2013–14 NAHL season
| 2013–14 NAHL season | |
|---|---|
| League | North American Hockey League |
| Sport | Ice hockey |
| Duration | Regular season September 13, 2013 – March 30, 2014 Post-season April 3 – May 10, 2014 |
| Number of games | 60 |
| Number of teams | 24 |
| Regular season | |
| Season champions | Fairbanks Ice Dogs |
| Season MVP | Alec Butcher (Kenai River Brown Bears) |
| Top scorer | Alec Butcher (Kenai River Brown Bears) |
| Robertson Cup Playoffs | |
| Finals champions | Fairbanks Ice Dogs |
| Runners-up | Austin Bruins |
The 2013–14 NAHL season was the 30th season of the North American Hockey League. The regular season ran from September 2013 to April 2014 with a 60-game schedule for each team. The Fairbanks Ice Dogs won the regular season championship and went on to defeat the Austin Bruins 2 games to 0 in the championship round to capture the Robertson Cup.
Member changes
- In July, 2012, the NAHL received an application for a new franchise in Laredo, Texas.[1] After receiving approval, the prospective club planned on being active by the start of this season. However, the club never materialized.
- In December 2012, The dormant New Mexico Mustangs franchise was purchased by the Minnesota Junior Hockey Group.[2] The club was moved to Richfield, Minnesota and became the Minnesota Magicians.
- On January 19, 2013, USA Hockey approved the transfer of the Wenatchee Wild from the NAHL to the British Columbia Hockey League for the 2013–14 season.[3] However, on May 14, 2013, the Wild announced they would instead relocate the franchise to Hidalgo, Texas and play as the Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees of the NAHL.[4] Eight days later, the Wenatchee City Council approved a deal to purchase the Fresno Monsters franchise and relocate it to Wenatchee, assuming the Wild's name.[5]
- In mid-February, the Kalamazoo Jr. K-Wings announced that they would be folding at the end of the season.[6] The team attempted to sell the franchise rights but ended up dissolving when no prospective buyer surfaced.
- On May 10, 2013, the Minnesota Wilderness, an active junior team from the Superior International Junior Hockey League (SIJHL), were granted permission to join the NAHL.[7] As part the arrangement, the team purchased the franchise rights from the dormant St. Louis Bandits who had last played in 2012.
- Around the same time, the Jamestown Ironmen decided to suspend operations and released all of their players from their contracts.[8]
- In July, the Texas Tornado was sold to Texas Hockey Partners (THP). The franchise was relocated to North Richland Hills, Texas and became the Lone Star Brahmas.[9]
Regular season
The standings at the end of the regular season were as follows:[10]
Note: x = clinched playoff berth; y = clinched division title; z = clinched regular season title
Standings
Central Division
| Team | GP | W | L | OTL | Pts | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| xy – Austin Bruins | 60 | 40 | 19 | 1 | 81 | 189 | 155 |
| x – Aberdeen Wings | 60 | 38 | 18 | 4 | 80 | 183 | 140 |
| x – Bismarck Bobcats | 60 | 31 | 24 | 5 | 67 | 176 | 157 |
| x – Minot Minotauros | 60 | 24 | 33 | 3 | 51 | 130 | 165 |
| Brookings Blizzard | 60 | 18 | 34 | 8 | 44 | 132 | 206 |
Midwest Division
| Team | GP | W | L | OTL | Pts | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| xyz – Fairbanks Ice Dogs | 60 | 45 | 14 | 1 | 91 | 215 | 136 |
| x – Minnesota Wilderness | 60 | 37 | 14 | 9 | 83 | 159 | 115 |
| x – Wenatchee Wild | 60 | 29 | 23 | 8 | 66 | 169 | 163 |
| x – Kenai River Brown Bears | 60 | 28 | 24 | 8 | 64 | 164 | 178 |
| Coulee Region Chill | 60 | 31 | 28 | 1 | 63 | 181 | 181 |
| Minnesota Magicians | 60 | 21 | 31 | 8 | 50 | 143 | 193 |
North Division
| Team | GP | W | L | OTL | Pts | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| xy – Port Huron Fighting Falcons | 60 | 35 | 15 | 10 | 80 | 187 | 151 |
| x – Michigan Warriors | 60 | 30 | 20 | 10 | 70 | 178 | 173 |
| x – Janesville Jets | 60 | 32 | 24 | 4 | 68 | 171 | 174 |
| x – Johnstown Tomahawks | 60 | 28 | 27 | 5 | 61 | 167 | 181 |
| Springfield Jr. Blues | 60 | 26 | 26 | 8 | 60 | 141 | 160 |
| Soo Eagles | 60 | 25 | 27 | 8 | 58 | 149 | 187 |
South Division
| Team | GP | W | L | OTL | Pts | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| xy – Amarillo Bulls | 60 | 40 | 14 | 6 | 86 | 207 | 120 |
| x – Topeka RoadRunners | 60 | 39 | 15 | 6 | 84 | 180 | 122 |
| x – Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees | 60 | 35 | 18 | 7 | 77 | 150 | 121 |
| x – Wichita Falls Wildcats | 60 | 31 | 25 | 4 | 66 | 170 | 157 |
| Lone Star Brahmas | 60 | 23 | 33 | 4 | 50 | 136 | 204 |
| Corpus Christi IceRays | 60 | 19 | 31 | 10 | 48 | 124 | 178 |
| Odessa Jackalopes | 60 | 15 | 40 | 5 | 35 | 123 | 217 |
Statistics
Scoring leaders
The following players led the league in regular season points at the completion of all regular season games. [11]
| Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alec Butcher | Kenai River Brown Bears | 60 | 24 | 42 | 66 | 70 |
| Jay Dickman | Austin Bruins | 59 | 28 | 36 | 64 | 68 |
| Mike Davis | Amarillo Bulls | 60 | 28 | 35 | 63 | 125 |
| Tyler Poulsen | Topeka RoadRunners | 56 | 29 | 32 | 61 | 44 |
| Jake Kamrass | Topeka RoadRunners | 60 | 24 | 35 | 59 | 59 |
| Tayler Munson | Fairbanks Ice Dogs | 56 | 24 | 34 | 58 | 33 |
| T. J. Roo | Amarillo Bulls | 56 | 22 | 32 | 54 | 26 |
| Tyler Gernhofer | Aberdeen Wings | 55 | 31 | 22 | 53 | 50 |
| Troy Loggins | Wenatchee Wild | 60 | 23 | 30 | 53 | 45 |
| Michael Louria | Janesville/Minot | 53 | 26 | 26 | 52 | 30 |
Leading goaltenders
Note: GP = Games played; Mins = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; OTL = Overtime losses; SOL = Shootout losses; SO = Shutouts; GAA = Goals against average; SV% = Save percentage
| Player | Team | GP | Mins | W | L | OTL | SOL | SO | GA | SV | SV% | GAA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kasimir Kaskisuo | Minnesota Wilderness | 32 | 1951:24 | 21 | 6 | 1 | 4 | 9 | 48 | 814 | .944 | 1.48 |
| P. J. Bridges | Topeka RoadRunners | 36 | 2101:14 | 26 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 10 | 54 | 851 | .940 | 1.54 |
| Collin Delia | Amarillo Bulls | 31 | 1722:58 | 22 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 45 | 683 | .937 | 1.57 |
| Nick Schmit | Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees | 30 | 1556:32 | 17 | 9 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 43 | 538 | .926 | 1.66 |
| Nick Lehr | Austin Bruins | 49 | 2927:13 | 35 | 13 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 90 | 1,231 | .932 | 1.85 |
Robertson Cup playoffs
Teams are reseeded prior to the semifinal round based upon regular season records.
| Division Semifinals (Best-of-5) | Division Finals (Best-of-5) | Semifinal (Best-of-3) | Championship (Best-of-3) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| C1 | Austin Bruins | 6 | 2 | 2 | 4*** | - | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| C4 | Minot Minotauros | 8 | 1 | 1 | 3 | - | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| C1 | Austin Bruins | 5* | 1 | 0 | 4 | 2 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Central Division | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| C3 | Bismarck Bobcats | 4 | 2* | 4 | 3 | 1 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| C2 | Aberdeen Wings | 2 | 1 | 0 | - | - | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| C3 | Bismarck Bobcats | 4 | 5 | 5 | - | - | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1 | Fairbanks Ice Dogs | 3 | 3 | - | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 4 | Michigan Warriors | 1 | 0 | - | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| MW1 | Fairbanks Ice Dogs | 3 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 3* | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| MW4 | Kenai River Brown Bears | 0 | 3* | 2 | 4 | 2 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| MW1 | Fairbanks Ice Dogs | 0 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 3* | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Midwest Division | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| MW3 | Wenatchee Wild | 4 | 2 | 0 | 3*** | 2 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| MW2 | Minnesota Wilderness | 0 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 0 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| MW3 | Wenatchee Wild | 3 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 1* | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1 | Fairbanks Ice Dogs | 5* | 6 | - | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2 | Austin Bruins | 4 | 2 | - | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| N1 | Port Huron Fighting Falcons | 3 | 4* | 4 | - | - | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| N4 | Johnstown Tomahawks | 2 | 3 | 3 | - | - | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| N1 | Port Huron Fighting Falcons | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | - | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| North Division | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| N2 | Michigan Warriors | 1*** | 3 | 1 | 4 | - | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| N2 | Michigan Warriors | 4 | 5 | 3 | - | - | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| N3 | Janesville Jets | 2 | 1 | 2 | - | - | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2 | Austin Bruins | 5 | 6 | 4* | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 3 | Topeka RoadRunners | 7 | 4 | 3 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| S1 | Amarillo Bulls | 4 | 7 | 3 | - | - | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| S4 | Wichita Falls Wildcats | 2 | 4 | 2 | - | - | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| S1 | Amarillo Bulls | 2 | 1 | 3* | 5 | 2 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| South Division | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| S2 | Topeka RoadRunners | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 6 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| S2 | Topeka RoadRunners | 3 | 2* | 3* | - | - | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| S3 | Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees | 1 | 1 | 2 | - | - | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Note: * denotes overtime period(s)
Division Semifinals
Central Division
(C1) Austin Bruins vs. (C4) Minot Minotauros
| April 4 | Austin Bruins | 6 – 8 | Minot Minotauros | Riverside Arena | ||||
| April 5 | Austin Bruins | 2 – 1 | Minot Minotauros | Riverside Arena | ||||
| April 11 | Minot Minotauros | 1 – 2 | Austin Bruins | Maysa Arena | ||||
| April 26 | Minot Minotauros | 3 – 4 | 3OT | Austin Bruins | Maysa Arena | |||
| Austin wins series 3 – 1 | |
References
- ^ "NAHL Expansion To Rio And Laredo". The Junior Hockey News. July 2, 2012. Retrieved July 31, 2013.
- ^ "Richfield, Minnesota team granted membership to NAHL". North American Hockey League. December 21, 2012. Retrieved July 31, 2013.
- ^ "USA Hockey Approves Wenatchee Wild to BCHL". JuniorHockey.com.
- ^ "Wenatchee Wild to relocate NAHL membership to Hidalgo, Texas". Junior Hockey News. May 14, 2013.
- ^ "Press Conference Scheduled for Wednesday". Wenatchee Wild. June 3, 2013. Archived from the original on April 2, 2015.
- ^ "Jr. K-Wings to cease operations after this season". Kalamazoo Gazette. February 4, 2013. Retrieved June 4, 2025.
- ^ "Minnesota Wilderness granted membership to NAHL for 2013-14 season". NAHL. May 10, 2013. Retrieved June 4, 2025.
- ^ "Jamestown Ironmen And Other NAHL Updates". The Junior Hockey News. May 21, 2013. Retrieved June 4, 2025.
- ^ "Texas Hockey Partners purchase and relocate Texas Tornado membership". NAHL. July 27, 2013. Retrieved June 4, 2025.
- ^ "NAHL Standings". North American Hockey League. Retrieved May 26, 2025.
- ^ "NAHL Stats". North American Hockey League. Retrieved May 26, 2025.