first since coming to the Wilderness in December. The rookie from Thunder Bay fired in a shot from the slot to make the score 3-1 at the 4:54 mark. Goals from Barrett Hall and a power-play tally from Max Neill would stretch the Minnesota bulge to 5-1.

A third period Jet surge would get the home team a little closer, when William Gustavsson scored at the 3:27 mark. That was as close as Janesville (32-24-1) would get, as the Wilderness iced the game with a power-play empty net goal from Gunnar Thoreson with 3:13 left on the clock.

The win snaps a 5-game home winning streak for Janesville over the Wilderness. It also extends Minnesota's current winning streak to 4 games and its consecutive games with a point to 9 games.

Matt Smith earned the win to improve his Wilderness record to 13-1-1. The rookie finished the night with 26 saves on 28 shots. Owen Millward took the loss for Janesville, stopping 26 of 31 Minnesota shots.

A 5-point lead in the Midwest Division standings over Janesville means Minnesota has three chances to guarantee that it will play post-season hockey. The first opportunity comes tomorrow night. They and the Jets will close out the weekend series with puck drop scheduled for 7:00p.m. at the Janesville Arena.

Check out the Minnesota Wilderness Statistics

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North American Hockey League Stories from April 13, 2022


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