Up next: Windigo Host Anchorage in Midwest Finals
Eagle River, WI, April 28, 2025
Photos: (Courtesy Cathy Iverson): Top – team celebrates division semi-final clinching win on 4/26/25. Lucas Szyszka (#33) makes one of 33 saves on 4/26/25; Alexios Georgaklis celebrates his goal on 4/26/25 with Mario DiMaggio (#7), Wyatt Herres (#10) and Luke Baker (#19); Nate Farrell (#5) celebrates his OT winner on 4/25/25.
Weekend Recap: After the Chippewa Valley Hockey Association pulled their ice, the best of five game Midwest Division semi-final series versus the Steel moved to their temporary home in Rice Lake, WI. A thrilling overtime victory on Friday and series clinching win on Saturday advanced the Windigo to the Robertson Cup Midwest Division Playoff Championship for the third consecutive season. The other Midwest Division semi-final series featured Anchorage hosting Fairbanks. Anchorage won at home on Friday in front of a sellout crowd of 6,200 fans to complete a three-game sweep of the Ice Dogs. By virtue of their regular season Midwest Division Championship, the Windigo will host Anchorage to start the Midwest Division playoff finals.
Friday, April 25 – Windigo 3 at Steel 2 (OT): The Windigo’s impressive forecheck was on display from the opening faceoff and resulted in their first goal. Teddy Richardson forced a turnover in Chippewa’s zone and Logan Nickolaus picked up the loose puck. He slid it over to Zach Cline, who released a shot from the faceoff circle. Nickolaus picked up the rebound and backhanded the puck inside the near post to put the Windigo up 1-0 just six minutes into the game. Several minutes later, Jackson Ernst carried the puck into the offensive zone, then spun around to pass the puck to Declan Burns on the blue line. Burns rimmed the puck along the boards to the back of the net for Braydon Beahm to gain control. Beahm backhanded a pass to Ernst cutting across the slot. Ernst released a quick wrister that sailed just under the crossbar to the far side of the net. The first period closed with the Windigo holding a 2-0 lead and 10 to 8 shots on net advantage. Chippewa came out strong in the second period and outshot the Windigo 8 to 6. Five minutes into the middle frame, Chippewa took advantage of an errant pass by a Windigo forward in the neutral zone and headed towards the Windigo net. Connor Jalbert chipped the puck through a Windigo defender’s skates and released a shot from the faceoff circle to bring the Steel to within a goal. Midway through the third period, the Windigo found themselves on their fourth penalty kill of the game. It took Chippewa only 3 seconds of power play time to tie the game with a shot from the point that made its way through traffic and into the far top corner of the net. The Windigo turned up the heat for the remainder of regulation play, outshooting Chippewa 21 to 8 in the third period. Overtime play saw the teams trade scoring chances, but both goalies were up to the task. Nate Farrell scored the winner 10:40 into overtime when he corralled a Logan Nickolaus faceoff win and shot the puck from the blue line through traffic into the far side of the net. Lucas Szyszka made 28 saves (4 in overtime) to secure the win. Devin Shakar suffered the loss in net for Chippewa, making 41 saves.
Saturday, April 26 – Windigo 7 at Steel 3: In Saturday’s rematch the Steel got on the board just 1:19 into the game, after winning a puck battle in the neutral zone and converting on the resulting 2-on-1 rush. The Windigo responded six minutes later when Hunter Hayes beat a Chippewa player to a loose puck and fed it to Wyatt Herres at the near point. Herres passed the puck across the blue line to Mario DiMaggio. DiMaggio headed towards the net, slipping by one defender, and released a shot from the high slot just inside the far post to tie the game. The first period closed with each team registering 9 shots on net. The Steel came out strong in the second period, outshooting the Windigo 10 to 5. Nonetheless, the Windigo scored 3 consecutive goals to vault to a 4-1 lead. Midway through the second period, Teddy Richardson commenced the assault with a designed play that originated with a defensive zone faceoff. Zach Cline won a faceoff to Riley Joslin along the near boards. Joslin dropped the puck back to Nate Farrell. All the while, Richardson was headed up ice at full speed along the far boards. Farrell passed the puck 120 feet up to Richardson. Richardson carried the puck into the offensive zone along the far boards and released a shot low to the far side of the net. Less than a minute later, Wyatt Herres passed the puck along the blue line to DiMaggio. Seeing traffic converging on the net, DiMaggio executed an indirect pass, using the back board to bounce the puck behind the net and back to Alexios Georgaklis as he arrived at the far post. Georgaklis tapped the puck inside the near post to put the Windigo up 3-1. With five minutes remaining in the middle frame, the Windigo found themselves on one of just 4 power play opportunities throughout the weekend. After Braydon Beahm knocked a defender off the puck in the corner, Hunter Hayes picked it up and dished it back to Nate Farrell on the point. Farrell released a shot on net and Beahm tipped the puck in mid-air to score and close out the second period with the Windigo holding a commanding 4-1 lead. Facing elimination, Chippewa pressed hard and outshot the Windigo 18 to 6 in the final period. Just over a minute into the third, the Steel converted on a 3-on-2. The Windigo suffered four consecutive penalties in a nine-minute span in the third period. Two inadvertent penalties by the Windigo put Chippewa on a 5-on-3 powerplay for well over a minute. As the first penalty expired, the Steel capitalized on the opportunity to come within one goal of the Windigo. The Steel peppered Windigo netminder Lucas Szyszka with shot after shot. Szyszka kept the Steel at bay long enough for the Windigo to regain their composure. With five minutes remaining in regulation, the line of Zach Cline, Teddy Richardson and Logan Nickolaus stepped up and applied sustained pressure on the Steel. Ultimately, Nickolaus pounced on a rebound at the top of the goal crease and gave the Windigo some breathing room with a 5-3 lead. The Steel pulled their goalie in favor of a sixth attacker with well over three minutes remaining. Windigo defensemen Cashen Naeve took advantage of the open cage and sealed the victory with a shot from his own goal line that found the back of the net 190 feet away. With just under a minute remaining, Nickolaus gained control of the puck in the neutral zone and dropped it back to Wyatt Herres. Herres fed the puck to defensive partner, Harper Frey, along the far boards at center ice. Frey released a shot into the empty net to close out the scoring. Szyszka had a stellar performance in net, making 34 saves to lead his team to victory. Devin Shakar took the loss in net for Chippewa with 13 saves.
Coach’s Comments: Head coach John Mitchell had the following to say after the weekend series: “It was great to close out the series in four games. Chippewa has come on strong the past several weeks and they were a tough out. Overall, I was pleased with our effort both nights. Our forecheck and speed kept them penned up on Friday. Shakar was a wall in net for them and gave them a chance to win when we dominated play on Friday. It was great to see Farrell win it in overtime. That goes to show what can happen if you get pucks to the net through traffic. With the exception of the third period on Saturday, we maintained discipline and stayed out of the penalty box. I was very pleased with the way our defensemen moved the puck quickly and were efficient on our zone exits. We converted those exits to quick transitions and offensive opportunities. Szyszka deserves much of the credit for the win on Saturday. They came on strong in the third period and Szyszka make several difficult saves. He also helped settle his teammates down and got them to re-focus after Chippewa scored their third goal. We now turn our focus to Anchorage. They are playing well and capable of mounting an explosive offensive punch. We are looking forward to a great series with them.”
Up Next – The Midwest Division playoff championship series will commence at the historic Dome in Eagle River, WI, on May 2 and 3. The games will start at 7pm on both Friday and Saturday. Should the Windigo win both games, the series will move to Anchorage for the remaining games. Should the Windigo lose on either Friday or Saturday, the series will continue at 6pm on Sunday, May 4, in Eagle River and then move to Anchorage. Tickets are available online at www.wisconsinjuniorhockey.com/tickets.