Wilderness Players Show Their Stuff at Top Prospects
Published on February 19, 2025 under North American Hockey League (NAHL)
Minnesota Wilderness News Release
Two half-game shutouts from goaltender Niklas Erickson and a 3-point performance from forward Jakeb Lynch highlight the results for six Minnesota Wilderness players who participated in the North American Hockey League's Top Prospects Tournament this week near Detroit, Mich.
Erickson and Lynch were joined by forwards Ferry Netusil, Brady Zugec and Noah Dziver, along with defenseman Luke Margenau. Each played two games over Monday and Tuesday (Feb. 17-18) at the USA Hockey Arena in Plymouth, Mich.
The Wilderness players were scattered across three of the six teams in the tournament. Each of the NAHL's four divisions (Midwest, Central, South and East) sent a team, made up of players nearly exclusively from those divisions. The league also had a "Selects Gold" squad that comprised players selected with the help of the National Hockey League that are eligible to be selected in this summer's NHL draft. The sixth squad, dubbed "Selects Black", included a mixture of players from all four divisions.
Erickson was on the only team to finish the tournament undefeated. Erickson stopped a combined total of 21 shots over 61:05 as he helped lead Selects Black to a 4-1 victory Monday vs. Team East and a 3-1 win Tuesday over Team Central.
With the game tied 1-1, Erickson entered his first game with 10:16 left in the 2nd period. The 20-year old from Apple Valley, MN, proceeded to stop all 13 shots he faced through the end of the middle frame and the entire third period, while his teammates scored three more times to earn the victory.
In game 2, Erickson was the starter and had similar results. Over 30:49, he kept his net empty, turning aside eight Team Central shots. However, for game 2, his backup, Michael Manzi, from the Anchorage Wolverines, earned the victory due to the game being tied 0-0 when the goaltender switch was made.
Erickson was the only netminder of 12 in the tournament to not allow a goal.
Lynch, Zugec and Netusil were part of the Selects Gold squad. Lynch finished as the tournament's co-leader in assists with three, while Netusil contributed two helpers. The Selects Gold concluded the two games with a 1-1 record, thanks to a 3-2 shootout win over Team South in game 1, and a 6-4 loss to Team Midwest in game 2. Lynch had one assist in his tournament opener and two in game 2, while Netusil finished with one in each contest.
Dziver and Margenau skated for Team Midwest, which also went 1-1. Along with its win over the Selects Gold, the Midwest dropped its opener, 3-1 to Team Central.
Dziver aided the Midwest's effort in its Tuesday victory by assisting on two second period goals that were scored just 15 seconds apart.
The six Top Prospects players return to the ice with the rest of their Wilderness teammates this weekend at home in Cloquet. Minnesota will host the Kenai River Brown Bears in a Friday/Saturday series at Northwoods Credit Union Arena with both games scheduled to start at 7:15 p.m.
North American Hockey League Stories from February 19, 2025
- Maryland Flying High into Match-Up with Elmira - Maryland Black Bears
- Wranglers Down IceRays 6-3 in Season Series Finale - Amarillo Wranglers
- Wilderness Prepare for Season's Final Brown Bear Hunt - Minnesota Wilderness
- Wilderness Players Show Their Stuff at Top Prospects - Minnesota Wilderness
- 2025 Top Prospects Tournament Recap - Danbury Jr. Hat Tricks
- IceRays Host Pack the House for Charity Night on March 8 - Corpus Christi IceRays
- Ground Gained After Split Series with Anchorage - Minnesota Wilderness
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
