The host Minnesota Wilderness completed a weekend sweep of the Kenai River Brown Bears with a 6-1 Saturday victory in North American Hockey League play.
Kenai River is in seventh place in the Midwest Division at 11-15-1-2, good for 25 points. The Wilderness hold the fourth and final playoff spot out of the division at 14-13-3-0, good for 31 points.
The Brown Bears close the year with games Friday and Saturday, Dec. 20 and 21, at 4 p.m. AKST against the Chippewa (Wisconsin) Steel.
Kenai River got off to a rough start in the first period due to special teams. Lucas Jendek scored short-handed and Noah Dziver scored on the power-play to post the Wilderness to a 2-0 lead after the first period.
Just 1:36 into the second period, William Esterbrooks, assisted by Brady Engelkes and Luke Hause, cut the lead to 2-1. However, Dziver and Homer made it 4-1 before the end of the second period. The period featured 28 penalty minutes for the Wilderness and 18 minutes for the Bears.
In the third period, Zach Howard scored an empty-net goal, and Nate Murray tacked on a late score for Minnesota.
Niklas Erickson made 38 saves for the Wilderness, while Owen Zenone stopped 31 for the Bears.
Saturday
Wilderness 6, Brown Bears 1
Ken 0 1 0 —1
Min 2 2 2 —6
First period — 1. Minnesota, Jendek (Murray, Smith), sh, 4:06. 2. Minnesota, Dziver (Homer, Sylvester), pp, 12:15. Penalties — Kenai River 2 for 4:00; Minnesota 2 for 4:00.
Second period — 3. Kenai River, Esterbrooks (Engelkes, Hause), 1:36. 4. Minnesota, Dziver (Homer, Smith), 5:42. 5. Minnesota, Homer (Dziver, Webb), 16:16. Penalties — Kenai River 5 for 18:00; Minnesota 6 for 28:00.
Third period — 6. Minnesota, Howard (un.), en, 16:22. 7. Minnesota, Murray (Margenau, Struck), 18:13. Penalties — Kenai River 3 for 6:00; Minnesota 3 for 6:00.
Shots on goal — Kenai River 10-11-18—39; Minnesota 14-16-6—36.
Goalies — Kenai River, Zenone (36 shots, 31 saves); Minnesota, Erickson (39 shots, 38 saves).
Power plays — Kenai River 1 for 4; Minnesota 0 for 4.
