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Draft:NAHL Midwest Division

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NAHL Midwest
LeagueNorth American Hockey League
SportIce Hockey (Tier II Jr. Hockey)
Founded2013
No. of teams8
Most recent
champion(s)
Anchorage Wolverines
(2024; 2nd title)
Most titlesFairbanks Ice Dogs (4)
NAHL Midwest Division is located in the US
Wolverines
Wolverines
Steel
Steel
Ice Dogs
Ice
Dogs
Jets
Jets
Brown Bears
Brown
Bears
Wilderness
Wilderness
Blues
Blues
Windigo
Windigo
NAHL Midwest Division (the US)

The Midwest Division is one of the 4 divisions in the North American Hockey League, hosting 8 teams. 3 of those teams (Chippewa Steel, Janesville Jets, and Wisconsin Windigo) are located in Wisconsin. Another 3 teams (Anchorage Wolverines, Fairbanks Ice Dogs, and Kenai River Brown Bears) are located in Alaska. The Minnesota Wilderness are located in, well, Minnesota, and the Springfield Jr. Blues play in Illinois.

History

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This Division officially started in 2013, although there was a Division that started in 2011 called the MidWest Division, but it only lasted that season. The Fairbanks Ice Dogs won the first division title, beating the Wenatchee Wild (junior A) 3 games to 2, walking it off two minutes and two seconds in OT in game 5, beating Wenatchee 3-2. They would go on to sweep the Austin Bruins in the championship series 2-games-to-0. Fairbanks has won the most championships as a part of this division with 2 (2013-14, 2015-16). The Minnesota Wilderness also won a championship in the 2014-15 season. Since then, the division has not had a team that has won a championship. The Anchorage Wolverines have come the closest, being defeated by the New Jersey Titans 3-0 in the Championship game.

Current members

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Division Results

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2013-14

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Place Team GP W L OTL PTS GF GA
Midwest
1 Fairbanks Ice Dogs 60 45 14 1 91 215 136
2 Minnesota Wilderness 60 37 14 9 83 159 115
3 Wenatchee Wild 60 29 23 8 66 169 163
4 Kenai River Brown Bears 60 28 24 8 64 164 178
5 Coulee Region Chill 60 31 28 1 63 181 181
6 Minnesota Magicians 60 21 31 8 50 143 193
Divison Semi-FinalsDivision Finals
1Fairbanks Ice Dogs3
4Kenai River Brown Bears2
1Fairbanks Ice Dogs3
3Wenatchee Wild2
2Minnesota Wilderness2
3Wenatchee Wild3

Division Champion: Fairbanks Ice Dogs(1)

2014-15

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Place Team GP W L OTL PTS GF GA
Midwest
1 Fairbanks Ice Dogs 60 40 16 4 84 238 167
2 Minnesota Wilderness 60 39 15 6 84 209 152
3 Coulee Region Chill 60 28 23 9 65 176 182
4 Minnesota Magicians 60 21 35 4 46 160 221
5 Kenai River Brown Bears 60 16 42 2 34 132 244
Divison Semi-FinalsDivision Finals
1Fairbanks Ice Dogs3
4Minnesota Magicians0
1Fairbanks Ice Dogs0
2Minnesota Wilderness3
2Minnesota Wilderness3
3Coulee Region Chill2

Division Champion: Minnesota Wilderness(1)

2015-16

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Place Team GP W L OTL PTS GF GA
Midwest
1 Fairbanks Ice Dogs 60 49 8 3 101 251 116
2 Janesville Jets 60 35 18 7 77 181 150
3 Minnesota Wilderness 60 34 18 8 76 183 161
4 Coulee Region Chill 60 33 26 1 67 177 165
5 Springfield Jr. Blues 60 29 25 6 64 155 164
6 Kenai River Brown Bears 60 4 51 5 13 109 292
Divison Semi-FinalsDivision Finals
1Fairbanks Ice Dogs3
4Coulee Region Chill1
1Fairbanks Ice Dogs3
3Minnesota Wilderness2
2Janesville Jets1
3Minnesota Wilderness3

Division Champion: Fairbanks Ice Dogs(2)

2016-17

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Place Team GP W L OTL PTS GF GA
Midwest
1 Janesville Jets 60 42 13 5 89 224 153
2 Fairbanks Ice Dogs 60 33 24 3 69 185 165
3 Minnesota Magicians 60 31 22 7 69 180 169
4 Coulee Region Chill 60 31 27 2 64 220 220
5 Springfield Jr. Blues 60 27 28 5 59 174 189
6 Kenai River Brown Bears 60 12 46 2 26 121 223
Divison Semi-FinalsDivision Finals
1Janesville Jets3
4Coulee Region Chill0
1Janesville Jets3
2Fairbanks Ice Dogs1
2Fairbanks Ice Dogs3
3Minnesota Magicians0

Division Champion: Janesville Jets(1)

2017-18

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Place Team GP W L OTL PTS GF GA
Midwest
1 Fairbanks Ice Dogs 60 45 8 7 97 223 125
2 Janesville Jets 60 38 13 9 86 181 140
3 Springfield Jr. Blues 60 33 21 6 72 169 166
4 Minnesota Magicians 60 28 24 8 64 164 183
5 Coulee Region Chill 60 17 34 9 43 162 214
6 Kenai River Brown Bears 60 18 38 4 40 153 238
Divison Semi-FinalsDivision Finals
1Fairbanks Ice Dogs3
4Minnesota Magicians0
1Fairbanks Ice Dogs3
2Janesville Jets2
2Janesville Jets3
3Springfield Jr. Blues0

Division Champion: Fairbanks Ice Dogs(3)

2018-19

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Place Team GP W L OTL PTS GF GA
Midwest
1 Fairbanks Ice Dogs 60 37 16 7 81 204 138
2 Minnesota Magicians 60 36 21 93 75 175 154
3 Springfield Jr. Blues 60 33 22 5 71 192 177
4 Janesville Jets 60 29 25 6 64 153 186
5 Kenai River Brown Bears 60 23 31 6 52 139 174
6 Chippewa Steel 60 19 38 3 41 149 220
Divison Semi-FinalsDivision Finals
1Fairbanks Ice Dogs3
4Janesville Jets0
1Fairbanks Ice Dogs3
2Minnesota Magicians0
2Minnesota Magicians3
3Springfield Jr. Blues1

Division Champion: Fairbanks Ice Dogs(4)

2019-20

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Place Team GP W L OTL PTS GF GA
Midwest
1 Fairbanks Ice Dogs 52 38 11 3 77 240 172
2 Chippewa Steel 51 29 18 4 62 171 146
3 Kenai River Brown Bears 52 27 19 6 60 197 182
4 Minnesota Magicians 53 21 23 9 53 143 173
5 Janesville Jets 52 24 26 2 50 149 181
6 Springfield Jr. Blues 54 19 38 3 41 149 220
Divison Semi-Finals*Division Finals*
1Fairbanks Ice Dogs3
4Minnesota Magicians1
1Fairbanks Ice Dogs2
3Kenai River Brown Bears3
2Chippewa Steel1
3Kenai River Brown Bears3

Division Champion: Kenai River Brown Bears(1)*
-*The Playoffs were played on NHL 19 due to the Covid-19 Pandemic, so the legitimacy is up to you on this. I'm counting it because why not

2020-21

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(Season shortened due to a late start due to the Covid-19 Pandemic)

Place Team GP W L OTL PTS GF GA
Midwest
1 Janesville Jets 48 31 13 4 66 183 144
2 Fairbanks Ice Dogs 48 25 19 4 54 165 163
3 Minnesota Magicians 48 24 21 3 51 144 153
4 Kenai River Brown Bears 48 22 24 2 46 155 168
5 Chippewa Steel 48 14 29 5 33 116 169
Divison Semi-Finals*Division Finals*
1Janesville Jets1
4Kenai River Brown Bears3
4Kenai River Brown Bears2
3Minnesota Magicians3
2Fairbanks Ice Dogs0
3Minnesota Magicians3

Division Champion: Wisconsin Windigo* (1)

  • Minnesota Magicians at the time

2021-22

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Place Team GP W L OTL PTS GF GA
Midwest
1 Fairbanks Ice Dogs 60 37 20 3 77 238 179
2 Springfield Jr. Blues 60 36 20 4 76 211 177
3 Anchorage Wolverines 60 33 19 8 74 208 166
4 Minnesota Wilderness 60 35 23 2 72 216 203
5 Janesville Jets 60 34 25 1 69 227 208
6 Minnesota Magicians 60 25 26 9 59 116 169
7 Chippewa Steel 60 25 31 4 54 168 206
8 Kenai River Brown Bears 60 14 41 5 33 147 256
Divison Semi-Finals*Division Finals*
1Fairbaks Ice Dogs2
4Minnesota Wilderness3
4Minnesota Wilderness1
3Anchorage Wolverines3
2Springfield Jr. Blues0
3Anchorage Wolverines3

Division Champion: Anchorage Wolverines (1)

2022-23

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Place Team GP W L OTL PTS GF GA
Midwest
1 Wisconsin Windigo 60 39 18 3 81 210 147
2 Minnesota Wilderness 60 35 18 7 77 168 146
3 Kenai River Brown Bears 60 32 24 4 68 170 185
4 Chippewa Steel 60 31 25 4 66 186 172
5 Anchorage Wolverines 60 28 24 8 64 208 218
6 Fairbanks Ice Dogs 60 28 25 7 63 181 196
7 Springfield Jr. Blues 60 26 31 3 55 147 174
8 Janesville Jets 60 23 28 9 55 167 180
Divison Semi-Finals*Division Finals*
1Wisconsin Windigo3
4Chippewa Steel0
1Wisconsin Windigo1
2Minnesota Wilderness3
2Minnesota Wilderness3
3Kenai River Brown Bears0

Division Champion: Minnesota Wilderness(2)

2023-24

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Place Team GP W L OTL PTS GF GA
Midwest
1 Anchorage Wolverines 60 39 14 7 85 233 169
2 Wisconsin Windigo 60 39 15 6 84 224 146
3 Janesville Jets 60 33 22 5 71 234 194
4 Minnesota Wilderness 60 30 25 5 65 157 170
5 Chippewa Steel 60 29 25 6 63 170 188
6 Fairbanks Ice Dogs 60 22 30 8 52 158 211
7 Springfield Jr. Blues 60 21 29 10 52 151 218
8 Kenai River Brown Bears 60 20 34 6 46 171 232
Divison Semi-Finals*Division Finals*
1Anchorage Wolverines3
4Minnesota Wilderness1
1Anchorage Wolverines3
2Wisconsin Windigo0
2Wisconsin Windigo3
3Janesville Jets0

Division Champion: Anchorage Wolverines(2)

Rivalries

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Club 49

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The Club 49 Rivalry is a competition between the Anchorage Wolverines, Fairbanks Ice Dogs, and Kenai River Brown Bears. The winner is decided by head-to-head competition between the three teams. The most recent champion is the 2023-24 Midwestern champion Anchorage Wolverines, going 17-3(34 points) against the two other teams[1]. They have also won the most Club 49 championships, with 2(back-to-back in 2022-23 and 2023-24), since it started in 2021 when the Wolverines joined the league. The Ice Dogs also won it in 2021.

Janesville-Chippewa(Battle for the milk can)

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The Chippewa Steel and Janesville Jets have one of the most fiercest rivalries in the Midwest Division, with fight galore in any game. The teams used to battle for a Milk Can, called the Blain's Farm & Fleet Milk Jug[2]. It went from the 2018-19 season till the 2022-23 season. However, that has not stopped the rivalry, as the physicality is pretty much brought every game. Both of the teams will leave you wondering if you watched a hockey game or a 5-on-5 boxing match.

Teams

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Anchorage Wolverines

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The Anchorage Wolverines play at the Ben Boeke Ice Rink in Anchorage, Alaska. They started play in 2021. They currently have 2 division championships, once in 2021-22, beating the Minnesota Wilderness 3-games-to-1. They made the championship game, but lost to the New Jersey Titans 3-0. They finished in 5th in 2022-23, but won the division again, winning the regular season division as well. They won the division, beating the Wisconsin Windigo 3-games-to-0. The Wolverines have no Robertson Cup Championships(although that could change, at the time of writing this they are in the league semi-finals).

Chippewa Steel

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The Chippewa Steel play at the Chippewa Area Ice Arena in Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin, in one of the smallest markets in the NAHL. The franchise started play in 2005 as the North Iowa Bandits, then moved to La Crosse, Wisconsin and became the Coulee Region Chill in 2010 before moving to Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin and becoming the Chippewa Steel. The Steel did not officially make the playoffs until 2022, when they ended Fairbanks's 25 year playoff streak and clinched the last playoff spot in the division. Unfortunately for them, they were swept by that year's division runner-ups, the Wisconsin Windigo. The Steel have no Robertson Cup Championships.

Fairbanks Ice Dogs

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The Fairbanks Ice Dogs play at the Big Dipper Ice Arena in Fairbanks, Alaska. They started play in 1997, and moved to the NAHL along with the Bismarck Bobcats of the Central Division in 2003. They have the most division championships as a part of this division with 4. They also have 3 Robertson Cup Championships, 2 as a part of this Division. They had a 25 year playoff streak, starting in 1997 and lasting till 2022. It ended with a 4-1 loss to the Chippewa Steel on April 9, 2023. They missed the playoffs again the next year.

Janesville Jets

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The Janesville Jets play at the Janesville Ice Arena in Janesville, Wisconsin. They started play in 2009, and joined the division six years later. They have 1 division championship, winning it in 2016-17. They have no Robertson Cup Championships, however. The Jets have not won a series since 2018, when they swept Springfield in 3 games.

Kenai River Brown Bears

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The Kenai River Brown Bears play at the Soldotna Sports Center in Soldotna, Alaska. They started play in 2007, and were one of the founding members of the division in 2013. The Brown Bears have never been a great team in the Midwest, as they have 216 wins in 11 seasons(that's an average of less than 20 wins a year in a 60 game season). They have 1 Virtual Division Championship, but in real life they have no division championships. They played in Breezy Point, Minnesota during the 2020-21 season due to the Covid-19 Pandemic restrictions.

Minnesota Wilderness

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The Minnesota Wilderness play at the Northwoods Credit Union Arena in Cloquet, Minnesota. They joined the league the same year the division was created in 2013. They were in the division from 2013-16. In 2016, however, they moved to the Central Division in exchange for the Minnesota Magicians. They rejoined the division again in 2021. They have 1 Robertson Cup Championship(2014-15) and 2 division titles(2014-15 and 2022-23).

Springfield Jr. Blues

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The Springfield Jr. Blues play at the Nelson Center in Springfield, Illinois. They are one of the oldest franchises in the NAHL that is still around today, starting in 1993. There is only one franchise that is older that is still around today, in the Johnstown Tomahawks, who started in 1990. They are, however, not one of the founding members of the division, joining in 2015-16. They have no division championships, and both Robertson Cup Championship victories came before they joined the Midwest Division, in 1996-97 and in 1997-98.

Wisconsin Windigo

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The Wisconsin Windigo play at the Eagle River Stadium in Eagle River, Wisconsin. They joined the division in its inception, however, they joined as the Minnesota Magicians. They were originally the New Mexico Mustangs, when they first got in the league in 2010. However, they stopped play there after two years of placing last in the division. They went one a one-year hiatus before returning when the Midwest Division was created, becoming the Minnesota Magicians. The Magicians took a little while finding success, winning one playoff series over the Springfield Jr. Blues in 2019. But in 2021 they made an improbable run to the final four. They placed third in the division that year, but they swept normally dominant Fairbanks and then edged out #4 seed Kenai River 3 games to 2. Their run ended after being swept in 2 games by the Aberdeen Wings. The next season ended in a 6th place finish before being sold and moved to Eagle River, Wisconsin to become the Wisconsin Windigo. They have found success in the Midwest, finishing 1st in the regular season in 2022-23. They then swept the Chippewa Steel in 3 games to have their first series win as the Windigo. The Wilderness, however, beat them in 4 games to end that run early. The next year, they finished in 2nd just a point behind the Anchorage Wolverines. They swept the Janesville Jets before being swept by Anchorage.

References

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  1. ^ "Anchorage Wolverines named Club 49 Cup Champions ahead of Friday's matchup with Fairbanks". www.alaskasnewssource.com. March 26, 2024.
  2. ^ "Chippewa Steel, Janesville Jets introduce Dairyland Milk Can trophy to new rivalry". chippewa.com. May 30, 2018.